The inverted pyramid model places the most fundamental and newsworthy information at the top followed by supporting details, with the least important background information at the bottom.
This ensures that if a reader stops halfway, or if an editor needs to cut the story from the bottom to fit a space, the main points of the story remain.
Welcome to this Media Helping Media (MHM) exercise about the essential elements of a news story, which is published on MHM. You are invited to complete the exercise either on your own or with a colleague. Please ensure you read the article above before proceeding.
MHM exercises are for those who are new to journalism to learn skills and test what they know against fictional scenarios. The articles on which the exercises are based have been created from the experience of journalists who have shared their knowledge in order to help others learn the fundamental principles of robust public service journalism.
The first requirement of any piece of journalism is that it should be accurate. Although this is an exercise involving fictitious material, not for publication, trainees must take everything they are told in the exercise to be factual and they must stick to those facts. If one thing they produce in the exercise is inconsistent with those facts, their whole work is discredited.
The scenario
You are a reporter for a local news outlet in the town of Oakfield. A large fire has broken out at a local furniture warehouse called The Pine Emporium on Industrial Way. The fire started at 10:00 am. Three fire engines are on the scene. The Fire Chief, Sarah Miller, says the fire is now under control but the building is a total loss. No one was injured because the staff were on a tea break in a separate building. The cause is thought to be an electrical fault. The business has been running for 25 years.
Exercise tasks
Task 1: Sorting facts by weight
To build an ‘inverted pyramid’ (a metaphor used by journalists to illustrate how information should be prioritised and structured in a text), you must decide which facts are most important. List the following five facts in order of importance, starting with the most critical:
- The cause was an electrical fault.
- The building is a total loss.
- The business has been running for 25 years.
- No one was injured.
- A fire broke out at The Pine Emporium.
Task 2: Writing the lead
Using your top two facts from Task 1, write a 25-word lead (the opening sentence of a story which summarises the main point).
Task 3: Constructing the body of the story
Write a three-paragraph news report (approx. 150 words) following the inverted pyramid structure.
- Paragraph 1: Your lead from Task 2.
- Paragraph 2: Supporting details (the ‘how’ and ‘why’).
- Paragraph 3: Background information (the ‘nice to know’ but not essential facts).
Learning outcomes
By completing this exercise, you will understand how to apply the inverted pyramid to a breaking news event. You will have learned how to separate need-to-know information from nice-to-know background.
Quiz
- Why is the inverted pyramid the preferred structure for news?
- It makes the page look more attractive to the reader.
- It allows the most important facts to be seen first and makes the story easier to trim from the bottom.
- It helps a journalist avoid any risk of offence.
- It is the only way to ensure ethics are followed.
- In the inverted pyramid, where does the background information go?
- In the very first sentence.
- In a separate privacy notice.
- At the narrow bottom of the story.
- It should never be included in a news story.
- If an editor needs to cut your story for space, what should be the first part to go?
- The lead paragraph.
- The quotes.
- The final paragraph.
- Your description of the scene.
- How does the inverted pyramid help reduce bias?
- By forcing the journalist to focus on objective facts at the top rather than personal opinions.
- By hiding the identity of the people involved.
- By making the story so short that no one can disagree with it.
- It doesn’t; it is only used for layout purposes.
- What is the lead in the context of the inverted pyramid?
- The most experienced journalist on the team.
- The first paragraph containing the most essential information.
- The metal once used in printing presses.
- The contact details for the main source.
Quiz answers
1: b (It allows the most important facts to be seen first and makes the story easier to trim from the bottom)
2: c (At the narrow bottom of the story)
3: c (The final paragraph)
4: a (By forcing the journalist to focus on objective facts at the top)
5: b (The first paragraph containing the most essential information)
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