The Language of Newspapers

Newspaper articles require a different style of writing from what is used when writing a story. When writing a newspaper article, picture a triangle like the one shown here:

The newspaper article has all of the important information in the opening paragraph.

This information includes who, what, when, where, why and how. It is written this way because most people do not read an entire newspaper article all the way through. So newspaper writers put the most important information at the beginning.

Now, can you spot the parts of a news article?

Choose one of the articles about The X Factor and identify the five parts.

Read the information below to help you.

A typical newspaper article contains five (5) parts:

Headline: This is a short, attention-getting statement about the event.

Byline: This tells who wrote the story.

Lead paragraph: This has ALL the who, what, when, where, why and how in it. A writer must find the answers to these questions and write them into the opening sentence(s) of the article.

Explanation: After the lead paragraph has been written, the writer must decide what other facts or details the reader might want to know. The writer must make sure that he/she has enough information to answer any important questions a reader might have after reading the headline and the lead paragraph. This section can also include direct quotes from witnesses or bystanders.

Additional Information: This information is the least important. Thus, if the news article is too long for the space it needs to fill, it can be shortened without rewriting any other part. This part can include information about a similar event.