Writing the News

This second edition of this guide to newswriting brings aspiring journalists up to date on what it takes to put together a news story, from conception to execution. Veteran journalist, editor and educator Fox walks the beginning writer through the principles and techniques of organizing a news story and writing it with style and depth. In nine chapters, he covers essential journalistic skills, from lead writing and story development to handling quotes and composing feature stories. Fox also pays special attention to questions of style and context, varieties of the basic newswriting structure and alternatives to traditional story forms. His approach should ground a reader in the basic "rules" of newswriting without allowing the process to become a straitjacket. More than a how-to manual, the text is also an appreciation of the craft of newswriting as a modern art form. As such, it should be a valuable source for anyone involved in print journalism or interested in the rhetoric of news.