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JOURNALISTIC PRACTICES
III /IV SEMESTER
2019 Admission
BA ENGLISH/MALAYALAM
Complementary Course
(JOU4(3) C01)
UNIVERSITY OF CALICUT, School of Distance Education,
Calicut University P.O., Malappuram, Kerala – 673635.
19702
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UNIVERSITY OF CALICUT
SCHOOL OF DISTANCE EDUCATION
STUDY MATERIAL
III/IV SEMESTER
2019 Admission
BA ENGLISH/MALAYALAM
Complementary Course (JOU4(3) C01)
JOURNALISTIC PRACTICES
Prepared by:
Dr. Muhammadali N., Associate Professor, Dept of Mass Communication and Journalism, University of Calicut.
Scrutinized by:
Dr. Abdul Muneer. V., Associate Professor & Head, Dept. of Journalism, EMEA College of Arts & Science, Kondotty.
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PREFACE
This study material is prepared based on the syllabus for Journalistic Practices under
the BA Programme of the School of Distance Education, University of Calicut. The
syllabus has six modules such as Print Media Journalism: Organizational Structure
of a Newspaper, Content Categories and Reporting Practices, Editing for
Newspaper, Public Relations, Advertising and Copywriting Practices.
Being a study note for helping students the contents are collected and curated using
different sources. The list of sources from which the contents are
collected/generated is given at the end of this material. Also, some study materials
already published by the SDE of the University for Journalism courses were also
used to collect the content for this note.
Gayatri Baiju, Sikha N and Manjusha PM at the Department of Journalism and Mass
Communication, University of Calicut have contributed to the preparation of the
notes on Module III to VI.
I thank them for their help.
Muhammadali N
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CONTENTS
Module I PRINT MEDIA JOURNALISM: ORGANIZATIONAL
STRUCTURE OF A NEWSPAPER
Module II PRINT MEDIA JOURNALISM:
CONTENTS AND REPORTING PRACTICES
Module III PRINT MEDIA JOURNALISM: EDITING
Module IV PUBLIC RELATIONS
MODULE V ADVERTISING
Module VI COPYWRITING PRACTICES
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MODULE I
PRINT MEDIA JOURNALISM
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF A NEWSPAPER
Print Media: An Introduction
In 1457, Johannes Gutenberg invented movable metal types. This paved the way for
mass production of printed materials. Resultantly, presses and publications spread
rapidly first across Europe, then in other continents. Mass production of printed
documents led to democratization of knowledge. In other words, it made knowledge
and education accessible to common people. It was exactly a revolution because till then
knowledge was considered the property of the elite.
The print media are different in their binding, regularity, content and timeliness, though
the means and methods for production are similar to certain extent.
Features
Types of Print Media
Books Magazines Newspapers
Binding Stitched /Glued Stapled Unbound
Regularity Single Issue At least quarterly At least weekly
Content Single Topic Diverse Topic Diverse Topic
Timeliness Generally, not
timely
May be timely or
untimely
Timeliness is
important
These are not rigid distinctions. However, they are helpful to understand the features of
each type.
Newspapers
Newspapers are periodically published documents that carry current information about
the society. Earlier newspapers were not daily publications as we see now. They were
published weekly or bi-weekly. This was due to the absence of adequate technology and
newsgathering system. By the early 19th century, power press was invented. This led to
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fast printing. Invention of telegraph and teleprinter also helped us gather news from
remote places. This all facilitated the introduction of daily newspapers.
The first newspaper was Publick Occurrences published by Ben Harris in 1690. The first
newspaper published in India was the Bengal Gazzet by James Augustus Hicky in 1780.
It is also called Hicky’s Gazette.
Newspapers are primary mass medium from which people receive news. The research
results show that newspapers reach more people than any other medium do. And, by
every measure, newspaper industry overpowers all other media, be it in advertising
revenue and in the size of audience.
Unlike other mass media, newspapers influence people in a many significant ways. A
newspaper article or news is valued more than television or radio programmes. And,
newspaper content is considered more credible and accurate. Capability to be used for
future reference make newspapers people’s favorable medium, especially for the middle
and working class for they can use it after their working hours. Diversity of content is
another feature of this medium. It can carry a rich mix of news, features, articles,
columns, cartoons, graphics, editorial etc. And, readers can select what they want from
the entire content. Some people prefer sports page and they read it first while others
look for political news and some other for stock market. Selectivity and content
diversity make newspapers a real mass medium. This is not possible in the case of radio
and television.
In any society, the traditional newspapers are part of their culture and social system.
They talk about their newspapers affectionately because they give them information,
education, entertainment, more over ways for socialization and legitimization of new
values. In democratic society, the Press is the Fourth Estate. At primary level, the Press
means newspapers.
Of the print media, newspapers are the most read one. It is assumed that 3 out of every
4 literates read newspapers. In United States of America, daily newspapers reach 185
million people a day. For advertisers, newspaper is a medium of choice since it attracts
more active readers (active audience) when compared to any other media.
Newspapers are printed products created on a regular (weekly or daily) basis and
published in multiple copies, containing mainly updated information about happenings
in the society. Regular newspapers were not in circulation till 17th century because of
the absence of adequate printing or duplication technology.
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Role of Newspapers
In their early years, newspapers were centre of debate and they were run by scholars,
political leaders, reformers and revolutionaries. The main mission of the Press in its
infant stage was to argue with government for better life conditions and freedom of the
people. Because of their capability to raise public opinion and alternative thinking, the
Press at that time is called by media historians as adversarial press. During this period,
governments imposed stringent licensing systems and taxes on newspapers. In spite of
these measures, English newspapers continued their battle against colonial policies of
the Britain. The public anger created by the Press culminated in the American
Revolutionary War. The newspapers in other countries may also have same kind of
stories to tell. The early newspapers, both in English and in local languages in India also
formed public opinion against the British policies and at last resulted in the withdrawal
of English forces from Indian soil.
Advances in printing technology encouraged newspapers to adopt new modes of
production and distribution which led to mass circulation of the medium. Circulation
means the number of newspapers people paid for or received free in one publishing
cycle. The steam powered cylinder press invented by Hoe and Company and
development of low-cost newsprint were the innovations in printing sector. These made
it possible to print thousands of copies in a short time and sell them at a price low
enough that even working people could afford. It was then newspapers became the real
mass medium. During 1800s, with their popularity newspapers were sold on the street
at a low price. So, they are called penny papers. Newspaper circulation increased into
tens of thousands due to the popularity they gained over decades and more and more
innovations were introduced in printing sector. Rotary press with revolving types and
offset press are some of them.
Characteristics of Newspapers
Primarily, newspapers are print media even though digital age offers online newspapers
and e-newspapers. That is why it has all the features that any print medium has. Major
features of mass media are given below:
Predominance of news-oriented content: There are three types of content in
newspapers: news, views and advertisements. Of these, news overshadows the others
because newspapers are primarily meant for the dissemination of news.
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Regular periodicity: Newspapers may be published daily or weekly. Periodicity may
vary but, regularity should be kept. Every newspaper keeps a particular regularity in
publication.
Future reference facility: Being a print medium, newspapers can be kept for future
use. This archiving ability makes newspapers one of the main sources of historical
research.
Choice of the time of use: Unlike television and radio, we can read newspapers at any
time. Some read in the morning while others in the evening after work. This facility
increases the popularity of newspapers.
The Literates’ medium: Unlike television and radio, newspaper demands literacy from
the part of the audience.
Low cost: Compared to other media, newspaper is a cost effective medium. Anybody
can afford a newspaper as it needs no hidden charges or other accessories. Electronic
media requires power supply and the new media need digital technology.
Multiple Users: Many readers can read a copy of the newspaper simultaneously or
separately.
Textual Medium: Text is the soul of newspapers, though they carry images and
graphics.
Types of Newspapers
Newspapers can be categorized into various types based on their page size/format,
content type, periodicity, time of publication, area of circulation and type of the users.
By Page Size/Page Format
By size, newspapers can be divided into three: Broadsheet, Tabloid and Berliner
Broadsheet is the largest of the various newspaper formats and is
characterized by long vertical pages (typically 22 inches / 559 millimetres or
more). The term derives from types of popular prints usually just of a single
sheet, sold on the streets and containing various types of material, from
ballads to political satire. The first broadsheet newspaper was published in
1618. Most of the Malayalam newspapers are in broadsheet format.
Tabloid is a smaller newspaper format per spread mostly used for a weekly
or semi-weekly alternative newspaper that focuses on local-interest stories
and entertainment. The tabloid newspaper format is particularly popular in
the United Kingdom where its page dimensions are roughly 430 × 280 mm
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(16.9 in × 11.0 in). Tehelka, well known Indian news weekly is in tabloid
format.
Berliner is a newspaper format with pages normally measuring about
470 × 315 mm (18.5 × 12.4 in). The Berliner format is slightly taller and
marginally wider than the tabloid format; and is both narrower and shorter
than the broadsheet format. The Berliner format is used by many European
newspapers, including dailies such as Le Monde in France, and The Guardian
in the United Kingdom.
Broadsheet
Tabloid
Berliner
By time of publication
Morning Dailies
Evening Dailies
By Content
By content type, newspapers are mainly classified as general newspapers, political
newspapers, and financial/business newspapers. Some other categories are also
possible, but not in currency.
By Periodicity
Dailies and weeklies are two type of newspapers based on the periodicity. Dailies are
newspapers that are published at least five times a week and weeklies are those
published once a week.
In the West, Sunday newspapers are a common scene. But in India, newspapers publish
literary / entertainment/ cultural supplements for leisure reading.
By Circulation Area
National Dailies: Their primary area of circulation is across the nation. Wall
Street Journal, USA Today are national dailies of the USA. Guardian, Sun and
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Independent are British dailies. The Hindu, Times of India and Hindustan Times
are national dailies in India.
Hometown newspapers: Town-centric newspapers focusing issues on that
particular city is called hometown newspapers. Midday of Mumbai is an example.
Metropolitan dailies: Dailies concentrate on the affairs of a metro city.
Examples: Metro Vartha of Malayala Manorama.
By Audience
Community Newspapers: Newspapers published on and by a community. E.g.,
Newsday based in New York. Deepika in Malayalam.
Religious Newspapers: Newspapers published by religious organizations,
focusing on religious news with a mission of propagation. Eg. Punyabhoomi
Immigrant and Ethnic Newspaper: Newspapers published by ethnic groups
living in alien lands as expatriates like Indians in the Gulf countries. Benjamin
Franklin’s Philadelphische Zeitung in 1732 is the first of its kind. Gulf
Madhyamam published from the Middle East is first full-fledged ethnic media in
Malayalam.
Black Newspapers: A phenomenon found in the West. Newspapers by and on
the black people. First black newspaper is Samuel Cornish’s Freedom’s Journal.
A.M. Journal founded by Malcolm X, Chicago Daily Defender and New York Daily
Challenge are modern black newspapers.
Gay Newspapers: Newspapers carrying news about trans-gender groups. The
first Gay Newspaper is Jim Michales’ Advocate started in 1967 in America.
By Language
English
Vernacular
Braille: Newspapers published for the blind.
STRUCTURE OF A NEWSPAPER ORGANIZATION
The organizational structure of newspapers varies according to their size, filed of
operation and volume of the turnover. Generally, newspapers have four major
departments- Editorial, Digital, Business and Mechanical Production.
Editorial Department
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It is the most significant of all others as it manages to gather and process news and non-
news content of the medium. This department runs under the control of Chief Editor
and it includes an array of editorial professional with varying designations and
responsibilities. They are Assistant Editors, Associate Editors, News Editors, Chief Sub
Editors, Sub Editors, Bureau Chiefs, Correspondents, Reporters etc.
The Editorial division is segmented into two: Desk and Field. Desk is the general term
for the editorial team that processes and manages news while Field is the term to
denote the news collectors under the leadership of Bureau Chiefs. But, for the successful
operation of the newspaper, both desk and field work together as a team under the
leadership of the Chief Editor.
Organizational Structure of Editorial Division
The chart given above illustrates the organizational structure of the editorial division in
a medium sized newspaper.
Digital Department
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Digital Department of a newspaper handles digital services required for the smooth
running of both editorial and other departments in the newspaper organization. It is a
new addition to the traditional newspaper organizational structure to meet the
requirements of the digital revolution. The major services of this department are to
develop software and multimedia platforms for the newspaper. Platforms for running
online version of the media and its operation in a professional fashion is one of the
primary services rendered by this department. Similarly, a good digital department
develops software for other divisions like accounts, human resource management etc.
come under the purview of the Business Department.
Business Department which includes Purchase Section, Accounting Section, Payroll
Section, Human Resources Section, Planning and Development Section. The following
three sub sections also function under Business Section:
o Marketing Section: Market Research Section, Promotion Section and
Public Relations Section.
o Advertising Section: Accounts Section, Sales Section and Customer
Service Section.
o Circulation Section: It manages the prompt delivery of the newspaper
and circulation promotion methods.
Mechanical Department: Design, Printing and Packing Sections come under the
Production Section
How a Newspaper is Produced?
In discussing the production of newspaper, we shall focus on two areas: content
creation and printing.
Content Creation
The process of content creation of a newspaper depends on its periodicity (dailies or
weeklies) and nature of circulation.
In general, publisher of the newspaper is in charge of all of a newspaper’s operations,
including financial matters such as getting advertisements, circulation, legal matters,
human resource management, accounts etc., production issues (procurement of
production materials like newsprints, machinery etc.) and editorial issues (general
policy regarding the perspectives and style of presentation of the non-advertising
matters).
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The publisher sets the advertising-editorial ratio subject to the rules and regulations
framed by the governments and controlling agencies. Ad-editorial ratio helps us define
the balance between the amount of space separately available for advertisements and
editorial matters. Typical ratio between editorial/news and advertisements is 60:40 in
most countries. The space allotted for news/editorial content is called news hole and
the space available for advertisements is called pay hole.
Editor is the person responsible to manage all operations to fill the news hole while
advertising manager under the guidance of the publisher will take care of the pay hole.
There will be an array of professionals like Managing Editor, Assistant Editor, Resident
Editor, News Editor, Chief Sub Editor, Sub Editor and Reporters in the field to assist the
Editor in his operations.
The editorial department has two distinct teams working in tandem:
News gatherers (reporters)
News processors (editors)
News gatherers are field staff while news processors as the desk staff.
Reporters gather news independently or under the guidance of the desk. They report
news according to the content types required for the newspapers. In a typical urban
newspaper, the sections based on content types might be entertainment, finance, sports,
fashion, television/radio, politics, culture and foreign news.
Production Process
Once the news is identified, it is reported by the field staff and edited by those in the
desk. Next starts the production stage. The first step in this phase is newspaper design.
In some newspaper firms, sub editors themselves design pages; in others layout artists
do the job. With the Desk Top Publishing (DTP), it has been easy for any computer
literate to design newspaper pages. QuarkExpress and Adobe InDesign are the
commonly used software for page design in Indian newspapers. Pages are set according
to the dummy, a skeleton of the newspaper page, given by the advertising department
after marking the space for advertisements of the day. Designer/Sub Editor arranges
news stories and news photos on the pages according to their importance. To make the
pages visually attractive, pages are arranged keeping:
Symmetry: Visual balance of the text and graphics
Colour balance: Visual balance of the various color used.
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Judicious use of white space: To provide enough white space to avoid messy
design
Readability criteria: To make the page functionally readable
Legibility: Clarity and visibility of the text and graphics
Consistency: Standardization of the design for newspaper branding
House style: Standards devised by each newspaper organization should be
followed in design.
Now, the page is ready. It is handed over to senior editors like chief sub editor, news
editor, assistant editor or any such supervising staff for scrutiny and approval. After the
approval, the pages will be sent to plate making section. Earlier the plates were made
after filming the pages. But, advances in technology help skip this step. Now, pages can
be directly transferred to plates (Plates are aluminum sheets on which images of the
pages are printed using special chemicals). These plates are mounted on to printing
machines for printing. Printed newspapers are packed for transportation to the
newspaper agents.
In a newspaper organization, every task has a time limit. Otherwise, we will not get
newspapers early morning every day. The time limit for completing an assignment is
called deadline.
Very good internal communication is essential for better function of a newspaper
organization. Reporters should inform what is up there in the field. Editors should
inform each other about the stories allotted to each page. Designer should consult with
the sub editor about arranging news on a page and with the printer about the
technicalities of printing. Advertising department should give advertisement details on
time and marketing section should inform the editorial section about the market needs.
In short, everybody should go hand in hand for successful functioning of a newspaper
organization.
Editing and Editors
Editing is the most import function in newspaper production. Editor defines the form
and content of the newspaper as well as he proclaims the policy and viewpoint of the
organization on various issues in news. Editing is a responsibility that requires many
skills and values.
Who is a good editor?
For the answer, read this advertisement.
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The advertisement lists a range of qualities required for the editor the newspaper
organization searches for. A good journalist must have these qualities. Editors need to
be strong journalists and newsroom leaders. They are involved in the news process
from beginning to end. Editors need good news judgment because they serve as
assignment managers, responsible for deciding what stories will be covered and by
whom. They must be good writers in order to help shape the story as it is developing,
discussing it with reporters in the field and deciding where to deploy more people to
cover additional angles. Editors are directly involved in decisions about story
presentation, writing or choosing headlines, captions, photos, and illustrations. And
they must lead and motivate the employees who report to them, says Deborah Potter,
famous journalism researcher.
Newspaper editors check copy, choose illustrations — either graphics or photos — and
decide how the story will be laid out on the page as well as the headline, she adds.
The major processes an editor should perform are
Editing
Headlining
Writing Captions
Selecting and editing images and graphics
Supervising newspaper design
Editor Wanted
A well-known newspaper wants editors.
The person should have strong writing, editing, and layout skills. … He or she should be accurate, responsible, and able to work well
within a team atmosphere, and possess supervisory skills. He or she should be expert news judgment … superior writing skills … must
have management skills, must be multi-task oriented, and well organized.
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Copy Editing
An accuracy check is the first level of copy-editing. Editors look for grammatical and
usage errors, as well as for spelling mistakes. They pay particular attention to subject-
verb agreement and subject-pronoun agreement. Editors make sure that all numbers in
a story are correct: addresses, telephone numbers, ages, date, and time references. They
rework any calculations the reporter may have performed to make sure the math is
correct. They confirm that the reporter has used proper titles for everyone who is
quoted, and they review the use of attribution throughout the story.
Editors also look closely for any errors of fact or issues of fairness. Meticulous editors
read stories with a skeptical eye, with questions like these in mind:
• How does the reporter know this?
• Why should the audience believe this?
• Is the main point of the story supported?
• Are the quotes accurate, and do they capture what the person really meant?
• Are all sides represented?
• Is something missing?
• Is the story fair?
Editors also pay attention to matters of taste and language, which vary depending on
the local culture.
Writing Headlines and Captions
Besides editing stories, editors prepare additional material that accompanies the
stories. In newspapers, editors write headlines for stories and captions for photos.
A headline is both a summary and an advertisement. It gives the audience a quick idea
of what the story is about, and tells readers why they should be interested in reading
the entire piece.
A caption is more of a label, telling readers what the photograph or graphic shows. In
broadcast newsrooms, producers may write headlines and also what are called teases,
short descriptions of stories designed to make listeners or viewers want to stay tuned to
get the full report.
Headlines, by definition, are short and catchy. A print headline summarizes the
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story, gets the reader’s attention, helps organize the news on the printed page, and,
through the use of different sizes of type, indicates the relative importance of each story.
Good editors simply do not compress the lead paragraph into just a few words while
writing headlines. They try to capture the central point of the story in the headline, so
they need to understand a story fully before trying to write a headline. The editor has to
read the story from beginning to end, and look at the photographs and graphics that will
accompany the story.
Photo captions also have a different purpose from headlines. Instead of summarizing
content the way a headline does, a caption helps the reader appreciate what’s inside the
visual frame. The photograph and caption together form a small story that the reader
can understand without having to read the text of the story that accompanies it.
Selecting Visuals
How to write good headlines?
The language in headlines should be simple and straightforward. Use proper names and present tense. It’s generally acceptable not to use conjunctions — articles like “the” — and to drop
linking verbs like “is” or “were.” A story that tells how a woman and her boyfriend were arrested for a string of bank robberies might be headlined: “Bandit, Boyfriend Held in Robberies.”
A headline should match the tone of the story. Hard news stories demand a straight
summary.
How to write good captions?
Good captions should clearly identify the main people in a photograph. If several people are featured, it’s often helpful to let the reader know that the
central character is the one “wearing a cap” or “standing on the right.” Captions should not repeat the exact wording of the headline or lift a sentence
directly from the story. And caption writers don’t need to spell out what can be seen clearly in the photo.
“Carlos Fernández smiles as he gets off the plane” is a less effective caption than: “A jubilant Carlos Fernández returns from 15 years in exile.”
Most captions are short, just one or two lines in small type. But on occasion, a
newspaper or online site will carry multiple photographs with longer captions in
a photo essay that tells a complete story. Longer captions can use quotations from
the people pictured.
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While selecting visuals for the print media, editors should keep the following advice
given by Deborah Potter. She says:
Every graphic must have a purpose.
Filling empty space or airtime is not a sufficient reason for using a graphic.
A graphic should enhance the reader or viewer understands of the story, which
means the editor must fully understand the story before designing or choosing a
graphic to go along with it.
Graphic artists usually produce the visual images; the role of the editor is to
conceptualize the graphic, find the information it should contain or illustrate,
and ascertain its accuracy.
Graphics can convey basic facts or illustrate a process.
Writing Features
Hard-news stories are typically an assemblage of facts. Some are better-written than
others, but they all exist to fulfill a simple purpose - convey information.
Feature stories, on the other hand, aim to do much more. They convey facts, but they
also tell the stories of people's lives. To do that, they must incorporate facets of writing
often not found in news stories, ones that are often associated with fiction writing.
At the heart of all feature stories is human interest. While try to write features, we
should keep the following characteristics of a feature stories in mind.
Feature stories are descriptive and full of detail. They generally have a strong narrative
line. Feature stories have a strong lead that grabs readers and makes them want to read
on. To prepare feature stories, we often depend on interviews. And, we abundantly
include quotations from the person(s) involved. Feature stories combine facts and
opinion, with a focus on the human-interest side of the story. While they can report
news, the news content is not of primary importance. They both educate and entertain.
They can include colorful detail as well as humor. Feature stories contain the voice of
the writer. They can be organized in a variety of ways (i.e., chronologically, narrative
fashion). Feature stories often put the “meat” on the “skeletal bones” of a news story.
Translation
According to The Oxford Companion to the English Language, translation is the
communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent
target-language text.
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There are three major types of translation
Word-for-word translation: a translation that matches with the exact word
order in the source text.
Literal translation: a rendering which preserves surface aspects of the message
both semantically and syntactically, adhering closely to source text mode of
expression.
Free translation: a translation that modifies surface expression and keeps intact
only deeper levels of meaning.
Free translation is most commonly used method for translating news.
A competent translator has the following qualities:
Very good knowledge of the language; written and spoken, from which he is
translating (the source language);
Excellent command over the language into which he is translating (the target
language).
CHIEF EDITOR
Chief Editor (CE) is one who controls and manages the newspaper in its entirety. Chief
Editor is appointed by the Board of Directors or owner of the newspaper. All important
decisions connected with the publication and editorial view point are taken by the Chief
Editor in consultation with other editors and sometimes with the owners. CE
coordinates the desk and field. Every newspaper should print the name of the editor in
its imprint line as per the PRB Act that regulates the printing and publication of the
newspapers in India.
The success of a newspaper lies in the smooth relationship between the owner and the
chief editor. It is observed that "the relationship between an editor and a proprietor
need not be a smooth one always. We have numerous cases in India where the editor
had to step down on account of disagreements with the proprietors. In some cases, the
proprietors have unceremoniously kicked out the editors. Legendary Malayalam editor
Swadeshabhimani Ramakrishna Pillai had left the editorship of many newspapers on
account of disagreements with the proprietors". Following are the description of the
other types of editors in newspapers as sourced from one of the study materials of the
SDE at UoC.
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NEWS EDITOR
News editor is in charge of the newsroom and his major responsibility is in the selection
of news stories. He/she allocates tasks to news team and instructs reporters on the
news angles which are to be highlighted in reports. News editor is directly answerable
to the chief editor.
The news editor in consultation with the chief reporter will decide what news stories
should be covered and in what detail. As the final authority on the news, he has the
power to stop the printing of a newspaper in order to accommodate an important fast-
breaking news story. He/she must scan all incoming news and issue directions for
appropriate editing. Dummy for the first page is finalised by the news editor. He/she
should know the pressure, stress, ordeals and joys of working in the late night as well as
the strain of competitive journalism and news operations.
CHIEF SUB-EDITOR
The senior sub-editor or the chief sub-editor is the captain of the editorial section of the
news desk. It is his/her responsibility to see that copies are distributed among the sub-
editors and to ensure that copies are edited properly, attractive and meaningful
headlines are given and copies are free from libels. The edited copies are handed over to
the printing section before the cut-off time.
SUB-EDITOR/COPY EDITOR
The sub-editor also known as copy editor has been described as the midwife to the
story and the unsung hero of a newspaper. He/she should have a lawyer’s analytical
approach and quick-mindedness which enables him/her to understand a story quickly
and come to the core of the matter.
A sub-editor has to give appropriate headlines and, where necessary, revise and
condense the material to suit the available space. These tasks call for a flair for writing
and mastery over the language. He/she has to check and recheck facts, style, grammar
etc. while editing a story in a newspaper.
A sub-editor’s working hours are more regular than that of a reporter. Unlike a reporter
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who can be called to duty at any time, a sub-editor’s duty is fixed like any other office
worker’s. The only difference is that a sub-editor has to work in shifts and his/her work
begins in the late afternoon and goes up to 2 to 3 in the wee hours of the morning.
CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER
Photojournalism is a form of journalism that creates images in order to describe a news
story. A photojournalist is a visual reporter who must often make decisions instantly
and carry photographic equipment, often while exposed to significant obstacles such as
physical danger, weather, crowds etc.
A good photojournalist is both a skilled photographer who uses the camera and other
equipment to his best advantage. He must also be a creative person who mixes
technique and judgement to capture images as they happen because news events do not
wait for the photographer.
A photojournalist must be prepared to act fast and have his camera always at hand.
Interesting pictures are most often a result of the alertness of the photojournalist who is
at the right place at the right time. The chief photographer coordinates the gathering of
photos.
REPORTER/CORRESPONDENTS
A reporter collects news on behalf of the readers of a newspaper. To a great extent, a
newspaper’s reputation and credibility depends on the reporters. They can make or
destroy a newspaper. A reporter performs the noble task of educating and informing the
reader about what is happening around them.
As in every other profession, specialisation is there in reporting too. Big newspapers
have specialists to report political, legal, business, education, crime, sports, films and
special events. These reporters write authoritative articles in their specialised areas.
ONLINE EDITOR
Online Editor is a new addition to the editorial board of the newspapers as they start to
publish their online versions. Almost every newspaper in India now publishes its online
version in two formats: one is with same content and design of the offline newspaper,
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mostly in pdf and the other is specially chosen content on dynamic platforms. Online
reporting and editing need special treatment of the content. Online editors are
responsible for managing the content to maximize the click rate.
STRINGERS AND FREELANCERS
Stringer, part-time or freelance journalist, videographer, or photographer typically
assigned by a news organization to cover areas that are considered less newsworthy or
that are deemed peripheral to the news organization's coverage area. They are not
entitled to regular salary. Instead, they will get payment according to the length and
volume of news pieces they contribute apart from other expenses incurred like
stationary and travelling allowances. Most of the stringers are paid a monthly fixed
retainer fee to ensure their availability.
As newspapers can’t appoint fulltime reporters in every remote and local areas,
stringers are very important to avoid missing important newsbreaks in such areas.
Mostly, newspapers prefer part timers who have other jobs and having journalistic
skills and passion. Though they have much value and recognition in immediate
community, sometimes they have to face threats and dangers in conflict zones from
political parties and other vested interest groups.
Freelancers are journalists who have no fixed employer but rather contribute to one
or many media organisations. They have flexibility to select an organisation where they
want to contribute according to the nature of content they produce. They have freedom
in the choice of subject matter as well. They don’t need to bother about the pressures of
deadline. Majority of the freelancers are reputed journalists who had worked with some
news organisations or writers/columnists who are specialists in some subject areas. So,
they can bargain good remuneration for their stuff. Nowadays, the advent of digital
media have opened numerous avenues for freelancers.
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MODULE II
PRINT MEDIA JOURNALISM:
CONTENTS AND REPORTING PRACTICES
INTRODUCTION
Print media are textual representation of ideas. They might be presented in different
forms and styles. Form and content of the media define their credibility and utility.
Creating print media content requires skill and craft. Writing is a most privileged
profession of all time. Good writers have scope and they are handsomely paid in various
industries. But, writing is a creative activity because it is the process of expressing
oneself. Is writer born? Can a writer be trained? The questions are perennial and valid.
Even then the experience shows that rigorous practice can make one a good writer. Let
us learn some tips for good writing.
Types of media content
The fundamental duty of a journalist is to develop content for his or her newspaper.
Newspaper content can be classified into four: News, Views, Features and
Advertisements. While the first three are developed and published without getting any
income, the last one- advertisements are published charging huge amount of money.
Broadly, media content can be classified as fiction and non-fiction.
Fiction is textual expression of imagination. Non-fiction content includes news, features,
articles, columns etc. Non-fiction content in a print media, especially in a news medium
can be further classified as news content and non-news content. News content means
news reports and news-based articles and facts while non-news content includes
columns, articles of general nature or on specialized topics. The primary element of
news media content is news. Other contents are supplementary to the news hole.
NEWS
In this session, we will discuss news and the way journalists source and report it.
Let's start defining news. A plenty of definitions are available for this category of
newspaper content. Dictionary meaning of news is newly received or noteworthy
information, especially about recent events. Yet another definition is that accurate,
unbiased account of significant facts of any event that attract attention of people. News
is any fact or idea that will interest a mass audience. Some definitions are given below:
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1 An account a recent event that's not known previously
2 News is the report of recent events, or occurrences brought or coming to one as
new information; new occurrences as a subject of report or talk (Oxford
Dictionary)
3 News is something that somebody somewhere doesn’t want to print, wants to
suppress. All the rest is advertising. (Lord Northcliffe, the famous British editor)
4 News is essentially about people, events, surrounding people, and places.
News is a new fact or piece of information about the events, persons and phenomena in
our surroundings i.e. four sides – North, East, West and South. News gathering is the act
by which reporters and editors collect and organize news they want to include in their
publication.
News has been defined in different ways over centuries by its function, objective etc.,
but no single definition has won widespread acceptance.
Walter Lipmann, famous columnist defined news as what produces from the ordinary….
a picture of reality on which people can act.
According to Leo Rosten, news is the departure from the normal.
A satiric definition is given by Nicolos Tomalin: ‘News is things that people don’t want to
be known’.
‘News is something that helps newspaper sells their product’.
‘Gathering of information by trained reporters’.
‘News is what editor thinks readers want to know or that they did not know
yesterday’.
‘Any information that serves the readers’.
For many, it is the record of current events. Today’s records are tomorrow’s history. In
that sense, news reporters are historians of today. All events are not reported; some get
through while others are discarded. The basic question is what makes an event
reportable. Learning the characteristics of news will answer this question.
CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWS (NEWS DETERMINANTS/VALUES)
Both reporters and editors should know what news is and what is not, when they get
numerous stories from different sources. The ability to recognize a good story makes a
good journalist. Good stories contain most or all of the following characteristics
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Timeliness: A reporter focuses on today’s events rather than the ones occurred
weeks ago. And he/she wants to report the story ahead of other reporters. If a
story occurred days ago, journalists try to report it in a new angle which is
appropriate to the present situation, because they know that only new
information or information presented in a new way will attract readers.
Importance: Among the stories of a day, journalists prefer the important events
that affect and interest as many readers as possible. While evaluating the stories
for selection, journalists consider their magnitude. A Tsunami that kills
thousands of people is more newsworthy than a road accident that kills one or
two. An increase in electricity charge is more newsworthy than an increase in
flight charge as the former affects more people.
Prominence: If you are a prominent person, you will always be at the centre of
media’s attention. Most of our news stories are about politicians, writers, artists,
film stars and so on because they have a prominent role in the society or in the
minds of readers. It is a fact that the readers have insatiable appetite for
information about celebrities and a good journalist should consider this since
his/her prime objective is to quench information thirst of the reader.
Proximity: A road accident in Punjab kills ten persons. Another accident in
Kerala kills nine persons. Which one will be prominently reported by the media
in Kerala? Certainly, the second one. Why? People prefer to know what happens
in their neighborhood or locality or in their own communities. Proximity is not
always geographical proximity; it is psychological too. If you have a lot of close
relatives working in the Gulf countries you will be interested to know what
happens to the expatriates there.
Oddities: News should be something unusual, controversial, and unexpected. It
should be something that makes us surprise at least for a while. The fact that two
people died in an accident is more newsworthy than the fact that thousands of
commuters reached home safely.
Consequence: What makes an event important is what would be its effects in
the society. The real event may be a simple court verdict; but, if it results in a
total change in legal view towards an issue that touches millions of people, it
really matters. Then, it’s reported with prominence.
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Apart from these features, dozens of other factors also determine the selection of a
news story. Type of the event (whether tragedy or comedy), size of news medium and
nature of the community it serves, type of the technology used and the media are some
such factors.
A good journalist should know these basic characteristics, which are also known as
news values, for judicious selection of stories for publication.
REPORTING PRACTICES
Primary tasks in a news media firm are news gathering and processing. While news is
gathered by the field staff or reporters, it is processed by the staff at desk or editors.
As mentioned earlier a good reporter should be able to recognize the values that make
an event reportable. News must be new, novel, interesting and informative. News must
be about the unusual rather than the everyday. ‘Dog bites man is not news, but man
bites dog is news’.
News writing is a creative activity performed with utmost care, objectivity and fairness.
Over the years, reporters have developed a unique format for news story writing.
Following are the basic formats followed by news writers
Inverted Pyramid Style
Hourglass Style
Diamond Style
Before learning the news writing styles, let us know what are the ingredients of a news
story.
5 WS AND 1 H
Five Ws and One H is a rule of thumb in news writing, irrespective of the target media.
These are fundamental questions any individual may ask once he/she starts to read a
story.
Who? How? Where? Why? When? and What? are those famous questions. And, an ideal
news story is expected to provide answers to maximum number of these questions.
Examples of news stories that emphasizes on each of the questions above are given
here.
Who?: Well-known Malayalam poet A. Ayyappan died yesterday at
Thiruvananthapuram.
How?: A 22-year criminal punched Police Inspector in the back of the head and
then pulled police gun and shot him to death.
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Where?: A bomb explosion in a mosque at a village in the north west frontier
area of Pakistan killed 80 people.
Why?: A man was arrested for robbery.
When?: Week after the earthquake, a seven year girl was pulled from the rubble
of a collapsed house.
What?: An estimated cost of rupees three million was earmarked for the
construction of a bridge across the Pampa river is mooted by the government.
NEWS LEADS
The first paragraph or two in a news story is called the “lead”. It is the most important
part of the story and most difficult part to write. Writing effective lead is a painful
activity which needs creativity. Lead is the threshold from where the reader enters the
story. So, the first impression should be the best impression. It should be as much
punchy, crispy and crunchy as to grab readers’ attention. It should tell the reader the
crux of the story without losing his/her curiosity.
In the past, a lead was expected to answer the following six questions: Who? How?
Where? Why? When? and What? Now the system is changing since leads that answer all
the six questions tended to be long and complex. And, answering all the questions does
not seem to be important. What is important is to select the most important questions
and trying to answer them. To recognize the importance, we should find out the main
point or focusing point of the story. And, the rest of the story will be snowballing around
the main point.
More so, good leads are found to be
Concise: Conciseness or brevity makes leads punchy and attractive. Brief leads
help readers consume media content easily and understand the idea clearly.
Specific: Specific information offers accuracy and clarity, by which the reader
confers higher credibility to the story. Specificity also helps ensure the content
error free.
Using strong, active verbs: Strong, active verbs enliven the story. Good
reporters prefer active verbs over the passive ones.
Emphasizing the magnitude of the story: Important point in the story should
be highlighted in the lead itself. For this, reporters shall have a better
understanding of the impact the story has on people.
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Stressing the unusual: As mentioned, news should be new and about the
unusual.
Localized: Proximity is an important factor that makes an event reported.
Reports about events in locality attract us more than the stories from remote
place. Any story can be localized by finding out the relation between the focal
point in the story and its impact on our locality or local community. This is how
reporters make the stories attractive to local communities.
Simple: Leads should be simple and clear. Complicated structure of leads will
detract reader from the story. Readers want to get into the essence of the story at
the earliest as he or she wants to decide whether to continue. If not, reader can
skip to another story.
Similarly, we should avoid placing lists in lead and stating the obvious repeatedly. Label
lead that fails to report the heart of the story should be avoided. Exaggeration,
misleading adjectives, sensational description, negative connotation, redundancy
should be kept away from leads.
Lead is the soul of a story. Good report facilitates good leads. If the lead is okay, the
story is fine. And, finally, every one writes for the reader. Remember your readers while
writing media content. If the audience is not in your mind and write for their minds,
your content will not touch them.
Types of Leads
Direct Lead: It tells the story point in direct way. E.g. 10 persons including 2
women and 3 children killed in a road accident at Calicut yesterday.
Delayed or ‘Buried’ Lead: Long leads, that commonly start with description
or interesting anecdote that set the story’s theme.
E.g., It was 6.30 pm. City roads were packed with high traffic. The Mavoor
road junction in Calicut city was unexpectedly shocked with a huge sound.
People ran in panic. Mountain-like flames appeared in the air. It was a
collision between a gas tanker and city bus. 10 people were charred to death
on the spot.
Multi-paragraph Lead: Lead that extends to more than two paragraphs.
Quotation Lead: Leads that starts with quotations. E.g. “New pension
scheme will be implemented soon,” said Finance Minister.
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Question Lead: Lead that starts with question/s. E.g. Are you a north Indian
residing in Kerala? If yes, you have good news from Ministry of Culture. The
ministry plans to organize special tour packages for north Indians living in
the State at a subsidized rate.
Suspenseful Lead: Lead that is written to arouse curiosity and suspense in
readers’ minds.
Descriptive Lead: Long lead that describes the most part of the story.
Shocking Lead: Lead indented to make the reader surprised with a twist in
the story.
Gathering News
Reporters collect facts and check it for accuracy. They sometimes witness events first-
hand, but most often than not, they gather facts from others who either witness the
event or have clear understanding of it. At times, reporters collect more information
from other sources also, on the stories they intent to report and check against
documents and records for accuracy. This information collection and cross-checking
process is a vital step in reporting process. While collecting information, a reporter
should try to answer the following questions which are commonly known as 5 W’s and
1 H.
Depending on the complexity of the story, a reporter might ask those questions in
several different ways.
WHO:
• Who is involved in this story?
• Who is affected by it?
• Who is the best person to tell the story?
• Who is missing from this story? Who has more information about this?
• Who is in conflict in this story? Do they have anything in common?
• Who else should I talk to about this?
WHAT:
• What happened?
• What is the point of this story? What am I really trying to say?
• What does the reader, viewer, or listener need to know to understand this story?
• What surprised me? What is the most important single fact I learned?
• What is the history here? What happens next?
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• What can people do about it?
WHERE:
• Where did this happen?
• Where else should I go to get the full story?
• Where is this story going next? How will it end?
WHEN:
• When did this happen?
• When did the turning points occur in this story?
• When should I report this story?
WHY:
• Why is this happening? Is it an isolated case or part of a trend?
• Why are people behaving the way they are? What are their motives?
• Why does this story matter? Why should anyone watch, read, or listen to it?
• Why am I sure I have this story right?
HOW:
• How did this happen?
• How will things be different because of what happened?
• How will this story help the reader, listener, or viewer? or the community?
• How did I get this information? Is the attribution clear?
• How would someone describe this story to a friend?
A reporter can use these questions as checklist to ensure that he/she has covered all
aspects of the news.
Asking ‘Five Ws and one H’ questions is considered as part of the research for preparing
the story. The information collected through these questions is to be structured to make
it a news story. News stories should have a structure. Otherwise, they will be a mixture
of facts. It is the structure of the story that makes us read the news.
How to write a news story?
There are some standardized methods which are practically followed by the journalists.
Let us look at those styles of news writing which are famously known as
Inverted Pyramid Style
Hourglass Style
Diamond Style
INVERTED PYRAMID STYLE
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Inverted Pyramid Style of news writing is to put most important information at the top,
followed by other information in descending order of importance.
Inverted Pyramid Style
This shape is useful when reporting important or breaking news, when timeliness is of
the essence. If you are the first to report a significant development, you’ll want to tell
the audience what has happened right at the top of your story. A report on a bus
accident, for example, likely would begin with the death toll and the location of the
incident.
In the inverted-pyramid structure, information following the lead expands or develops
the point that is made in the lead. In the case of the accident report, the writer might
describe the scene of the event, and then include a quote from a survivor or an
emergency worker. Supporting paragraphs would elaborate on the topic, filling in
details and providing background on the storm. In a longer story, a reporter might
include secondary information that is related to the primary theme but not directly. See
the Inverted Pyramid structure graphics to know how bits of information are organized
according to their importance.
Information organization in
Inverted Pyramid Style of News Writing
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HOURGLASS STYLE
Hourglass structure is a modified form of the inverted pyramid style. Both the styles
begin with most important information about the event. But, in hourglass style, after a
few paragraph, narration of the event in a chronological order begins.
If our bus accident story is written in
hourglass style, it would start with
death toll. Place and time of the
accident follow it. After this kind of
basic facts, the news takes the shape
of a story telling. It may include sentences
like ‘the bus hit the lorry when Raju, who
killed in the accident was crossing
the road through zebra line’.
DIAMOND STYLE
10 persons killed in a bus accident
It occurred in Calicut
7 men and 3 women killed
The accident was in the early
morning
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According to Deborah Potter, author of the book “Handbook of Independent
Journalism”, a reporter using Diamond Structure would begin with an anecdote,
introducing a character whose experience illustrates what the story is all about. This
small story would then broaden out to show its wider significance. Toward the end, the
reporter would return to the individual character’s story as a way of concluding the
narrative.
Reporters using this structure often use a device known as a “nut” paragraph (or nut
graph) to explain why the story matters — the word “nut” signifying the hard center of
the story. Jack Hart, managing editor
of Portland’s Oregonian newspaper,
says nut graphs “can answer any
questions raised in
leads, explain why stories are
significant, and place stories in
meaningful contexts.” The nut graph
needs to be early enough in the story
to make clear to the reader why he
or she should bother to keep
reading.
The diamond form is frequently
used in television news and newspaper reports. For example, a reporter might begin a
story about a new AIDS treatment by introducing a patient who needs the treatment,
then describes the experimental drug and how it works, and concludes by noting that
doctors give the patient we met earlier only a limited time to live if the new treatment is
not effective. Whatever form you choose, the middle of the story should keep the
audience engaged and interested. Good writing, a magazine editor once said, makes the
reader want to find out what happens next.
Besides news, a newspaper carries other types of textual content as well.
Following are the significant ones:
FEATURES STORIES
They are newspaper or magazine articles or reports of a person, event, an aspect of a
major event, or the like, often having a personal slant and written in an individual style.
Diamond Style
Important facts
Ends with less important facts
Starts with less important facts
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They are pieces of non-fiction writing about news and are normally called soft news or
human-interest stories. Mostly, they appeal to the emotions and feelings of the reader.
Quality of writing differentiates a feature story from other types of newspaper content
because the writer uses special crafting style, creative expressions and brevity to
impress the reader and make it memorable.
Feature writers use narrative style with plot and characters though the content is about
a real event or person. Feature writers rely on creativity and subjectivity to build an
emotional connection with the audience and focus on universal dimension of human
interest. In contrast to straight hard news, feature stories intend to entertain the
audience.
They are truthful, and based on facts, but in detail they are lesser objective than hard
news because of their narrative structure and style. Features stories are written in
various styles: Stories that describe a scene and shed light on its theme in a colorful
style is called colour piece while stories that are written from the perspective of an
observer without the involvement of the journalist is termed as Fly on the wall. Stories
depicted as personal account after collecting information from the field pretending to be
another person is called undercover story. Other major variant of feature stories are
interviews and profiles
INTERVIEWS
Interviews are written based on the face-to-face or online conversation with the source
of news or information. It may be structured as a planned conversation after preparing
questions. Questions can be structured and open ended. Interviewing is considered to
be a significant source of getting information for breaking news. It is hard to get
appointment of celebrities for interview. However, in some instances, celebrities
themselves arrange interviews with journalists to keep their presence in limelight.
Celebrity interviews are essential part of magazines. Getting appointment and
conducting a successful interview for the media is a task that requires skill. following
are the tips for journalists to make the interview successful.
Interviewing tips
Explain the ground rules of the interview to people unfamiliar with how the
media works - this means that you tell them the information they give you can
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and will be published. If they do not want any part of what they say published,
they need to tell you it is "off the record."
Tape the interview (so if anyone comes back at you, you have the proof of what
was said).
Build a rapport with the person being interviewed.
Start with easy questions; end with difficult questions.
Read the body language of the person you're interviewing and if they get
defensive, back away from the question you are asking and return later.
Don't attack the source.
Keep control of the interview; don't let the subject ramble or stray from the
subject.
On the other hand, don't let your "opinion" of what the story should be colour the
interview. Always remember that the person you are talking with knows more
about the subject than you do.
PROFILES
An account of a person written in narrative non-fiction style and published in
newspaper or magazine is called profile in journalistic parlance. It is simply termed as a
written portrait of a person. For writing profile, the writer explores facts about the
person through research. Also, the writer conducts interviews with the person as well
as the people in his or her immediate circle. A profile contains stories, quotes and
pictures of the person interviewed.
TRAVELOGUES
Travelogue is a written account of a person's experience of visiting places. In recent
years, travelogues have become an essential part of magazines and Sunday
supplements. The word travelogue is a combination of the words- travel and
monologue. Being a personal account, travelogues is considered to be more truthful in
content and colorful in writing. It carries all the elements to make appealing to the
audience.
COLUMN
It is a recurring piece of article published in newspaper or magazine with fixed interval
to express the views and opinion of a writer. Normally, columnist, who writes columns,
are given a fixed space on newspaper's edit page to express his or her view of the
current issues. Column appears in newspaper on a particular day.
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CARTOONS
Cartoon is a significant non-news element in a newspaper. Cartoons normally appear on
newspaper pages belong to political cartoon category. A political cartoon is a visual
representation of the newspaper’s editorial policy on a current event. Political cartoon
includes graphics with caricatures of political leaders or public figures and it represents
the political event in satiric version to question the authority, draw attention to
corruption and other social evils.
Indian journalism has a rich legacy of political cartooning. Sankar, Abu, Kutty, O V
Vijayan and R K Laxman are prominent cartoonists of independent India and they
contributed a lot to form public opinion on political culture of the nations. Interestingly,
most of well-known cartoonists like Abu, Sankar, Vijayan and Kutty are from Kerala and
they worked for national English dailies based in New Delhi.
Yesudasan, Venu, B M Gafoor, Gopikrishnan, Ragesh etc. are well known cartoonists
who contributed or are contributing to the development of cartooning in Malayalam
journalism. It is a practice in Malayalam newspapers to have a pocket cartoon on their
front pages with a regular character. Kunhamman of Mathrubhumi, Kunju Kurupp of
Malayala Manorama and Ramettan of Madhyamam are such cartoon characters.
FINDING STORY IDEAS
Keep your eyes and ears open; listen to what your friends are talking about.
Read everything you can get your hands on; get story ideas from other
newspapers and magazines.
Think of a youth angle to a current news story.
Research a subject that interests you ask yourself what you would like to know
more about.
Talk to people in a specific field to find out what is important to them.
Begin collecting articles on your subject.
Talk to friends and associates about the subject.
Contact any agencies or associations with interest or professional knowledge in
the area.
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Create a list of people you want to interview; cover both sides of the story by
interviewing people on both sides of the issue.
Collect government statistics and reports on the subject get old press releases or
reports to use as background.
Information Organization
Gather your notes, interviews and research into a file.
Review your notes.
Look for a common theme.
Search your notes for good quotes or interesting facts.
Develop a focus.
Write the focus of the article down in two or three sentences.
Writing Process
Remember you are the narrator, the story teller.
Don't be afraid to rewrite.
Be as clear and concise in the writing as possible.
Avoid run-on sentences.
Be direct.
Tell a good story.
Tell the reader what you think they want to know.
Always ask yourself what the story is about.
Read the story out loud; listen carefully.
PRINCIPLES OF REPORTING
Accuracy, attribution of source, fairness and objectivity and multi-culturalism are five
factors that enhance the credibility of a news report. They also demonstrate a
reporter’s sense of responsibility.
1. Accuracy
The facts in a story should be correct, down to the minutest detail. A reporter must be
precise with every bit of the details of a story. Readers tend to judge a newspaper’s
credibility by their own experiences with its record of accuracy. News stories with
inaccuracies are a sign of a lazy reporter.
2. Attribution
Source identification should be as specific as possible. Use the person’s name if possible,
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not merely a ‘spokesperson’. A reporter should not invent news source or attribute
information to such vague quarters like ‘an informed source’, ‘a confidential observer’
etc. The source from which a story’s information is obtained must be clearly identified.
Failure to do so makes a reporter’s story suspect.
3. Fairness
News stories should be scrupulously fair in their presentation of information. They
should never serve the vested interests of groups or individuals. When a person
criticises the behavior or opinion of another in a story, basic fairness requires that a
person criticised is given an opportunity to respond.
4. Objectivity
Writers should strive to keep their personal opinions out of a news story. In general
readers are unable to detect the reporter’s political beliefs, religious affiliations or social
attitudes. Every reporter will have his/her personal beliefs, interests, and involvements
but these should not be allowed to creep into the story. At times a reporter will cover
events that run contrary to those personal concerns. In such cases, the reporter should
work harder to achieve evenhandedness.
5. Multi-Culturalism
Multi-culturalism means to consider cultural diversity and ensure fair and objective
representation of each culture and cultural groups in any public endeavor including
journalism. A reporter should consider this diversity while reporting public events. He
or she should ensure that no society or group like women, gay, lesbian, minority,
expatriates, migrants are ill represented in news reports. More so, it is the responsibility
of a reporter to ensure that each cultural group and its perspective are fairly
represented in the reports.
NEWS SOURCES
Newspapers gather news from various sources through their reporters, correspondents
and freelance journalists. Press Conferences, Press Releases, Handouts, Press Kits,
Statements by public figures and political leaders are major sources of a newspaper.
More so, reporters collect news from police stations, hospitals, courts, educational
institutions, political party offices, research centres and similar government and non-
government offices.
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Beat reporting, also known as specialised reporting, is a genre of journalism focused
on a particular issue, sector, organisation, or institution over time. Beat reporters build
up a base of knowledge on and gain familiarity with the topic, allowing them to provide
insight and commentary in addition to reporting straight facts. Generally, beat reporters
will also build up a rapport with sources that they visit again and again, allowing for
trust to build between the journalist and their source of information. This distinguishes
them from other journalists who might cover similar stories from time to time.
Investigative Reporting
Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a
single topic of interest, such as serious crimes, corruption or corporate wrongdoing. An
investigative journalist may spend months or years researching and preparing a report.
Practitioners sometimes use the terms "watchdog reporting" or "accountability
reporting."
Most investigative journalism has traditionally been conducted by newspapers, wire
services and freelancers. Journalistic investigations are increasingly carried out by news
organizations working together, even internationally (as in the case of the Panama
Papers) or by organizations such as Pro Publica, which have not operated previously as
news publishers and which rely on the support of the public and benefactors to fund
their work.
NEWS AGENCIES
A news agency is an organization that gathers news reports and sells them to
subscribing news organizations, such as newspapers, magazines, radio and television
stations.
A news agency may also be referred to as a wire service, newswire, or news service.
Although there are many news agencies around the world, four global news
agencies, Agence France-Presse (AFP), Associated Press (AP), Reuters and United
Press International (UPI) have offices in most countries of the world, cover all areas of
information, and provide the majority of international news printed by the world's
newspapers. Press Trust of India (PTI), Asian News International (ANI), Indo-Asian
News Service (IANS), United News of India (UNI) are major Indian news agencies.
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MODULE III
PRINT MEDIA JOURNALISM: EDITING
The sub-editor who plays a key role in the editing process has been described as the
midwife to the story, the most useful person in the newspaper and the unsung hero of a
newspaper. The following can be considered as the general rules of editing.
1. Ensuring accuracy: Good reporting is a key ingredient in ensuring
accuracy. But all who edit the story too share this responsibility. Sub-
editors ensure accuracy by checking and rechecking the facts and if
needed they would seek clarifications from the reporters about the
information in a story. Carelessness can lead to blunders and
embarrassing mistakes. These can greatly tarnish the reputation of a
newspaper.
2. Trimming unnecessary words: Unnecessary words, adjectives and
adverbs should be trimmed. If an event is very interesting, it is sufficient
to say it is interesting. Meaningless phrases should also be trimmed. For
example, the following phrases could be replaced with the words given
in brackets: a great number of times (often), a small number of (few), at
regular intervals of time (regularly), made an investigation of
(investigated), placed its seal of approval (approved) etc.
3. Protecting and polishing the language: Editing involves polishing the
language. An editor should have a thorough knowledge of the grammar
and the language usages. He/she plays a major role in protecting the
language against abuse. People at the desk should know how to spell, to
make certain a story is written in proper language, to reorganise and
clarify passages and protect the meaning of words. Clear writing,
correct spelling and grammar contribute to better communication of
ideas.
4. Correcting inconsistencies: Inconsistencies within the story should be
detected and corrected. Inconsistencies in story can confuse the reader.
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For example: INSAT - IA launched in 1982 ended its life prematurely.
But INSAT - IA launched in 1983 was a grand success. The sub-editor
should detect the mistake that INSAT- 1A cannot be launched twice. In
the second sentence INSAT-1A should be corrected as INSAT-1B. If
superlatives cannot be checked they can be softened. The most
despicable crime in the world is to be changed to one of the most
despicable crimes in the world.
5. Making the story conform to style: The word ‘style’ in newspaper jargons
refers to the consistency provided by rules of usage in a newspaper.
Newspapers adhere to rules of style to avoid inconsistencies that would
annoy the reader. Adherence to style rules gives the newspaper a sense
of consistency that would be absent if goodbye were used in one story
and goodby in the next.
6. Eliminating libellous statements: Libel is a written defamation. The sub
editor must know the libel laws of the country. Libellous/ defamatory
statements should be eliminated. It is the duty of the sub-editor to
ensure that the stories are free from such statements.
7. Eliminating passages in poor taste: Some newspapers have policies
banning profanity of any types. Others permit the use of some words
but not others. For example, reputed newspapers by convention will not
publish the victim’s names and other identities in a story on rape.
8. Make the story readable and complete: A story that is readable and
complete has the following characteristics.
a) It is precise.
b) It is clear.
c) It has a pace appropriate to the content
d) It uses transitional devices that lead the reader from one thought to the
next.
e) It appeals to the reader’s senses.
9. Writing attractive headlines: A copy editor’s first task is to correct and
refine copy. A second task is to write headline that attracts reader’s
attention, summarises the story, depicts the mood of the story and helps
the tone of the newspaper.
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10. Editing pictures and designing pages: An important step in the editing
process is the packaging of news stories in a page. Designing the page
helps the reader read faster and read more of what is written. The
packaging or designing of a newspaper is considered as important as its
contents.
Quality of writing primarily depends upon a reporter, but a sub-editor can improve
writing. Good editing complements good writing. Occasionally good editing can save
mediocre writing. Poor editing can make it worse or destroy it. It is said, ‘an excellent
staff without a copydesk might produce a fair newspaper. A mediocre staff with a
competent copydesk can produce an acceptable newspaper. But an excellent staff,
backed by an excellent desk, guarantees an excellent newspaper.
LINE EDITING
A line edit addresses the creative content, writing style, and language use at the
sentence and paragraph level. But the purpose of a line edit is not to comb your
manuscript for errors – rather, a line edit focuses on the way you use language to
communicate your story to the reader. Is your language clear, fluid, and pleasurable to
read? Does it convey a sense of atmosphere, emotion, and tone? Do the words you’ve
chosen convey a precise meaning, or are you using broad generalizations and clichés?
An editor may draw your attention to:
Words or sentences that are extraneous or overused
Run-on sentences
Redundancies from repeating the same information in different ways
Dialogue or paragraphs that can be tightened
Scenes where the action is confusing or the author’s meaning is unclear due to
bad transitions
Tonal shifts and unnatural phrasing
Passages that don’t read well due to bland language use
Confusing narrative digressions
Changes that can be made to improve the pacing of a passage
Words or phrases that may clarify or enhance your meaning.
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CONDENSING STORIES
Summarizing, condensation, or précis writing is an art. It aims at squeezing the meaning
of a text into the fewest words. Condensation means process of making a story shorter
by taking out anything that is not necessary. The process of condensation in creative
writing is synonymous to précis writing. A condensed story must be a concise, complete
or lucid piece of writing
Steps to prepare a condensed story
• Go through the passage to grasp the general idea.
• Prepare a skeleton of basic structure by noting down the main points and key words.
• Exclude all the illustrations, elaborations, figurative comparison.
• Prepare the first draft by joining the underlined words.
WRITING EDITORIAL
Editorial pages are traditionally associated with a newspaper’s sense of dignity and
credibility. Some editors and publishers consider the editorial page the sanctuary of the
publication – an area where little experimenting is permissible. The nature of the
contents makes the editorial page an ideal spot to lure readers through the use of
graphics. The editorial page expresses a newspaper’s opinion. It is its voice, and a strong
one, for persuading the reader to take a course of action. On any given day it becomes
the medium for a variety of opinions on timely or philosophical issues.
What is an editorial?
An editorial is one of the writing styles used to express an opinion or reaction to timely
news, event or an issue of concern. Most editorials are used to influence readers to think
or act the same way the writer does. Not all editorials take sides on an issue but have
one of the following four purposes:
1. Inform: The writer gives careful explanations about a complicated issue.
2. Promote: The writer tries to promote a worthy activity. Get the reader involved.
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3. Praise: The writer praises a person or an event.
4. Entertain: The writer encourages or entertains the reader about an important issue.
Organizing it
1. Select a topic that is specific, timely and of interest to readers.
2. Have a purpose in mind. What are you going to tell people to do or think?
3. Be sure you fully understand your topic. Research -- get reliable information. Use
newspapers, magazines, library, Internet, etc.
4. Ask yourself: Has the newspaper run a news story about this topic? Should it,
before we editorialize?
Writing it
1. State an opinion in the first sentence. Editorials have leads, just like news stories.
They tell readers where you're headed. Keep the lead short and concise.
2. Develop the body using facts. Build a strong case. Don't use more details from the
news story than needed to build your case.
3. Document quotes and sources, just as you would in a news story.
4. Avoid a preachy tone. Criticism should be constructive and offer a solution.
5. Remember that the best way to win an argument is to lay out the opposing
argument, then shoot holes in it. Then, tell why your solution is better.
6. Anticipate questions and objections to your argument and answer them.
7. Write in third-person voice.
8. Remember, short editorials usually are more effective than long ones. Readers
stay interested.
9. Suggest a solution, or an action, in the final sentence. If you're telling people to
take action, tell them how. For instance, if you tell readers to write their
congressman, give the address and e-mail address. Don't make them go look it
up.
10. Don't neglect the headline. Think of it as an important part of your editorial.
Other tips
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Never write an editorial without research. You might write one in anger once in a while,
but don't run it without letting your anger cool, then reviewing what you wrote. Have an
early enough deadline for editorials that there's sufficient time for another editor to
review what you wrote. Last-minute, hurried editorials tend to be the weakest. Sample
of what could go into the five-paragraph editorial:
a personal experience, the thesis statement
explanation of the other side of the issue
examples to support your point of view
reasons for your point of view
the last paragraph should restate your thesis statement and end on a positive not
Structure of an Editorial
Editorials are written according to a well-established formula.
1. Introduction - state the problem
2. Body - expresses an opinion
3. Solution - offers a solution to the problem
4. Conclusion - emphasizes the main issue
Here are some additional tips on structuring your opinion story.
1. Lead with an Objective Explanation of the Issue/Controversy. Include the five
W's and the H. Pull in facts and quotations from sources which are relevant.
2. Present Your Opposition First. As the writer you disagree with these viewpoints.
Identify the people (specifically who oppose you). Use facts and quotations to
state objectively their opinions. Give a strong position of the opposition. You gain
nothing in refuting a weak position.
3. Directly Refute the Opposition's Beliefs. You can begin your article with
transition. Pull in other facts and quotations from people who support your
position. Concede a valid point of the opposition which will make you appear
rational, one who has considered all the options.
4. Give Other, Original Reasons/Analogies. In defence of your position, give reasons
from strong to strongest order. Use a literary or cultural allusion that lends to
your credibility and perceived intelligence.
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5. Conclude with Some Punch. Give solutions to the problem or challenge the
reader to be informed. A quotation can be effective, especially if from a respected
source. A rhetorical question can be an effective concluder as well. While it
ridicules or makes fun of a subject with the intent of improving it.
Four Types of Editorials
1. Editorials of argument and persuasion take a firm stand on a problem or
condition. They attempt to persuade the reader to think the same way. This
editorial often proposes a solution or advises taking some definite action.
2. Editorials of information and interpretation attempt to explain the meaning or
significance of a situation or news event. There is a wide variety of editorials in
this category, ranging from those which provide background information to
those which identify issues.
3. Editorials of tribute, appreciation or commendation praise a person or an
activity.
4. Editorials of entertainment have two categories. One is the short humorous
treatment of a light topic. The second is a slightly satirical treatment of a serious
subject.
NEWS AGENCIES AND HANDLING COPY
News agency, also called press agency/wire service/news service is an organization
that gathers, writes, and distributes news from around a nation or the world to
newspapers, periodicals, radio and television broadcasters, government agencies, and
other users. It does not itself publish news but supplies news to its subscribers. All of
the mass media depend upon news agencies for the bulk of the news, including the big
newspapers and broadcast media that have extensive news gathering resources of their
own.
The basic function of a news agency is to collect and distribute reports, photographs and
video clippings of current events to newspapers, magazines, television channels, radio
stations and other subscribers. News agencies set up their offices, communication
networks and appoint correspondents in important cities around the world. The
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agencies’ coverage should be fast, complete and accurate as well as fair, objective and
unbiased.
A brief history and working of the important news agencies are given below.
1. AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE (AFP)
AFP, a French cooperative news agency, is the third largest news services in the
world after AP, and Reuters. It is based in Paris where it was founded under its
current name in 1944. In addition to having bureaus in major French cities, it has
bureaus and correspondents in important world capitals. Besides having
contracts with AP, Reuters, and TASS for exchange of news reports, it sells
domestic French news reports to most of the world’s news agencies and also
provides its worldwide reports to many of them. AFP also has a photo service
and a number of specialized news reports, several concerned with African
matters.
2. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (AP)
The Associated Press (AP) is one of the largest news-gathering services in the
world. AP distributes international, regional and local news to media
everywhere. The Associated Press offers daily reports, features, photographs and
graphics. Its photographs are sent digitally via satellites. Six New York city
newspapers founded the Associated Press in 1848. They began the service to
save money on the gathering of news by telegraph. Today, the Associated Press
has about 230 news bureaus worldwide. Its headquarters is in New York. AP’s
service is available in English, German, Swedish, Dutch, French, and Spanish.
3. REUTERS
Reuters’ services are available in more than 150 countries and it has bureaus in
100 countries. Reuters was one of the first news services to furnish financial,
political and general news to European newspapers. Reuters was founded in
London in 1851 by Paul Julius Reuter. In 1849, Reuters began the operation by
using pigeons to carry news between the terminal points of telegraph lines at the
borders of Germany, Belgium and France. The Reuters news agency was an
independent company, Reuters Group until 2008. The Thomson Corporation
took over Reuters Group in 2008 and it became a part of Thomson Reuters. It
transmits news in English, French, Arabic, Spanish, German, Italian, Portuguese,
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Russian, Japanese and Chinese. Reuters’ association with India began from its
inception. The first newspaper to publish Reuters’ news in India was The
Bombay Times (later became The Times of India). Reuters’ operation in India
began on March 21, 1866 with Bombay as its headquarters.
4. UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL (UPI)
UPI is one of the largest privately owned news agencies in the world. It
distributes news, photographs, television news, radio news and cable television
news programmes to about 6000 subscribers. Its clients included newspapers,
radio and television stations, news magazines and cable television stations in
more than 100 countries. During its heyday, UPI had more than 230 bureaus
worldwide. UPI functioned internationally till 1980. Now its major business is
confined to the US.
5. ITAR-TASS
TASS is the acronym for TELEGRAFNOE AGENTSVO SOVETSKOVO SOYUZA
(Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union), the official news agency of the Soviet
Union from 1925 to 1991. TASS was one of the world’s major international wire
services, distributing news throughout the Soviet Union and around the world.
Following the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, TASS was reorganized into
two branches: The Information Telegraph Agency of Russia, or ITAR, reporting
news of Russia; and the Telegraph Agency of the Countries of the Commonwealth
or TASS, reporting news of the other countries of the Commonwealth of
Independent States.
Other major international news agencies
1. DPA (Deutsche Presse Agentur) is a German news agency, mainly serving the
German speaking regions.
2. EFE: This is a Spanish news agency with its headquarters in Madrid. It has close
links and influence in Latin America where Spanish is one of the major
languages.
3. NCNA: China’s Xinhua News Agency is also known as the New China News
Agency (NCNA). It was founded in 1931. It has four regional offices in the Pacific
region, Latin America, Africa and West Asia. Presently, it has branches in 100
countries.
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4. Kyodo: It is the major news agency in Japan.
Other major news agencies include the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) of
Iran, Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associatea (ANSA) of Italy, Caribbean News
Agency (CANA), Ghana News Agency (GNA), Inter Press Services (IPS) of South
America, Middle East News Agency (MENA) and the Pan African News Agency
(PANA) of Senegal.
Indian News Agencies
1. Press Trust of India (PTI)
Press Trust of India, the leading news agency in the country, is a non-profit
cooperative of newspapers. Established on August 27, 1947, this news agency
took over the Associated Press of India (API) and the Indian operations of
Reuters and began operations from February 1, 1949. PTI offers its news service
in English and Hindi. Subscribers to this agency include 450 newspapers in India
and scores abroad. All major television and radio channels including BBC,
London receive PTI service. It has 150 bureaus across the country and has a staff
of about 2,000 writers spread across the nation. For international news, it
maintains 30 correspondents and stringers around the world.
2. United News of India (UNI)
The United News of India (UNI) was registered as a company on November 10,
1959 and began its news operations from March 21, 1961. At the time of UNI’s
foundation, it was sponsored by a group of 40 leading newspapers of India
including The Statesman, The Times of India, The Hindu. The administrative
headquarters of UNI is in New Delhi. UNI has offices in all the major cities and
towns of India, including all the state capitals. In order to keep pace with the
latest developments, it has more than 325 staff journalists around the country
and more than 250 stringers, covering news events from remote corners. 51%
stake in UNI was bought by Zee TV in 2006. Media West, one of the associates of
Zee TV, bought the shares of UNI for Rs. 32 crores. UNI has been going through a
phase of financial crisis.
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WRITING HEADLINE
Most newspaper readers look first at large images — usually photographs and their
captions and other large graphics — and then the headlines. Why? Because they are the
most striking visual elements on a page. When readers select what stories to read, their
decision is usually based on the impact of the headline and the graphics.
Eye track research shows that readers’ eyes go first to photos and display type — the
large headlines. If the display type captures their interest, they may move on to the body
type. Most newspaper readers are browsers because few have the time or inclination to
read every word in a publication. They select what appeals or what they consider
relevant.
The publication’s tone and the perceived audience will also influence the type of
headline. A headline that works for a Sunday tabloid story will look ridiculous over a
similar story in a serious broadsheet, even though both may be well crafted. The role of
a good headline, then, is to:
draw or grab the reader into the body of the story
tell the reader what the story is about
provide information in a digestible and/or entertaining form.
Time and space
News subs are generally always working against the clock to produce ‘live’ pages —
those being prepared for the next edition. The other constraint is space. News headlines
are almost always written to fit an allocated space. Most headlines are governed by
width and depth. Whatever the typeface, the sub-editor is restricted to a certain number
of characters and a certain number of lines (known as decks). Nowadays, page
designers place these details electronically in the format for each story.
How to write effective headlines
As a general guide, headlines need to be written:
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in present tense
in active voice
with a personal tone
Because of space constraints, every word must earn its place. You can do that by
keeping your headlines:
simple
precise
positive
Other ways to improve headlines include remembering to:
employ powerful verbs
concentrate on one main point
use key words
Principle 1: Present tense
Most headlines are written in the present tense because it gives a sense of immediacy. It
is the same reason that broadcast news is almost always written in the present tense. It
brings the action to the reader and involves them in the drama. Because of the way
English is constructed, present tense also tends to be shorter.
Principle 2: Active voice
Use the active voice as often as possible. The same principle applies when editing body
copy. Active voice, where the subject performs the action rather than having the action
done to it, has two major advantages — it uses fewer words than passive voice and it
makes the headline more immediate, which implies urgency. It is also more natural
because it sounds more conversational.
Principle 3: Aim to personalize
Newspaper readers are interested in what happens to people. People make news.
Abstracts put readers to sleep. If you can use a person or place name to represent a
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general principle, it is generally better to do so. This principle especially applies to
community newspapers and regional dailies because readers identify with their
neighbourhood or community.
Principle 4: Use precise language
Inexperienced or sloppy subs are often happy if the head fits, even though the words are
imprecise. Indeed, there may be times for all of us when we are happy with any
reasonable head because the revise sub is screaming for the page. But you must spurn
vague or imprecise words. Good subs craft headlines in unambiguous language, using
common and proper nouns and avoiding abstract nouns.
Principle 5: Tell a simple story
One of the headline’s jobs is to provide the essence of the story. Some subs try to cram
in too much detail and tell too much. This produces the aberration of the noun–adjective
headline, where nouns masquerading as adjectives produce a string of statements,
usually without a verb. These constipated collections of words confuse readers. You
have probably read these types of heads in papers where the sub had limited space.
Principle 6: Use powerful verbs
If your headline sounds bland, you are probably using bland verbs. The verb is the
engine of a headline. An excellent way to boost a headline is to introduce a more
powerful verb. Vivid verbs create word pictures for the reader. Supply some exciting
images for the picture shows in readers’ heads.
Tips to write a good headline
1. Be Accurate.
2. Keep It Short.
3. Fill the Space.
4. Do not Repeat the Lead.
5. Be Direct.
6. Use Active Voice.
7. Write in Present Tense.
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8. Avoid Breaks.
9. Know Where to Capitalize.
DESIGN AND PAGE MAKE UP
Designing a newspaper is a graphic art fort form. It involves certain principles of
graphic design:
1. Balance
Balance means equilibrium or a state of rest. It deals with the visual weight of the
various elements of a newspaper page like the news stories, visuals, etc. Balance in
newspaper means that the pages should not be top heavy, bottom heavy or side
heavy, etc. It means that the pages should not be extremely heavy in any section and
extremely light in another. The things that make a page heavy are headlines, visuals,
and the size if the stories, the use of boxes and screens, use of bold text, etc. Balance in
newspaper design is achieved by visually weighing the elements on both sides of a
page. It does not require precise mathematical weighing. A properly balanced page
has all the elements (headlines, pictures, etc.) so distributed as to give a pleasant look
to the page.
Formal or symmetrical balance involves placing equal-sized objects on either side of a
page to form a mirror image. This kind of a design may be unbalanced from top to
bottom. However, most newspapers use the informal balance. Here the two sides and
the top and bottom halves are not mirror images of each other, but there is a feeling of
equilibrium.
2. Contrast
Contrast in designing means the use of two or more elements that are dramatically
different from each other. This difference could be in size, shape, shade, colour,
etc. So, a headline set in lighter types is in contrast with a bold headline. A bigger
picture contrasts smaller picture. And black and white is in contrast with colour.
Contrast helps in highlighting certain elements. For example, a picture surrounded
by body text would stand out on the page. The ultimate objective of contrast is to
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achieve a pleasant look for the newspaper pages. However, too much of contrast
makes a page unattractive and harsh.
3. Proportion
Proportion is the principle of comparative relationships in terms of length, size,
shape, etc. For example, a square shape is rarely used in designing, as it is dull and
uninteresting. It is also monotonous as all the sides are equal. Unequal
proportions are usually more attractive than equal proportions. Accordingly, the
most widely used shape in designing is the rectangle. And this is the reason why
the outer shape of the newspapers, the shape of most news stories, the shape of all
photographs are always rectangular. The most common proportions used in
newspapers are the 2:3 and the 3:5 proportions.
4. Unity
The principle of unity concerns the effect that a page design has over the readers.
A newspaper page should create a single impression rather than multiple
impressions. A single impression makes a page pleasant and interesting. Unity on
a newspaper page can be achieved by visually weighing all the stories and pictures
and then shifting the placement until a satisfactory arrangement has been found
out.
Harmony, rhythm, and direction are the other design principles that are considered
while designing a newspaper page. Newspaper page makeup has always been a tough
task as the makeup people do not have much time for planning and they always work
under the pressure of a deadline. Also, manual makeup, either through arrangement
of composed material or the cut and paste method, is time taking. However, these
days page makeup has become much faster and easier because of computers. Many a
software packages (like the Quark Express have been specifically created for this
purpose. So, makeup people can change the placement and arrangement by pressing a
few keys.
SYSTEMS OF PAGE MAKE UP
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For many years, newspapers used traditional makeup practices. However, with
changing times and changes in tastes of people and changing design practices, many
newspapers are adopting modern design concepts. Another major reason was the
new technologies of newspaper production, particularly better printing technologies
and the use of computers. Newspapers are using three basic modern makeup
concepts these days. These are:
Modular, Grid and Total Page Design.
Modular Makeup
This concept is the oldest among contemporary approaches. Here stories are
arranged in modules. Stories of similar type are grouped together into separate units
or modules. A module could have a single story also.
Often each module is enclosed in a box or a lot of white space is used around each
module to separate one module from others. A module clearly separates the story or
group of stories inside it from others. This way the entire page is divided into a
number of modules. Each module can hold one, two, or a greater number of stories.
One benefit of the module system is that it is relatively easy to change the stories
inside a module, as required in case of late-breaking stories.
The modular concept is easy to implement as it can fit into any style of makeup. The
modules are usually marked on the outside with thick lines. Use of white space
around modules makes them more attractive.
Grid Concept
The grid concept is an extension of the modular concept. A grid is a pattern of
intersecting lines forming rectangles of various sizes and shapes. In a newspaper, the
column space (space separating columns and the spaces separating stories (at the top
and the bottom) are used to form the grids. Grid lines are used to divide a newspaper
page into very clear-cut portions. Stories are usually composed into either vertical or
horizontal shapes.
The division of space on a page is always unequal both sideways and vertically. This
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gives a contemporary look to the page as opposed to the traditional and formally
balanced pages. Here the placement of stories is on the basis of their importance.
Thus, each story gets a chance of being seen.
Total Page Concept
The total page concept, like the previous two also divides the pages into the different
rectangular portions. But it is much more exciting as it involves dramatization of
content presentation. This overcomes the basic problem of the grid concept which the
mostly dull.
Although dramatization is one of the most important features of the total page
concept (TPC), these days the news stories decide the format. Spectacular or dramatic
news stories demand dramatic presentation, while sober news stories demand sober
treatment. In total page concept, the page is divided into broad portions that are
pleasingly proportional. Only rectangles are used here. Rectangles of various sizes,
shapes, weights (shadowed or screened) provide the required differentiation for an
attractive total design. TPC does not use odd shapes. It also does not use artificial
devices like stories shaped round, oval, triangular, etc.
However, TPC uses a lot of white space to enable the different stories to stand out
without competing with each other for attention. Another attention getting device is
the use of large stories and photographs for dramatic impact.
The Mixed Concept: Many newspapers today are adopting a mixed approach. They
combine the best elements of the grid concept, the modular concept and the total page
concept. This gives them complete flexibility in terms of arrangement of stories and
visuals on the paper.
Some dos and don’ts of design
Dos
Choose your entry point with care and make it the focal point of the page.
Break up long stories into easily manageable articles linked together by design.
Use pictures and graphics wherever possible.
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Break type up to add interest.
Consider using subheads and crossheads to add emphasis to sections of the text.
Consider using bold paras, drop letters etc. to add emphasis.
Keep things simple and easy to follow.
Consider carefully how long each article should be, depending on your
readership profile.
Try to avoid clashing with adverts. Ads with large areas of half-tone should be
cordoned off using text. Text-based adverts could be put next to pictures.
Consider how best to get over the information. An annotated aerial picture may
do more to describe the scene of an accident, for instance, than pages of text
could hope to do. It will be the designer’s job to arrange for the text and pictures
to be turned into a diagram.
Consider using just parts of a picture, cutting out the image or overlaying it with
type.
Ensure there is a suitable amount of white space around the headlines and any
other elements.
Ensure a caption always accompanies a picture clearly. Readers become irritated
if they cannot find the caption to a picture.
Emphasise your entry point with larger intro type, bold faces, drop letters and so
on.
Make sure the strength of your stories is reflected in the design.
Make it clear where the story goes to after it has ended in one column.
Be imaginative in how you deal with the elements of a page.
Don’ts
Run headlines over adverts. Always break the space with text, pictures or
whatever. If the space above a run of adverts is too small to be useful, don’t be
afraid to give it up and float the ads to the top or ask the advertising department
to fill the space. Anything less than 6 cm is going to give you problems.
Don’t run a headline next to another headline unless the stories are connected or
you have some way of ensuring they are not connected such as column rules or
by using very different styles and sizes of font.
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Don’t cover the page with lots of different typefaces. Too much variation will end
up just looking a mess. Best to limit yourself to one font and its varieties.
Don’t use cut-outs on a picture just for the sake of it. Whether the picture is cut
away from its background or a section is cut out, it will lose context and start to
look isolated. A cut-out without any good reason usually looks ridiculous because
it is clear you are trying to edit the picture and the reader will wonder why.
Don’t turn copy to another page. It’s a great way of ensuring the reader loses
interest in the story.
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Module IV:
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Public Relations is a distinctive management function which helps establishes and
maintain mutual lines of communication, understanding, acceptance and cooperation
between an organization and its publics. Public Relations means exactly what the words
suggest relations with the public.
Human beings can never live in 'isolation, we need someone to talk, and share our
views. In this way we practice public relations from just after we take birth. Public
Relations, simply defined, are the practice of doing the right thing of performing and
communicating the substance of that very performance. The distinctive thing about
public relations is that it is deliberate
ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
Thomas Jefferson (1807) used the phrase "Public relations" in the place of "State of
thought" while writing his seventh address to the US Congress. In India, Great Indian
Peninsular Railway Company Limited (GIP Railways) carried on publicity in Public
Relations campaign in England for promote tourism to India through mass media and
pamphlets. During the time of First World War a central publicity board was set up at
Bombay (now Mumbai) for disseminating war news to the public and press. After
Second World War, the public relations activity gained importance both privates as well
as Government started public relations campaigns.
The idea of public relations has been around as long as people have sought to persuade
other people to get them to do something, not do something, or keep on doing
something. But public relations became a formal profession in America roughly between
late 1800s and early 1900s. In the 1800s, public relations techniques were used to
encourage settlement in the American West. Railroad companies – which were laying
down new tracks across America – employed former journalists to create flyers and
pamphlets that described the vast opportunities in the American frontier. And many
believe it was the railroad companies that first used the term “public relations.” While
railroad companies were promoting westward expansion, the very first celebrity “press
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agents” were promoting clients such as Buffalo Bill, Annie Oakley, and Davy Crockett.
In public relations history, the late 1800s were known as the Age of the Press Agent. The
characteristic feature of the age was hype – or exaggeration. Press agents were
concerned more about creating legends and selling tickets to shows than truthful
portrayals about their clients. The man who is credited for moving the public relations
profession to its next age was Ivy Lee. In 1906, he published his “Declaration of
Principles” that advocated truthfulness and openness, and thereby ushered PR into the
Public Information Age. The main difference with this new age was the emphasis on the
accuracy and honesty of the information issued by public relations people. Ivy believed
that the best way to practice “public relations” was to make sure the public had truthful
information.
The first big test for this newfound profession was persuading the American people to
enter World War I. To do so, President Woodrow Wilson established Committee on
Public Information (also known as the Creel Committee) in 1917. The committee’s most
famous member was Edward L. Bernays, known as the father of modern public
relations. The committee’s success persuaded Bernays to open a public relations agency
after the war to apply committee’s techniques to commercial interests. Major
corporations such as General Electric, Proctor & Gamble, CBS, and the American
Tobacco Company hired Bernays to conduct a wide variety of public relations activities.
In 1923 Bernays published his landmark book, Crystallizing Public Opinion and
established the profession’s theoretical foundations. Using theories first introduced by
his uncle, Sigmund Freud, Bernays wrote about how to move people to do what you
want them to do. By doing so, he transitioned the public relations profession into its
third major age: scientific persuasion (and the two-way asymmetric model). Using the
tools of social science and psychology, Bernays showed his clients how to tap into their
audience’s deepest needs and wants.
The scientific persuasion age of public relations lasted for about 30 to 40 years until the
1950s and 60s when activism (i.e., public protests about perceived corporate power and
greed) necessitated a shift toward relationship building.
THE COMPONENTS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
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Public
A group of similar individuals; an assortment of persons having the same interests,
problems, circumstances, goals; it is from such persons that opinion emanates. Public is
a varied creature; it comes in many forms and sizes. Public has a multitude of wants and
desires; it has its likes and dislikes, sometimes, strong likes and strong dislikes.
Employers make for a public and employees another public; the government is a public
and citizens constitute another public, and so on, each of these groups is a public of the
sort, tries to attract a different audience with its own tools and techniques.
Relations
Human wants to create the need to establish relations with one another. The
representative wants of the individuals will profoundly affect their relationship. To
understand any relationship, therefore, one must understand the wants of those
involved. 'Relationships are of all possible types. We have relationship by rank-superior
to inferior, inferior to superior, and equal to equal. We have relationship by sentiment-
benevolent, Friendly, suspicious, jealous, hostile. A relationship may be active, or it may
be passive it may be good or it may be bad, or it may be neutral. At any rate, the
relationship is there to be accepted, ignored or altered, as desired.
FUNCTIONS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
Investing on public relations will help the organisation to achieve its objectives
effectively and smoothly. Public relations is not creating good image for a bad team.
Since, false image cannot be sustained for a long time. Though the organisation’s
products or services are good it needs an effective public relations campaign for
attracting, motivating the public to the product or service or towards the purpose of the
programme. It is not only encouraging the involvement from the public and also
resulting in better image. An effective public relations can create and build up the image
of an individual or an organisation or a nation. At the time of adverse publicity or when
the organisation is under crisis an effective public relations can remove the
"misunderstanding" and can create mutual understanding between the organisation
and the public.’
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PUBLICS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
We are all a ‘public’ of one kind or another, whether we are consumers of products,
employees, shareholders, or members and customers of a company, organization, trade
or professional association. ‘Publics’ in the PR language are classified into internal and
external publics.
In Public Relations the term ‘public’ is used for those people or group of people who are
directly or indirectly concerned with the organisation, use its services/products or
benefit from jt in one form or another and/or affected by its policies/programmes. In
other words, it is a group or groups of people who are tied together by some common
bond or interest or concern. The publics of an organisation play a key role in its success
or failure. PubIics are of two kinds — internal and external.
The public relations activities of the company are confined to its internal and external
publics. If internal publics respect the company and hold it in high esteem, directly and
indirectly, they create a favourable environment for the company to approach external
publics. Communication with external publics is the lifeline of the organisation as it
gives identity, image, reputation and credibility and based on which a company will get
their support.
INTERNAL PUBLIC
Internal publics are people employed by a firm or members of an organization and they
are intimately related with the functioning of the organisation. Internal public relations
is a special PR discipline which concentrates on enhancing companies relationships
with the employees by facilitating good communication among the management and the
employees, boosting their morale and giving them the right information at the right
time.
Internal Public of public relations includes Shareholders or Investors, Employees,
Suppliers, Distributors, Retailers/ Dealers and Other business associations: Primary
function of public relations is to facilitate positive and profitable relations between an
organization and its actual or potential audiences.
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Shareholders/owners/investors
Shareholder is the legal owner of the company. He provides finances to the company
either as shareholder or as a long-term or short-term creditor. They are entitled to
dividend, rights shares, bonus shares, discount coupons for purchase of companies’
products or concessional usage of its services and gifts on special occasions like annual
conference, anniversary or celebration. Shareholders deserve fair treatment, get
statutory information, transfer of shares to them, information on change of address or
non-receipt of dividend. However, we see that most of the time the company’s PR
function seems to be performed only in rebuttal or quick requital after the complaint
appears in newspapers.
Employees
Employees are the hands and feet of the company. It is through them that the company
fulfils its objectives. It needs their cooperation and understanding on a continuous basis
in all its activities including the public relations activities. The principle of self- respect,
self-determination and self-judgment are to be applied when dealing with employees. If
the company is able to communicate well with the employees and seek their
participation and cooperation, they can act as the best public relations agents of the
company while dealing with their friends, relations, neighbours, and business
associates. The leadership and management styles of our executives, their values, and
attitudinal profile, all have undergone a sea-change in order to effectively deal with the
situation.
Suppliers
Suppliers are the business associates of the company who provide all types of raw
materials for the business activities of the company. Suppliers have a direct and crucial
role in the functioning and profitability of the company. They have to supply the right
quality and quantity of materials for the company. Suppliers need the company and the
company needs the suppliers. When the good gestures of supplier to the company are
not responded with an equally good gesture, relationship gets strained. (Non- payment
or delay of supplier’s bill, high amount of rejection or raw materials, rude treatment
etc.). A good company cannot be happy if its suppliers are not happy because they are
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its business associates and they also have to make profit.
Distributors/Dealers/Retailers
“Distributors are the face of the company”. They are the link between the company and
its dealers. The success of the business of a company heavily depends on the
performance of the distributors/ dealers, more so in Indian economy where the
knowledge of the consumer about the company and its product is relatively poor.
Retailer/Distributers/ Traders are the friend, philosopher, and guide of the customers
or clients. In order to build up the company relationship, internal PR needs to announce
the various schemes available for them like prizes, discount, and provide them
alternatives both monetary and non-monetary benefits.
Other Associate Relations
It comprises of promoters, management consultants, lawyers, solicitors, auditors,
friends and family members of the directors of the company and the advisers of the
company. These people may not be in the forefront of the company but their role and
influence on the working of the company cannot be undermined under any
circumstances. Company needs to show care and give them due recognition for their
work and support. Copies of company publications, annual reports, new issues,
preferential issues etc., should be regularly sent to them to give them special feeling that
they matter to the company and they are eligible for these privileges. Congratulatory
letters on their birthdays, marriage anniversary, and special achievement is a good
gesture
Internal publics of public relations share key messages with all the members. Give
recognition to people during birthday or when they receive award. Internal publics
professionals keep the image of the company fly high. Internal publics of an
organisation looks into the goodwill of its collaborators and maintain good relations.
They take corrective actions when problems arise within the company.
EXTERNAL PUBLIC
External publics are people and organizations that are clients doing business with a firm
or agency or company. External public of public relations includes
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Consumers/Customers, Community, Mass Media, Government, Financial Institutions,
Action Groups and General Publics. External publics concentrate on issues pertaining to
the values, policies, procedures and attitudes of the company towards various groups of
people in society.
Consumer/Customer
Customer is the centre of today’s business activity. A consumer is a person who
purchases goods and services for personal use. An external PR needs to educate the
audience pertaining to the product or about the organisation and then get the
suggestions of the audience. Present era of management belongs to marketing where
every happening in the company revolves around the customer. A customer or
consumer is not a means of business, but he is the purpose of business. He is not an
intruder on our premises, he is our guest. He is the last inspector of our quality and he is
always right. Customer education, market research, public opinion polls, customer
satisfaction level, after sales services and constant relations are must for company to
public.
PR practitioners use different tools and techniques to communicate with various
entities and to dissolve issues and crisis with the help of these tools and techniques.
These tools and techniques are the ways of communication for the company with the
public concerned.
Community Relations
Looking after and protecting the interest of the community is the essence of community
relations. In gratitude to public companies need to provide various types of services,
education service, sewage and sanitation facilities and others. Participation in
community’s social and cultural functions, making generous contribution towards its
success by giving donation and infrastructural support leads to goodwill and longer
lasting relations between the company and its community.
Media Relations
Mass media gives mass exposure to company’s activity. It includes print media,
electronic media, and digital media. The wining, dining, or gifting image of public
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relations practitioners is greatly due to how they interact with media.
Government Relations
The purpose of the relationship with government seems to be disappearing because of
vested interest of individual or corporate. Government and its machinery can be divided
into two categories depending on their characteristics i.e. politicians and bureaucrats
PUBLIC RELATIONS CAMPAIGN
Campaigns are usually conducted to achieve specific organizational goals. Likewise,
public relations campaigns are executed to solve the problems or improve the situations
of the organizations. PR practitioners must understand the elements of public relations
campaigns that consist of seven basic elements. First element is situational analysis by
researching. Next, establishing objectives to present the campaign outcomes. Then,
identifying the target public in order to design the key messages and select appropriate
media. After that defining a timetable to arrange campaign activities and allocating the
realistic budgets. Finally, evaluating the accomplishment of a campaign in order to
develop campaign in the next time. These elements provide campaign procedures so
that PR practitioners can create public relations campaigns systematically. Successful
campaigns are described in terms of five characteristics: educational, engineering,
enforcement, reinforcement and evaluation.
Planning for a public relations campaign is essential not only to know the management
process but to increase opportunities for achieving campaign. Even though many public
relations managers or PR practitioners feel they have limited time to plan a campaign,
however planning prevents the loss of time from errors of operating a campaign. Before
planning a campaign, PR practitioners must consider all the elements properly and
understand the overall picture of a campaign clearly.
TOOLS FOR PUBLIC RELATIONS
Companies use a variety of tools for their public relations purposes, including annual
reports, brochures and magazines for both employees and the public, Web sites to show
good things they’re doing, speeches, blogs, and podcasts. Some of the most commonly
used PR tools include press releases, news conferences, and publicity. Sponsorships,
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product placements, and social media also generate a lot of positive PR
Press Releases: Through Press Releases, the vital information related to
organisation is communicated effectively to the target audience. The press
releases are then given to be published in various newspapers and magazines.
This escalates the media visibility of organisations, helping them attract
consumers’ attention.
News Letters: A newsletter can be used as an informative PR tool that
provides up-to-date valuable information to the stakeholders of the company to
establish a strong relationship with them and to promote an awareness of
positive organizational behavior. Effective newsletters are published regularly
and consistently, are enjoyable and easy to read and provide timely and relevant
information to the organizational publics to strengthen its connection with them.
The content of a newsletter is presented in a less formal writing style. Use of
opening words can be used to catch the reader or viewer's attention at the most
important angle of the story. It is a very affordable promotional tool that even
small firms can afford.
Annual reports: The annual report of an organisation is usually drafted
by the PR department. This report is accorded publicity and coverage in the
media.
Fliers or handouts: They are unfolded sheets delivered by mail or
distributed by hand, represent the simplest and easiest form of informational
tools used in public relations. They are effective public relations tools as they are
relatively inexpensive and time specific. They can be made effective by
enhancing their visual appeal by adding eye-catching colors, identifying logos,
and a large headline. They are open to use innovative distribution methods, for
example taped to the tops of pizza boxes delivered by the local pizza delivery
business. The logo of the organization can be used on them to establish the
organization identity with well-designed and informative public relations pieces.
Leaflets: It is a small sheet of printed matter, usually intended for free
distribution, can act as an effective tool for publicity. Leaflets are effective tool to
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target publics in a small market radius. They present a single message instead of
a series of separate messages. They are economically viable and can provide
instant information to a wide audience.
Brochures: A brochure, a multi-page publication containing more than
one page of printed matter, can be used as a PR tool to convey long messages
which can last longer in the minds of the target audience.
Media Tour: Products and services are often launched by marketers with
a media tour. The company spokesperson or someone hired by the company, an
expert or even a celebrity whoever has credibility with the consumers can be
employed for the purpose. This spokesperson travels to target cities and spreads
the word about a product or service. He is usually booked for T.V, radio shows or
newspaper, internet interviews in these cities. Media tours are very successfully
employed for book releases. The author travels around the country to promote
his book. He may include in his tour events like book reading and autograph
signing.
Special Events: Special events are often performed to catch the media
attention and arouse public interest. Regional agriculture is often promoted by
events like strawberry festival. The PR professional must ensure these events
convey the desired message and not tarnish the company’s image.
Sponsorships: Sponsor is an individual or a group that supports an event,
activity, person etc. through money or some form of product or services.
Sponsorship is used to build goodwill and brand recognition. Companies keep in
mind their target audience and budget before indulging in sponsorship activities.
There are various events happening all the year round, nationally and
internationally which provide marketers with sponsorship opportunities.
Internet as a PR Tool
Companies use internet to conduct their daily business, communicate with and
provide support to their customers and look for valuable information to gain a
competitive advantage. This medium provides PR practitioners a many-faceted
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form of worldwide communication, primarily involving message exchange by e-
mail, information delivery and persuasion by its world-wide websites. Social
media networks can also be used by the PR department for communicating with
the target audience.
House journals
The primary objective of a house journal is to create a forum for exchange
of views and visions on various issues concerning an organisation and its
employees. A house journal, if carefully produced, serves as an important link
between a management and its various employees. With corporations becoming
large, multi-dimensional and multi-locational, a house journal reaches employees
belonging to different disciplines, cadres and interests, thus bridging the gap and
creating a fellow-feeling among them. One of the public relations persons in the
organisation ideally would be the editor of the house journal. Before publishing
the journal, decisions about its editorial policies and objectives must be
approved from the management. If a journal is to meet its communication
objectives, it must be attractive enough to grasp attention and must be of interest
to those who read it. A concerted effort in planning, organising, publishing and
distribution is a must to bring out a successful house journal.
PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER (PRO)
Public relations officers, also referred to as public relations specialists, media
specialists or press officers, serve as the communication link between an
organization and the public. They make use of media contacts and their own
creativity to communicate an organization's message and to handle any
potentially damaging circumstances. Public relations officers must have a strong
command of the language and the ability to think on their feet. A public relations
officer (PRO) also known as Media Specialist, is the spokesperson of a company
or any organization. The role of a public relations officer is to convey the policies
and interests of the organization to the public through various forms of media.
The need for public relations officer can be found in almost all sectors, including
advertising companies, government agencies, election commissions, etc.
The main job of a public relations officer is to develop and maintain the
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reputation of the company or organization. It is the responsibility of the PR
officer to promote the products or services of the establishment he works in. He
does this by organizing press conferences, exhibitions, publishing articles in the
newspaper or on the official website of the government department / company.
When a company has to launch a new product, it is the job of the PR official to
make arrangements to promote it. He has to plan promotional strategies,
keeping the target audience in mind.
The PR officer should be an outgoing person as he has to interact with lots of
people, like, potential clients and also media persons. It is the responsibility of
the public relations officer to answer the questions of the public and the media, if
some issues arise about products or services of the company.
Role and functions of a PRO
Crafting Press Releases
Public relations officers create press releases and send them to various media
outlets. The releases can provide information on a new product or service or
alert the public about an upcoming event. They may also announce changes in an
organization such as the hiring of new personnel or plans for business
expansion.
Media Liaison
Public relations officers serve as a liaison between an organization and the
media. Any requests for information or media interviews are often directed to
the public relations officer. The officer may consult with the organization's
leaders before giving a response to potentially sensitive or confidential matters.
Strategic Planning
Public relations officer may develop and implement a strategy or campaign for a
specific event. For example, when an organization is planning a campaign to
raise funds, the officer will develop a strategy to make the public aware of the
event. A strategy can involve using media, the telephone, the Internet and
personal contacts to accomplish the task.
Crisis Management
A public relations officer will serve as the spokesperson for the organization
when something negative occurs. For example, when an industrial accident
results in injuries to workers, a company will have the public relations officer
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state the company's position and handle media questions. Politicians use public
relations officers to help show a poor public approval rating in a more positive
light.
Community Relations
Public relations officers create ways to strengthen an organization's ties to the
community. They may arrange for company officials to speak to community
organizations or develop a plan to sponsor a charity event. They might also
develop a scholarship program in the name of the organization to help send a
high school student to college.
PUBLIC RELATIONS SET UP IN AN ORGANISATION
Public relations or PR has a very important role in an organization. The PR
function is not exclusive concern of only few PR experts, but the responsibility
and concern of everyone in the organization, from the top brass to the lower
cadre. One of the most important factors that determines and influences an
organizations status and reputation is what its own employees think and say
about it. The role of public relations in an organization is to develop
commitment, motivation and morale among the people to enable them to
function well in different circumstances. The purpose is also to develop an
appropriate work culture and the necessary attitudes and competence with the
ultimate goals of establishing and maintaining a bridge of mutual understanding
and good will between the organization and its various publics.
The status of a Public Relations Department in an organization is very crucial. As
far as the internal communication in an organization is concerned, the PR
department plays a role of an intermediary between the employee and the
employer or, we can say, between the top brass and the other employees
including the lower cadre. The PR department disseminates the various policies
and programmes initiated by the management to the other employees and the
department collects and conveys the reaction or the feedbacks of the employees
and conveys them to the management.
The primary function of the Public Relations department in an organization is to
establish and maintain good relation with its internal as well as external publics.
To maintain this relation with its publics a PR department must take some
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initiative of publishing printed materials, producing audio visual materials and
filling the communication gap, if any, among the various groups of the
organization and finally disseminating information to the publics. Besides, the PR
department also plays the role of bridging the communication gap between the
external publics or the target audiences and the organization. The department
also tries to build a good image of the organization before the publics.
Public Relations Department of a medium organisation
The PR department is responsible for the following-
1. Controlling the public relations activities through the presentation and
implementation of agreed policies and strategies;
2. Conveying and interpreting to management information on public attitudes
and views about the company and/or the industry it serves;
3. Preparing all policy and financial statements and on company affairs to the
Press, TV and radio. Handling day-to-day inquiries from the Press, and the
initiation of Press interest in the affairs, services and production of the company,
regularly issuing news material on all company activities;
4. Advising on the preparation of prestige publications, institutional advertising,
films, exhibitions, shareholder relations, house style, community relations, and
other relevant activities;
5. Instructing the company’s financial advertising agents on all matters relating
to financial and annual report, advertising and publicity.
6. Liaison with the company’s department on all matters relating to the
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dissemination of internal information and the company’s employee publications.
PR PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
Public Relations Society of India (PRSI)
PRSI is the professional body of Public Relations practitioners in the country.
Established in 1958, the Society has individual, associate, corporate and student
memberships. PRSI brings out a quarterly journal Public Relations to promote the
cause of this profession. The Society is affiliated to the International Public
Relation Association (IPRA).
International Public Relations Association (IPRA)
The International Public Relations Association (IPRA) was set up as a para-
national organisation in May 1955 to raise standards of public relations practice
in various countries and to improve the professional quality and efficiency of
public relations practitioners. An early achievement of the organisation was the
adoption of a ‘Code of Conduct’ for the purpose of establishing standards of
professional ethics and conduct in the field of Public Relations for all members of
the association worldwide.
CORPORATE COMMUNICATION
Corporate communication is an integral part of the strategic management
process in which organizational mission and goals are communicated explicitly
to various stakeholders, including employees. When key organizational leaders
define what the company is about, they forced to clarify and find common
agreement on what the organization’s values are and what differentiates it from
other organizations. Excellent corporate communication lies at the heart of
industry, commerce and governments’ abilities to build a democratic society, but
this critical strategic role in organizational theory and practice rarely receives
the due commitment required for quality assurance in organization life today.
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MODULE V
ADVERTISING
Introduction
The purpose of most advertising is to sell products or services. Business firms advertise
to persuade people to buy their products often by creating favorable ‘images’ of their
companies. They want the company’s name to be known and respected so that their
products and services can be more effectively sold. Business concerns also use
advertising to win new customers and to increase the volume of sales. Advertising is the
cheapest and fastest way to inform a large number of people about products or services
for sale and to persuade them to buy. For many consumer goods, the volume of sales
directly depends on the amount of advertising placed in the media. Advertising reaches
people through various forms of mass communication. These media include
newspapers, magazines, television, radio, Internet etc. Advertisers buy space in
newspapers and magazines to publish their advertisements. On television and radio
advertisers buy time to broadcast commercials.
Advertising can be called a game that is played among five key players. They are: The
advertisers, the advertising agencies, the support organization, the media and the
consumers.
DEFINITION OF ADVERTISING
The World Book Encyclopedia defines advertisement as a message designed to promote
a product, a service or an idea. The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI)
defines an advertisement as a paid form of communication, addressed to the public or a
section of it, the purpose of which is to influence the opinions or behavior of those to
whom it is addressed. American Marketing Association (AMA) defines advertising in
this way: ‘advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of
ideas, goods and services by an identified sponsor.’
EVOLUTION OF ADVERTISING
Advertising as a profession dates back to ancient civilizations and has rich history,
although the forms of advertising may have changed over centuries. As languages and
written forms of communication developed with invention of paper in China and
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papyrus in Egypt, sales messages began to be displayed as posters. After the industrial
revolution in the United Kingdom, advertising slowly began to emerge as a veritable
industry itself.
Traditionally speaking, Advertising can be traced back to:
a) Trademarks: Skilled craftsmen placed their individual marks on goods like vessels,
pottery, leather goods etc. As the reputation of one particular artisan spread by word of
mouth, his/her goods also became popular.
b) Signs: Few people could read in the ancient days and merchants used symbols and
signs carved in stone, clay or wood and displayed them prominently to inform
customers of the availability of goods. For example, a barrel indicated a wine shop and a
boot indicated a shoemaker’s shop.
c) Town criers: In ancient Egypt and Greece merchants hired town criers, a group of
professional criers, to walk through the streets and announce the arrival of ships and
cargo.
The invention of movable type by Gutenberg of Germany in 1440 led to the first form of
mass advertising. At the end of 15th century, the first posted advertisement began to
appear. These were handwritten announcements and they were posted up on church
and cathedral doors by clergymen looking for work. Lecturers and teachers were quick
to use this medium to announce their services. William Caxton, who introduced printing
in England, produced the first printed advertisement in English in 1472. With the
regular publication of newspapers and magazines, advertising became a standard
feature.
History of advertising in India
History of advertising in India runs parallel to the history and development of press in
the country. India’s first newspaper Bengal Gazette started by James Augustus Hicky
on January 29, 1780 carried a few advertisements.
Advertising agencies began to operate from the beginning of the 20th century. The
Calcutta Advertising Agency (1909) and B. Dattaram (1915) were said to have the first
ad agencies in India. The main functions of the agencies in those days were to secure the
advertisements and get them published in the press. The prominent players in
advertising business were a handful of British advertising agencies that catered to the
needs of the affluent British and Indians living in the urban centers. By the 1920s,
several more Indian advertising agencies began such as Modern Publicity Company in
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Madras (1924), The Calcutta Publicity (1924), Central Publicity Service (1925) in
Bombay etc. The proliferation of advertising agencies in the major urban centers of the
country also gave rise to several unhealthy practices in the advertising profession. The
establishment of Indian and Eastern Newspaper Society (1939), consisting of the
owners of newspapers and periodicals, aimed at standardizing of advertising agency
practices. The establishment of Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) in
1945 paved the way for professionalization of advertising agencies. Following Indian
independence, several British owned advertising agencies were sold to Indians. The
founding of Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC) in 1948 and Advertising Standard Council
of India (ASCI) in 1959 further professionalized the advertising business. The expansion
of television networks from the 1980s and the liberalization policies of 1990s and the
phenomenal impact of information technology from the late 1990s have turned
advertising into a multi-crore business in India.
FUNCTIONS OF ADVERTISING
The following are the important functions or benefits of advertisements:
1) Source of information: Ads inform people just as news stories. It can be seen as an
essential part of a modern-day, consumerist society and is a very effective way of
informing us about new products. People use advertising to gather information before
making buying decisions.
2) Encourages competition: Advertisements encourage competition by lowering
information cost. It also encourages product quality through clear brand identification.
3) Maintains independence: Advertising enables both print and broadcast media to
maintain independence from government, political parties and other vested interests
through the revenue it generates.
4) Promotes economic growth: Advertisement stimulates demand and encourages
people to spend more. This encourages production and consumption.
5) Encourages invention: On account of stiff competition companies invest a lot on
research and development (R&D). This results in the invention of new products or
upgrading of the existing products.
6) Creates awareness: Over the years advertising has been a very effective way for
government and its various agencies to provide public information about national
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integration, pulse polio vaccination, family planning, safe sex, dangers of alcoholism etc.
The government is one of the major advertisers in this country.
7) Provides employment: Advertising is a gigantic business and the turnover exceeds
millions of rupees annually. As a result, advertising provides employment to several
thousands of advertising professionals and allied personnel.
TYPES OF ADVERTISING
Product advertising
As the name suggests, product advertising deals with non-personal selling of a
particular good or service. Most advertising are of this type and designed to promote
the sale or reputation of a particular product or brand or service. This can be made by
manufactures. It emphasises the product itself or some features such as price, service or
quality directly associated with it.
The objective of product advertising is to promote a particular product or service. The
marketer may use such promotion to generate exposure attention comprehension,
attitude change, or action for an offering. Product advertising may be primary demand
and selective demand advertising. In primary demand advertising, appeals are directed
to create demand a particular type of product rather than for specific brand. For
example, demand for scooters in general rather than demand for a particular make of
scooter is generated. In contrast to this, in selective advertising appeals are directed to
promote the sale of a specific make of the product.
Product advertising can be again divided into informative product advertising,
persuasive product advertising and reminder-oriented product advertising.
Informative product advertising seeks to develop initial demand of the product. This
form of advertising lends to the characterize the promotion of a new type of product or
service as the objective of this type of advertising in only to announce its birth and
availability of the product. It is generally and widely used in the introductory stage of
the product life-cycle.
Persuasive product advertising aims at developing demand for a product or brand
already in use. It is competitive type of promotion generally used in the growth period
and to some extent in the maturity period of the product life cycle.
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Reminder oriented advertising seeks to reinforce previous promotional activity. The goal
of the advertising is to remind the public for the use of the product brand by keeping the
brand name before them. It is used till the decline of the product life cycle.
Institutional advertising
Institutional advertising also known as prestige or corporate advertising aims to create
favorable attitude or image towards the institution or business in the eyes of
shareholders, employees, suppliers, legislatures or the general public. It does not
attempt to sell a particular product but create a public image of the organization as a
whole. Such ads notify the public that they are responsible entity and patriotic, supports
socialistic pattern of the society. Institutional advertising is designed to:
Provide unified and supportive marketing approach for a combination of
present and future products and services.
Educate the audience on subjects of importance to the company’s future
(profits, economics, prices and govt controls)
Establish company’s concern for environmental and social issues.
Bring about a change in specific attitude of the audience towards the company
or its product.
Institutional advertising is also useful in introducing sales personnel and new product
to consumers.
Industrial advertising
The producers of industrial goods use this kind of advertising which appeals are
directed to create demand for their industrial goods by urging industrial users to
purchase the product advertised or to extend patronage to the advertiser. As the users
are innumerable the industrial advertising executives have little confidence in
advertising. They rely more on personal setting. The objective of advertising may vary
according to the firm and the situation. Some of them are:
To inform the users of of industrial products technological and other
developments.
To speed-up sales of industrial products by announcing several concessions and
discounts on large purchases and thus bringing in large orders.
To induce enquiries about the quality, price etc. of the product from the users.
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To get the advertiser’s name on the buyers approved list by ensuring him about
the quality of the product through advertisements.
To communicate to influential persons in the buyer’s firm whom the salesman
cannot reach.
To provide support to the salesman and reduce the costs of personal selling.
To establish recognition for the firm or its products.
To motivate distributors.
Industrial advertisements must be rational and largely factual. The claim made in the
advertisement should be specific and provable. Trade journals, direct mail
communication, exhibitions, general management publications are some examples of
industrial advertising.
Trade advertising
It is addressed to distributers and agents, wholesalers, retailers, servicing firms by
manufactures. The purpose for trade advertising is there for to secure distribution and
make profits. Trade advertising can be direct or indirect. Direct advertising contains the
sales technique of offering, coupons along with the product request customers to
redeem them at once or the advertiser arranges a draw at a fixed date offering certain
prices. Such action advertising generate behavior directly through exposure and
attention. Indirect action advertising does not attempt to bring about immediate
behavior response. It attempts to create favorable attitudes towards sponsor and his
products and services. It builds up the reputation of the institution, branding its services
or products offering through mental associations. It has long un objectives.
Professional advertising
Professional advertising is aimed at professional persons like doctors, lawyers etc. here
manufacturers sell their product either to such professionals or to consumers on their
advices or prescriptions. Such ads are similar to trade ads. Here personal selling plays
key role ie, convince the consumers about the qualities of the product. These may
appear in professional journals. Direct mail and product samples are important here.
Classified advertising
Where publishers print one type of advertisements at one place provided for the
purpose, such advertising are known as classified advertising. They regularly published
at the same page of the newspaper or journal.
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There is a specialty at in writing these ads. They are telegram like ads, in a few lines
using intriguing opening to catch the eyes of the readers, squeezing as much
abbreviating but intelligently copy into as few lines as possible. This class of advertising
is very important source of revenue to the publishers.
National advertising
National advertising consists of persuasive words and images generally used by a
business to sell its products to a national market. National advertisers run ads on
broadcast televising and radio, in newspapers and magazines, on billboards and on the
Internet. National advertising is expensive and is normally only used by large, well-
funded organizations. Large national advertisers include national fast-food chains such
as McDonald's and Taco Bell, soft drink bottlers such as Coke and Pepsi and consumer
goods companies such as Johnson & Johnson and Proctor & Gamble. Successful national
ads can transcend advertising and become icons of popular culture.
Regional advertising
Regional advertising is placing ads of any media within a specific geographic location to
influence decision in one locality. A region may be defined in different geographic sizes
or terms such as city, county, state, country, or continent.
Global advertising
Global advertising is nothing more than have your message go out to the major markets
in the world. Companies use their major investments in advertising medium in order to
fuel the marketing worldwide. Largest media corporates took over the advertising
function and they brand company products in a global level.
There are more classifications are available for advertising such as direct appeal,
indirect appeal, local advertising, advertising based on demand influence level etc. The
classifications may vary due to the course of time in accordance with consumer
perceptions.
ADVERTISING AGENCY
An advertising agency is an independent business organisation that develops, prepares
and distributes advertisements in media. The goal of an advertising agency is to make
advertisements succeed in order to improve the performance of a company, its brand
image and its business. Ad agencies are usually divided into departments, the number
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determined by the size and service of operation. There are four important departments
in an advertising agency. These are explained below.
1) Accounts department
This department comprises a manager, account directors and account
executives. This group plans, schedules and manages the works in the ad agency.
It also coordinates the art work, gets approval for the art work from the client
and places the advertisements in the media.
2) Creative department
This department consists of creative directors, copy writers, art directors and
production managers. This department gets ready the ideas, layouts, visuals,
texts and thumbnail sketches of advertisements.
3) Media department
This department selects the most effective media to channelise the
advertisement. It also advises the clients about the relative advantages and
disadvantages of various media units. The media department makes the
decisions about where and when to place ads and then buys the appropriate time
or space.
4) Research department
Market research tests product viability in the market, the best venues for
commercial messages, the nature and characteristics of potential buyers, and
sometimes the effectiveness of the ads.
Responsibilities of an Advertising agency
a) To study the product or service in depth.
b) To analyse the present and potential source of business.
c) To know the methods of distribution, sales and operation so as to advise the clients.
d) To study the media and propose those media which will get the message to the right
people at the lowest effective price.
e) To formulate a definite advertising plan that will include distribution, pricing, media
strategy, creative strategy, budgeting etc.
f) To organize periodical research to study people’s attitudes, buying habits, living
standards, spending habits etc. to make the advertising more effective.
ADVERTORIAL
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An advertorial is a form of advertisement in a newspaper, magazine or a website which
involves giving information about the product in the form of an article. Usually, a brand
pays the publisher for such an article.
They are used by marketers to educate prospective consumers about the features of a
product. It can be used to target a specific set of people by choosing the right medium to
publish the advertorial. An advertorial is more detailed than an advertisement and thus
helps consumers understand more about the product. Advertorials are usually written
by an ad agency or the client itself. They then purchase the ad space on the website or in
a newspaper or a magazine.
For example, an advertorial in a business newspaper would involve educating a set of
people who are more interested about economy, markets or financial products. It is an
effective medium for a company to connect with its consumers through a story, unlike a
traditional print ad in a magazine, newspaper or on a website as a banner ad.
THE ADVERTISING STANDARDS COUNCIL OF INDIA (ASCI)
The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), established in 1985, is committed to
the cause of Self-Regulation in Advertising and ensuring the protection of the interests
of consumers. The ASCI was formed with the support of all four sectors connected with
Advertising, viz. Advertisers, Ad Agencies, Media (including Broadcasters and the Press)
and others like PR Agencies, Market Research Companies etc.
Its main objective is to promote responsible advertising; thus, enhancing the public’s
confidence in Advertising. ASCI thus aims to achieve its own overarching goal i.e., to
maintain and enhance the public’s confidence in advertising. The Board of Governors
(16 members) ensures equitable representation of Advertisers, Agencies, Media and
other Advertising Services, the individual member firms being leaders in their
respective industries or services.
The Consumer Complaints Council is ASCI’s heart and soul. It is the dedicated work put
in by this group of highly respected people that has given tremendous impetus to the
work of ASCI and the movement of self-regulation in the advertising. The Consumer
Complaints Council (CCC) (21 members) has 12 Non-Advertising professionals
representing civil society, who are eminent and recognised opinion leaders in their
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respective disciplines such as Medical, Legal, Industrial Design, Engineering, Chemical
Technology, Human Resources and Consumer Interest Groups; 9 are advertising
practitioners from member firms.
In August 2006, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a notification
deeming it necessary for all TV commercials in India to abide by the ASCI code. This
effort of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has made the advertising self-
regulatory movement in India stronger and more effective.
DIRECTORATE OF ADVERTISING AND VISUAL PUBLICITY (DAVP)
DAVP is the nodal agency of the Central Government to inform people about
Government’s activities, policies and programmes and to motivate them to participate
in developmental activities. It was established in the year 1955. This is one of the largest
advertising and public relations agencies in the country with a network of regional
offices, production centres, distribution centres, outdoor publicity units and field
exhibition units. The DAVP is headed by a Director General. Apart from its headquarters
in New Delhi, DAVP has two regional offices in Bangalore and Guwahati. The Directorate
includes 4 Campaign wings, an Advertising wing for Print, Audio-Visual (AV) wing, New
Media & Personal Media wing, Exhibition wing, Mass Mailing wing, Outdoor Publicity
wing, Research wing, Distribution wing and Language wing in addition to an Audio-
Visual Publicity Cell.
ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN
The term campaign is applied to systematic efforts to elect a political candidate, to raise
a fund or persuade people to buy soaps, automobiles, mobiles phones etc. The
important principles in all these are the same: planning, management, execution and
evaluation. Advertising campaign is a systematic and sustained effort to boost the sales
or to enhance the reputation of a company. Successful advertising campaigns achieve
far more than the sporadic advertising, and may last from a few weeks and months to
years.
Effective campaigning means using the minimum amount of effort to achieve the
maximum impact. Planning is critical to making your campaign focused and effective.
Consider the following in your campaigning.
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1. Research: first step is to do a market research for the product to be advertised.
One needs to find out the product demand, competitors, etc.
2. Know the target audience: one needs to know who are going to buy the
product and who should be targeted.
3. Setting the budget: the next step is to set the budget keeping in mind all the
factors like media, presentations, paper works, etc. which have a role in the
process of advertising and the places where there is a need of funds.
4. Deciding a proper theme: the theme for the campaign has to be decided as in
the colours to be used, the graphics should be similar or almost similar in all ads,
the music and the voices to be used, the designing of the ads, the way the
message will be delivered, the language to be used, jingles, etc.
5. Selection of media: the media or number of Media selected should be the one
which will reach the target customers.
6. Media scheduling: the scheduling has to be done accurately so that the ad. will
be visible or be read or be audible to the targeted customers at the right time.
7. Executing the campaign: finally, the campaign has to be executed and then the
feedback has to be noted.
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MODULE VI
COPY WRITING PRACTICES
Introduction
Copywriting is the writing you use in your written promotional materials. This can
include your advertising, website, brochure, catalogs, business cards, sales letter and
more. Copywriting is the skill of choosing the right words and technique of arranging
them smartly to promote business, product, service, idea, or a person. The selection of
words and its presentation largely depends upon the media through which it is planned
to convey. For example, depending on whether it is a newspaper, magazine, hoarding,
radio, television, or internet, the script will vary accordingly. However, whatever is the
type of media, the purpose of copywriting is the same i.e. promotion. Therefore, it
should be persuasive enough to be instantly attention grabbing. Copywriting is what
you use to get your customers and potential customers to take a particular action. For
example:
• Call you for more information
• Place an order
• Sign up for your mailing list
• Get them to refer a friend to your business
Advertising copywriter provides the verbal or written ‘copy’ of the advertisement. This
may include creating slogans, catchphrases, messages and straplines for printed adverts
and leaflets. They are also involved in writing text for web advertising, as well as scripts
for radio jingles and TV commercials. Copywriters also work with media
planners/buyers and the production department to fully develop the advertising
campaign. Copywriters are responsible for generating the words, slogans and audio
scripts that accompany advertising visuals. They work alongside art directors to
conceive and complete effective advertisements. Advertising ideas, which typically
contain an integrated verbal and visual concept, require both the ability to make an
imaginative leap and an intuitive understanding of the public the advert is aimed at.
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Copywriters must understand the client’s brief; the concept determines the style and
character of the ad. Copywriters must be able to write at length and paraphrase highly
technical subjects. Advertising copy involves constant detailed revision and rewriting
either at the request of the client or to tune up the communication.
ELEMENTS OF COPYWRITING
Copywriting has some essential elements required to develop a convincing ad.
Following are the significant elements:
Heading
o Headline gives the first impression and lasts on readers’ mind; therefore,
it should be eye-catching. Heading should tell – what it is all about your ad
in a very few words, ranging from 3 to 30 words.
Body copy
o Write body copy in such a way that it seems as the continuity of the
heading. Provide details of all the features and benefits that you are
claiming for. The language should be promising and trustworthy.
Slogans
o Think of “The ultimate driving machine” (BMW);” Just do it” (Nike);”
Because I’m worth it” (L’Oréal), what comes to your mind? The moment,
you hear the slogans, you link it with the respective brand not only
because you have heard it many times, but rather it works. A well-written
and effective slogan is a trustworthy brand representative. However, your
slogan should be small and crispy giving meaning to your brand.
Taglines
o Taglines are usually used for literary products to reinforce and strengthen
the audience’s memory of a literary product. For example, “she went in
search of answers, and discovered a love she never expected,’ Book Name
“Faithful” and Writer - Janet Fox. Thus, tagline tells the gist of the
products for marketing purpose. Like, a slogan, it should be small and eye-
catching.
Jingle Lyrics
o More often accompanied with background music, jingle lyric is a short
slogan, tune, or verse written to be easily remembered (especially used in
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advertising). For example, Fanta: “Wanna Fanta, Don’t You Wanna?” It
should be small, crisp, and rhythmic (like a song) so that it registers with
people at once and they remember it.
Scripts (for audio and video ad)
o Scripts are the descriptions of an ad that narrates the dialogues, actions,
expression, and movements of characters. Since, script is a complete
guideline of an ad; therefore, it should be written meaningfully, orderly,
and nicely.
Others
o (White Paper, Press Release, & other written material such as emails,
articles, and blog (for the internet)): These are all promotional write-ups
written purposefully to promote a product/service. So, while writing
white paper, press release, articles, blog, or even an email you need to
focus or emphasize only on one product that you want to promote. You
need to describe all features and offers of the respective product in simple
and plain language.
Advertising design
The three basic components of a Print ad are the headline, body copy, and visual or
illustrations. The headline and body copy portions of the advertisement are the
responsibility of the copywriters, while artists, often working under the direction of an
art director-are responsible for the visual presentation of the ad. Artists also work with
copywriters to develop a layout. The layout involves the arrangement of the various
components of the ad, such as headlines, subheads, body copy, and taglines. The tagline
is a memorable saying or slogan that conveys a selling message.
Television copy consists of, two elements- the audio and the visual. The video visual
elements are what the viewer sees on the television screen. The visual generally
dominates the commercial so it must attract the viewer’s attention and communicate a
key idea, message, and/or image. The audio includes such elements as voices, music,
and sound effects. Broadcast commercials are demanding to make, and they must be
credible and relevant. Research shows that the following techniques work best: the
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opening should be short, compelling attention getter, demonstrations should be
interesting and believable; the content should be ethical, in good taste, and entertaining;
and the general structure of the commercial and copy should be simple and easy to
follow.
Radio copy presents a challenge to advertisers and their agencies because it lacks the
visual aspects of both print and television. Successful radio spots usually enable
listeners to visualize the product or something related to it. For this reason, radio
advertising is often referred to as ‘theater of the mind’. One of the most challenging
aspects of writing for radio is making the script fit the time slot. The copywriter should
read the script out loud for timing. With electronic compression, recorded radio
advertisements can now include 10 to 30 percent more copy than text read live. To
appear professional and to be easy to produce, copy must adhere to the appropriate
industry format. All copy begins with the name of the advertisers in the upper left-hand
corner. The size of the print ad or length of the broadcast script followed by
identification of the medium to be used appears on the second line. The name given to
the advertisement appears on the third line. Often a series of advertisements are
created for a specific advertising campaign. In this case, all the ads created for the
campaign may have one name, which unifies the series.
Background of Making an Advertisement
In Print advertising, the key format elements are the headlines, the visuals, subheads,
body copy, slogans and logos. Copywriters can correlate the headline, visual, and
subhead to the attention step of the creative pyramid. The interest step typically
corresponds to the sub-headline and the first paragraph of body copy. Body copy
handles credibility and desire, and the action step takes place with to logo and slogan.
The Headline
Effective headlines attract attention, engage the audience, explain the visual, lead the
audience into the body of the ad, and present the selling message. The headline is the
most important thing as advertiser says to the prospect. It explains or give s greater
meaning to the visual and then immediately dictates the advertiser’s position in that
person’s mind, whether the prospect chooses to read on.
Ideally, headlines present the complete selling idea. Working off the visual, the headline
creates the mood and tells the reader to act through implication and triggers a
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recognition response, which reinforces brand recognition and brand preference. Also,
the headline should present product news. Consumers look for new products, new uses
for old products, or improvements on old products. If they haven’t been overused in a
category,
‘Power’ words that imply newness can increase readership and should be employed
whenever honestly applicable. Examples include free, now, amazing, suddenly,
announcing, introducing, it’s here, improved, at last, revolutionary, just arrived, and
important development.
Subheads
The subheads, an additional smaller headline, may appear above the headline or below
it. A subhead above the headline, called a kicker or over line) is often underlined.
Subheads may also appear in body copy. Subheads are usually set smaller than the
headline but larger than the body copy or text. Subheads generally appear in boldface
heavier type or a different colour. Like a headline, the subhead transmits key sales
points fast. But it usually carries less important information than the headline. Subheads
are important for two reasons: most individuals read only the headline and subheads,
and subheads usually support the interest step best. Subheads are longer and more like
sentences. They serve as stepping-stones from the headline to the body copy,
telegraphing what’s to come.
Body Copy
The advertiser tells the complete sales story in the body copy or text. The body copy
comprises the interest, credibility, desire, and often even the action steps. It is a logical
continuation of the headline and subheads, set in smaller type. Body copy covers the
features, benefits, and utility of the product or service. The body copy is typically read
by only one out of ten readers, so the writer must speak to the reader’s self –interest,
explaining how the product or service satisfies the customer’s need. The best ads focus
on one big idea or one clear benefit. Copywriters often read their copy aloud to hear
how it sounds, even if it’s intended for print media. The ear is a powerful copywriting
tool.
Slogans
Many slogans also called theme lines or taglines begin as successful headlines. Through
continuous use, they become standard statements, not just in advertising but also for
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salespeople and company employees. Slogans have two basic purposes: to provide
continuity to a series of ads in a campaign and to reduce an advertising message
strategy to a brief, repeatable, and memorable positioning statement. DeBeers’ ads, for
example, still use the famous slogan “Diamonds are forever”. It is a phrase or a sentence
that describes the benefit derived from the product or one of the product’s most
important attributes. The term slogan comes from the Gaelic words sluagh gairm,
meaning battle cry. These days it is the battle cry in the field of sales and marketing. It
consists of a single phrase by which an advertiser conveys an important idea, which will
presumably lead readers or audience to remember and think favourably of this
company. Slogan is thus a short and catchy phrase that gets the attention of the
audience, is easy to remember and comes off the tongue easily.
Slogan can of different types:
a) Slogan that emphasizes product or reward- every product has some reward to offer
consumers. It may have some hidden quality that differentiates a product from the
competitors.
b) Slogans that emphasizes action to be taken- the slogan might urge directly that you
use the product or service.
Logotypes and signatures
sign cuts are special designs of the advertiser’s company or product name. They appear
in all company ads and, like trademarks, give the product individuality and provide
quick recognition at that point of purchase.
White Space
At least 20 % of an ad should be blank white space. Ample white space helps gain
attention, create contrast, and unify the advertisement. White space is probably the
most underestimated element in advertisements.
Logo and Baseline
For promoting or advertising a business, there are various methods that are employed
to ensure maximum exposure. Logos are an integral part of most of the methods which
marketers often overlooked, whereas it can use many times in several forms. The logo
enhances the brand awareness and it can be used in a commercial as well as in a print
ad campaign, which will increase the brand credibility.
This will improve the recognition too. Advertising using the logo can strengthen and
communicate the brand's value, an essence which is said to be symbolic benefits of a
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brand. It becomes the point of relating between the sellers and buyers. While your logo
is already a recognized as the symbol of your brand, people already know and trust it, so
advertising with it enhances the trust factor and builds the brand's customer identity.
That is, improving the trustworthiness will lead more business and more revenue
generation.
Simply, baselines are the invisible line your words sit on. Baselines aren’t just a seat for
your words to chill on. They’re also the benchmark measurement for the constituent
parts of letters. To enhance your ad copy design you need to get a grip on the following
terms: ascenders & descenders, lining figures, lower & uppercase letters, X-height,
negative space etc.
INTERNET ADS
Online advertising, also known as online marketing, Internet advertising, digital
advertising or web advertising, is a form of marketing and advertising which uses the
Internet to deliver promotional marketing messages to consumers. Many consumers
find online advertising disruptive and have increasingly turned to ad blocking for a
variety of reasons. Online advertising includes email marketing, search engine
marketing (SEM), social media marketing, many types of display
advertising (including web banner advertising), and mobile advertising. Like other
advertising media, online advertising frequently involves a publisher, who integrates
advertisements into its online content, and an advertiser, who provides the
advertisements to be displayed on the publisher's content. Other potential participants
include advertising agencies who help generate and place the ad copy, an ad
server which technologically delivers the ad and tracks statistics, and advertising
affiliates who do independent promotional work for the advertiser.
Display ads
Display advertising conveys its advertising message visually using text, logos,
animations, videos, photographs, or other graphics. Display advertising is commonly
used on social media, websites with slots for advertisements, and in real life. In real life,
displace advertising can be a sign in front of a building or a billboard alongside a
highway. The goal of display advertising is to obtain more traffic, clicks, or popularity
for the advertising brand or organization.
Web banner advertising
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Web banners or banner ads typically are graphical ads displayed within a web page.
Many banner ads are delivered by a central ad server. Banner ads can use rich media to
incorporate video, audio, animations, buttons, forms, or other interactive elements
using Java applets, HTML5, Adobe Flash, and other programs.
Frame ad (traditional banner)
Frame ads were the first form of web banners. The colloquial usage of “banner ads”
often refers to traditional frame ads. Website publishers incorporate frame ads by
setting aside a space on the web page. The Interactive Advertising Bureau’s Ad Unit
Guidelines proposes standardized pixel dimensions for ad units.
Pop-ups/pop-under
A pop-up ad is displayed in a new web browser window that opens above a website
visitor’s initial browser window. A pop-under ad opens a new browser window under a
website visitor's initial browser window. Pop-under ads and similar technologies are
now advised against by online authorities such as Google, who state that they “do not
condone this practice”.
Floating ad
A floating ad, or overlay ad, is a type of rich media advertisement that appears
superimposed over the requested website's content. Floating ads may disappear or
become less obtrusive after a pre-set time period.
Expanding ad
An expanding ad is a rich media frame ad that changes dimensions upon a predefined
condition, such as a preset amount of time a visitor spends on a webpage, the user's
click on the ad, or the user's mouse movement over the ad. Expanding ads allow
advertisers to fit more information into a restricted ad space.
Trick banners
A trick banner is a banner ad where the ad copy imitates some screen element users
commonly encounter, such as an operating system message or popular application
message, to induce ad clicks. Trick banners typically do not mention the advertiser in
the initial ad, and thus they are a form of bait-and-switch. Trick banners commonly
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attract a higher-than-average click-through rate, but tricked users may resent the
advertiser for deceiving them.
News Feed Ads
“News Feed Ads”, also called “Sponsored Stories”, “Boosted Posts”, typically exist on
social media platforms that offer a steady stream of information updates (“news feed”)
in regulated formats (i.e., in similar sized small boxes with a uniform style). Those
advertisements are intertwined with non-promoted news that the users are reading
through. Those advertisements can be of any content, such as promoting a website, a fan
page, an app, or a product.
Some examples are: Facebook's “Sponsored Stories”, LinkedIn's “Sponsored
Updates”, and Twitter's “Promoted Tweets”.
ETHICS IN ADVERTISING
Ethics means “Good Conduct” or “Conduct which is right in view of the society and the
time period”. By common consent, various modes of behaviour and conduct are viewed
as “good” or “bad”. In other word, we can say that ethics are moral principles and values
that govern the actions and decisions of an individual group. Ethics is a choice between
good and bad, between right and wrong. It is governed by a set of principles of morality
at a given time and at a given place and in a given society. Ethics is related to group
behaviour in ultimate analysis, thus setting norms for an individual to follow in
consistence with the group norms.
A particular action may be within the law and still not be ethical; Target Marketing is a
good example for this. There is no law to restrict tobacco companies from promoting
their brands to Africans & American, though it is in India but for Doordarshan only.
Similarly, the alcoholic – beverage companies promote their brands & target not only
college students but underage drinkers as well. These advertisements have increased
alcohol related problems. Advertisements exposing pornography is another serious
issue in advertising industry today. Advertisements promoting permissiveness &
objectifying women are heavily criticized in the society.
Therefore, even advertising has ethical value. The mixing of Art and facts in advertising
communication are subservient to ethical principles. In today’s competitive and buyer’s
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market, an advertisement has to be truthful and ethical. If an advertisement is
misleading, the credibility of the organization is lost. To view the truth in advertisement,
it has to be seen from to consumer’s point of view rather than from legal point. The
advertising industry has been frequently criticized for putting out misleading or
exaggerated claims in respect of product, goods and services advertised. It is also
perceived as guilty of glorifying certain habits or tendencies regarded as undesirable
and encouraging consume rest culture.
However, it is very difficult to demarcate a clear line of difference between what is true
and what is untrue. But the advertisement as such is judged by its impact, and by its
acceptance by the consumers. The product must fulfill its advertised claims.
Advertisements should be decent and not be obscene. It must be truthful. Gambling is
also unethical. Sometimes, celebrities endorsing the product and spreading falsehood is
also criticized. Advertising is a social process; thus, it must follow the time-tested norms
of social behaviour and should not affront our moral sense.
In short, ethics are rules of conduct or principles of morality that point us towards the
right or best way to act in a situation. Ethics vary from person to person, society-to-
society point of view.
Ethical issues of Advertising
1. Misleading claims
In these ads, company claim false regarding the quality, style, history of a
product or service etc. Many steps were taken by ASCI (Advertising Standards
Council of India) to stop misleading ads. Many companies were forced to
withdraw their ads because of misleading claims.
2. Reinforcing stereotypes
Stereotyping is the representation of a group that emphasis a trait or group of
traits that may or may not communicate an accurate representation of the group.
3. Use of sex appeal
Women are often portrayed as sex objects. Representing women in such a way
devalues women’s image and encourage sexual harassment. The main aim of
using sex appeal is to tempt/attract the mind of the viewers esp. the targeted
audience.
4. Hiding of relevant facts
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Most of the advertisers conceal important information that is unflattering, i.e.,
they present the brighter side of the story. They ignore to mention those facts
which would make their products less desirable. Concealment of facts results in a
severe ethical concern because when consumers are deprived of comprehensive
knowledge about the product, their choices will be distorted.
5. Manipulate ads
In this type of ads, demand is created through emotions of people. The
companies make use of different emotions to make their product sell.
6. Surrogate ads
Surrogate advertising is a form of advertising which is used to
promote banned products, like cigarettes and alcohol, in the disguise of another
product. This type of advertising uses a product of a fairly close category, as: club
soda, mineral water in case of alcohol, or products of a completely different
category (for example, music CD's or playing cards) to hammer the brand
name into the heads of consumers. The banned product (alcohol or cigarettes)
may not be projected directly to consumers but rather masked under another
product under the same brand name, so that whenever there is mention of that
brand, people start associating it with its main product (the alcohol or cigarette).
7. Puffery
It is a legal term that refers to promotional statements and claims that express
subjective rather than objective views, such that no reasonable person would
take literally. A company may deliver an entertaining message about its product,
compare the product to a similar item, list facts about the product, or make
vague claims about the product which cannot be proved or disproved.
CODE OF ETHICS IN ADVERTISING
Code of Ethics define the legal as well as ethical rules and norms of creating and
broadcasting an ad. It restrains an advertiser to promote any product/service through
unreliable, false, and immoral information.
Such kind of language and information may damage someone’s fundamental right,
business reputation, and can stain their honor and dignity. So, the law prevents any
sort of ad that infringes on public values, norms, and morality. Further, it also
discourages creation of any sort of ad that contains disrespectful comparison with
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other similar products (either of same nature or different) to maintain fair
competition.
The purpose of code of ethics is to maintain fair competition and protect the right of
every individual. Code of ethics help advertisers set ethical standards to govern the
ways of communication and develop self-regulatory ads. Ethical norms of advertising
restrict ads that make false claims and are not within the normal standards of decency.
Honesty – to be forthright in dealings with customers and stakeholders. To this
end, we will:
Strive to be truthful in all situations and at all times.
Offer products of value that do what we claim in our communications.
Stand behind our products if they fail to deliver their claimed benefits.
Honour our explicit and implicit commitments and promises.
Responsibility – to accept the consequences of our marketing decisions and
strategies. To this end, we will:
Strive to serve the needs of customers.
Avoid using coercion with all stakeholders.
Acknowledge the social obligations to stakeholders that come with increased
marketing and economic power.
Recognize our special commitments to vulnerable market segments such as
children, seniors, the economically impoverished, market illiterates and others
who may be substantially disadvantaged.
Consider environmental stewardship in our decision-making.
Fairness – to balance justly the needs of the buyer with the interests of the
seller. To this end, we will:
Represent products in a clear way in selling, advertising and other forms of
communication; this includes the avoidance of false, misleading and deceptive
promotion.
Reject manipulations and sales tactics that harm customer trust.
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Refuse to engage in price fixing, predatory pricing, price gouging or “bait-and-
switch” tactics.
Avoid knowing participation in conflicts of interest.
Seek to protect the private information of customers, employees and partners.
Respect – to acknowledge the basic human dignity of all stakeholders. To this
end, we will:
Value individual differences and avoid stereotyping customers or depicting
demographic groups (e.g., gender, race, sexual orientation) in a negative or
dehumanizing way.
Listen to the needs of customers and make all reasonable efforts to monitor and
improve their satisfaction on an ongoing basis.
Make every effort to understand and respectfully treat buyers, suppliers,
intermediaries and distributors from all cultures.
Acknowledge the contributions of others, such as consultants, employees and
coworkers, to marketing endeavors.
Treat everyone, including our competitors, as we would wish to be treated.
Transparency – to create a spirit of openness in marketing operations. To this
end, we will:
Strive to communicate clearly with all constituencies.
Accept constructive criticism from customers and other stakeholders.
Explain and take appropriate action regarding significant product or service
risks, component substitutions or other foreseeable eventualities that could
affect customers or their perception of the purchase decision.
Disclose list prices and terms of financing as well as available price deals and
adjustments.
Citizenship – to fulfill the economic, legal, philanthropic and societal
responsibilities that serve stakeholders. To this end, we will:
Strive to protect the ecological environment in the execution of marketing
campaigns.
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Give back to the community through volunteerism and charitable donations.
Contribute to the overall betterment of marketing and its reputation.
Urge supply chain members to ensure that trade is fair for all participants,
including producers in developing countries.
SOME PROFESSIONAL BODIES
AAAI (Advertising Agencies Association of India)
ISA (Indian Society of Advertisers)
ASCI (Advertising Standards Council of India) etc.
SOURCES USED
1. Rob Bowdery, ‘Basics Advertising 01: Copywriting’, Bloomsbury Academic, 2008
2. http://www.nraismc.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/304_-
_ADVERTISING_DESIGN_AND_PRINCIPLE.pdf
3. http://www.drypen.in/copywriting/principles-of-copywriting.html
4. https://studiousguy.com/advertising-copy-definition-types-examples/
5. Andy Maslen, ‘The Copywriting Sourcebook: How to write better copy, faster –
for everything from ads to websites’, Marshall Cavendish (11 February 2010)
6. Sandeep Sharma & Deepak Kumar, ‘Advertising, Planning, Implementation and
control’, Mangal Deep Publications, Jaipur.
7. Sanjay Kaptan & Akhilesh Acharya, ‘Advertisement in Print Media’, Book Enclave,
Jaipur.
8. http://www.nraismc.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/302_-
_INTRODUCTION_TO_ADVERTISING__2_.pdf
9. https://www.managementstudyguide.com/advertising-campaigns.htm
10. http://archive.mu.ac.in/myweb_test/sybcom-avtg-eng.pdf
11. S A Chunawalla, ‘Advertisement an Introductory Text’, Himalaya Publishing.
12. Print Journalism A Critical Introduction: Edited by Richard Keeble
13. Textbook of Editing & Reporting: M K Joseph
14. The Art of Editing: Floyd K Baskette, Jack Z Sissors, Brian S Brooks
15. Digital Sub Editing and Design: Stephen Quinn
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