WE - Writing and Editing Module Overview

Writing and Editing Module Overview

Introduction

writing stylesThe goal of any journalist is to communicate information. If the journalist is unclear, then the meaning he or she is trying to convey is lost. For example, a viewer who does not understand that a story about a chemical leak means the water is not safe to drink, might drink the water anyway. Other consequences can include the spread of rumors that take on greater significance than the news story. For example, a viewer who thinks the story says the water is unsafe to drink, when the story does not say so, might tell many friends, creating unnecessary panic and confusion. Therefore, it is important to understand how journalism writing style is different than other types of writing.
Every piece of writing—whether it is a cover letter for a job application, a news article, or a fictional short story—has its own structure. It is important to understand those features in order to communicate your ideas. The choice of words, sentence structure, and tone are things that a journalist considers when writing. It is these elements that allow journalistic writing to be categorized as its own unique style of writing.

Essential Questions

  1. What is the difference between active and passive voice?
  2. Why is the structure of a sentence important to a journalist?  
  3. How can you edit to provide for better sentence clarity?
  4. What is the AP writing style, and why is it important to the journalistic writing style?

Key Terms

  1. Active Voice - A feature of sentences in which the subject performs the action of the verb, and the direct object is the goal or the recipient. Example: The mechanic fixed the car.
  2. Compound Sentence - This type of sentence consists of two or more complete thoughts. Example: Everything was beautiful, and nothing hurt.
  3. Compound-Complex Sentence - It consists of a combination of a compound sentence and a complex sentence. Example: I was taught that the human brain was the crowning glory of evolution so far, but I think it's a very poor scheme for survival.
  4. Complex Sentence - This type of sentence contains one complete sentence (independent clause) and one dependent clause. Example: I want to become a journalist because I love keeping people informed.
  5. Connotation - The associated or secondary meaning of a word or expression in addition to its explicit or primary meaning. A possible connotation of ''home'' is ''a place of warmth, comfort, and affection.''
  6. Denotation - This is the explicit definition as listed in a dictionary. Example:  A home is a place where one lives in a residence.
  7. Concise Writing - Expressing or covering much in a few words - brief in form but comprehensive in scope.
  8. Passive Voice - A feature of sentences in which the object or goal of the action functions as the sentence subject and the main verb phrase includes the verb to be and the past participle. The car was fixed by the mechanic.
  9. Parallel Structure - It means using the same construction for sentence elements that are the same function. Example: I washed dishes, folded laundry, and cleaned bathrooms.
  10. Simple Sentence - It consists of one independent clause, so it contains a subject and a verb pair. It does NOT contain either a dependent clause or another simple sentence. It expresses one complete thought. Example: Everything was beautiful.    
  11. Style - Style is the way that the author uses words — the author's word choice, sentence structure, figurative language, and sentence arrangement all work together to establish mood, images, and meaning in the text. Style describes how the author describes events, objects, and ideas.
  12. Tone - The way the author expresses his attitude through his writing. Tone is expressed by your use of syntax, your point of view, your diction, and the level of formality in your writing
  13. Voice - The personal tone and flavor of the author's message.
  14. Viewpoint - An attitude of mind, or the circumstances of an individual that can lead him/her to a position of observation.

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