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Journalistic Writing MCM310

LECTURE 43

WRITING PRESS RELEASE, REVIEWS AND OBITUARIES

PRESS RELEASE

Guide to Writing Successful Press Releases

Press Releases is all about developing a persuasive communication within the framework of a traditional news

story format.

Editors will quickly trash media releases that make promotional appearances. Instead, press release writers must

think like a reporter. Media releases must follow journalistic style in order to be given any kind of consideration.

How do you accomplish this task? Here's a barebones guideline.

1. The Headline: In about ten words -- or less -- you need to grab the attention of the editor. The

headline should summarize the information in the press release, but in a way that is exciting and

dynamic; think of it as a billboard along a highway -- you have just a few words to make your release

stand out among the many others editors receive on any given day.

2. Opening Paragraph: Sometimes called a summary lead, your first paragraph is critical. This paragraph

must explain "what, when, where" the story. This paragraph must summarize the press release, with

the following paragraphs providing the detail.

The opening paragraph must also contain the hook: the one thing that gets your audience interested in

reading more -- but remember that the hook has to be relevant to your audience as well as to the news

media. A hook is not a hard sell or a devious promotion -- it's just a factual statement.

3. The Body: Using a strategy called the inverted pyramid, the body of the press release should be written

with the most important information and quotes first. This inverted pyramid technique is used so that

if editors need to cut the story to fit space constraints, they can cut from the end without losing critical

information.

4. The Closing Paragraph: Repeat the critical contact information, including the name of the person,

his or her phone number and/or email address. About your company. Your press release should end

with a short paragraph (company boilerplate) that describes your company, products, service and a

short company history.

Press Release Tips and Guidelines:

Stick to the facts: Tell the truth. Avoid fluff, embellishments and exaggerations. If you feel that your press

release contains `Buy Me' means promotional material, it would be a good idea to set your press release aside

until you have more exciting news to share. Journalists are naturally skeptical. If your story sounds too good to

be true, you are probably hurting your own credibility. Even if it is true, you may want to tone it down a bit.

Present news content: Please make sure that you answer all of the "W" questions, who, what, where, when,

why and how to ensure a complete press release.

PR length: The standard press release is 300 to 800 words and written in a word processing program that

checks spelling and grammar before submission.

Headline length: The ideal headline is 80 characters long. (Max 170)

Lead length: The lead sentence contains the most important information in 25 words or less.

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Correct grammar usage: Always follow rules of grammar and style. Errors in grammar and style affect your

credibility. Excessive errors will cause your press release to be rejected by PR Web's editors.

Use active, not passive, voice: Verbs in the active voice bring your press release to life. Rather than writing

"entered into a partnership" use "partnered" instead. Do not be afraid to use strong verbs as well. For example,

"The committee exhibited severe hostility over the incident." reads better if changed to "The committee was

enraged over the incident." Writing in this manner, helps guarantee that your press release will be read.

Economics of words: Use only enough words to tell your story. Avoid using unnecessary adjectives, flowery

language, or redundant expressions such as "added bonus" or "first time ever". If you can tell your story with

fewer words, do it. Wordiness distracts from your story. Keep it concise. Make each word count.

Beware of jargon: While a limited amount of jargon will be required if your goal is to optimize your news

release for online search engines, the best way to communicate your news is to speak plainly, using ordinary

language. Jargon is language specific to certain professions or groups and is not appropriate for general

readership. Avoid such terms as "capacity planning techniques" "extrapolate" and "prioritized evaluative

procedures."

More than one paragraph; It is nearly impossible to tell your story in a few sentences. If you do not have

more than a few sentences, chances are you do not have a newsworthy item

Mixed case NEVER SUBMIT A PRESS RELEASE IN ALL UPPER CASE LETTERS. This is very bad

form. Even if your release makes it, past PR Web's editors (most unlikely), it will definitely be ignored by

journalists. Use mixed case

Follow a Standard Press Release Format

Make sure your press release looks like a press release. The following can be used as a template for your press

release:

Headline Announces News in Title Case, Ideally Under 80 Characters

The summary paragraph is a little longer synopsis of the news, elaborating on the

news in the headline in one to four sentences. The summary uses sentence case, with

standard capitalization and punctuation.

City, State, Month 1, 2006 -- The lead sentence contains the most important information in 25

words or less. Grab your reader's attention here by simply stating the news you have to

announce. Do not assume that your reader has read your headline or summary paragraph; the

lead should stand on its own.

A news release, like a news story, keeps sentences and paragraphs short, about three or four

lines per paragraph. The first couple of paragraphs should answer the who, what, when,

where, why and how questions. The news media may take information from a news release to

craft news or feature article or may use information in the release word-for-word, but a news

release is not, itself, an article or a reprint.

The standard press release is 300 to 800 words and written in a word processing program that

checks spelling and grammar before submission. This template is 519 words.

The ideal headline is 80 characters long. Include the most important news elements in the

body of the release. Use title case in the headline only, capitalizing every word except for

prepositions and articles of three characters or less.

The rest of the news release expounds on the information provided in the lead paragraph. It

includes quotes from key staff, customers or subject matter experts. It contains more details

about the news you have to tell, which can be about something unique or controversial or

about a prominent person, place or thing.

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Typical topics for a news release include announcements of new products or of a strategic

partnership, the receipt of an award, the publishing of a book, the release of new software or

the launch of a new Web site. The tone is neutral and objective, not full of hype or text that is

typically found in an advertisement. Avoid directly addressing the consumer or your target

audience. The use of "I," "we" and "you" outside of a direct quotation is a flag that your copy

is an advertisement rather than a news release.

Do not include an e-mail address in the body of the release. The final paragraph of a

traditional news release contains the least newsworthy material.

In the last paragraph, include a short corporate backgrounder, or "boilerplate," about the

company or the person who is newsworthy before you list the contact person's name and

phone number.

Contact:

Mary Smith, director of public relations

XYZ Company

555-555-5555

WHAT IS A REVIEW?

A review is a critical evaluation of a text, event, object, or phenomenon. Reviews can consider books, articles,

entire genres or fields of literature, architecture, art, fashion, restaurants, policies, exhibitions, performances,

and many other forms.

Above all, a review makes an argument. The most important element of a review is that it is a commentary, not

a summary of the work. It allows you to enter into dialogue and discussion with the work's creator and with

other audiences. You can offer agreement or disagreement and identify where you find the work exemplary or

deficient in its knowledge, judgments, or organization. You should clearly state your opinion of the work in

question, and that statement will probably resemble other types of academic writing, with a thesis statement,

supporting body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

Typically, reviews are brief. In newspapers and academic journals, they rarely exceed 1000 words, although you

may encounter lengthier assignments and extended commentaries. In either case, reviews need to be succinct.

While they vary in tone, subject, and style, they share some common features:

(Content) First, a review gives the reader a concise summary of the content. This includes a relevant

description of the topic as well as its overall perspective, argument, or purpose.

(Style) Second, a review offers a brief overview of the style or things are said in the work.

(Assessment) Third, and more importantly, a review offers a critical assessment of the content. This

involves your reactions to the work under review: what strikes you as noteworthy, whether or not it

was effective or persuasive, and how it enhanced your understanding of the issues at hand.

(Conclusion) Finally, in addition to analyzing the work, a review often suggests whether or not the

audience would appreciate it.

Planning the review:

Let's say you want to write a review of a book. For this you need to collect the following information:

Bibliographical Data

Classification

Author and Author Purpose

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· Subject Matter (theme)

Contents (development of the theme)

Style (the style is effective in conveying content, and pleasing to the reader?)

View of Life (author's stance, practical or impractical , realistic, idealistic,

Value and Significance

Format

Writing the review:

Once you have made your observations and assessments of the work under review, carefully survey your notes

and attempt to unify your impressions into a statement that will describe the purpose or thesis of your review.

Then, outline the arguments that support your thesis.

Introduction:

· The name of the author and the book title and the main theme.

Relevant details about who the author is and where he/she stands in the genre or field of inquiry. You

could also link the title to the subject to show how the title explains the subject matter.

The context of the book and/or your review. Placing your review in a framework that makes sense to

your audience alerts readers to your "take" on the book. Perhaps you want to situate a book about the

Cuban revolution in the context of Cold War rivalries between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Another reviewer might want to consider the book in the framework of Latin American social

movements. Your choice of context informs your argument.

The thesis of the book. If you are reviewing fiction, this may be difficult since novels, plays, and short

stories rarely have explicit arguments. But identifying the book's particular novelty, angle, or originality

allows you to show what specific contribution the piece is trying to make.

Your thesis about the book.

Summary of Content:

· This should be brief, as analysis takes priority. In the course of making your assessment, you'll

hopefully be backing up your assertions with concrete evidence from the book, so some summary will

be dispersed throughout other parts of the review.

Analysis and Evaluation of the Book:

· Your analysis and evaluation should be organized into paragraphs that deal with single aspects of your

argument. This arrangement can be challenging when your purpose is to consider the book as a whole,

but it can help you differentiate elements of your criticism and pair assertions with evidence more

clearly.

You do not necessarily need to work chronologically through the book as you discuss it. Given the

argument you want to make, you can organize your paragraphs more usefully by themes, methods, or

other elements of the book.

If you find it useful to include comparisons to other books, keep them brief so that the book under

review remains in the spotlight.

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· Try using a few short quotes from the book to illustrate your points. This is not absolutely necessary,

but it's a good way to give your reader a sense of the author's writing style. Give a specific page

reference in parentheses when you do quote.

Conclusion:

· Sum up or restate your thesis or make the final judgment regarding the book. You should not

introduce new evidence for your argument in the conclusion. You can, however, introduce new ideas

that go beyond the book if they extend the logic of your own thesis.

This paragraph needs to balance the book's strengths and weaknesses in order to unify your evaluation.

Did the body of your review have three negative paragraphs and one favorable one? What do they all

add up to? The Writing Center's handout on Conclusions can help you make a final assessment.

Reviewing Specific Types of Books:

The type of book being reviewed raises special considerations as to how to approach the review. Information

specific to the categories of nonfiction, fiction, and poetry can be found under the "Form and Technique"

heading of this guide. Below are further questions to consider, based on a book's category:

· Biography/Autobiography

Does the book give a full-length picture of the subject? Focus on only a portion of life?

What phases of the subject's life receive greatest space? Is there justification for this?

What is the point of view of the author?

Are idiosyncrasies and weaknesses omitted? Treated adequately? Overplayed?

Does the author endeavour to get at hidden motives?

What important new facts about the subject's life are revealed in the book?

Is the subject of the biography still living?

What source materials were used in the preparation of the book?

History

What training has the author had for this kind of work?

What particular historical period does the book address?

Is the account given in broad outline, or in detail?

Is the style that of reportorial writing, or is there an effort at interpretation?

Is emphasis on traditional matter, like wars, kings, etc.? Or is it a social history?

Are dates used extensively and/or intelligently?

Is the book likely to be out of date soon? Or is it intended to stand the test of time?

Are maps, illustrations, charts, etc., helpful to the reader?

Contemporary Thought

Who is the author, and what right does he/she have to be writing on the subject? o What

contributions to knowledge and understanding are made by the book?

Travel and Adventure

Is the author credible? What is the author's purpose for writing the book?

Does the book contribute to knowledge of geography, government, folklore, etc.?

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o Does the book have news value?

Mystery

How effective are plot, pace, style, and characterization? Strengths? Weaknesses?

Is the ending worthwhile? Predictable?

Children's Literature

What is the age/interest group for which the book is intended?

What is the overall experience/feeling of reading the book? o Is the book illustrated? How? By

whom?

Becoming an expert reviewer: Three short examples

Reviewing can be a daunting task. Someone has asked for your opinion about something that you may feel

unqualified to evaluate. Who are you to criticize Toni Morrison's new book if you've never written a novel

yourself, much less won a Nobel Prize? The point is that someone-a professor, a journal editor, peers in a study

group-wants to know what you think about a particular work. You may not be (or feel like) an expert, but you

need to pretend to be one for your particular audience. Nobody expects you to be the intellectual equal of the

work's creator, but your careful observations can provide you with the raw material to make reasoned

judgments. Tactfully voicing agreement and disagreement, praise and criticism, is a valuable, challenging skill,

and like many forms of writing, reviews require you to provide concrete evidence for your assertions.

Take a look of a review of a book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. You can use it as a model as you

begin thinking about your own book review.

To Kill a Mockingbird

by Harper Lee

Review by Rodman Phil brick

I've never been to Alabama, but novelist Harper Lee made me feel as if I had been there in the

long, hot summer of 1935, when a lawyer named Atticus Finch decided to defend an innocent

black man accused of a horrible crime. The story of how the whole town reacted to the trial is

told by the lawyer's daughter, Scout, who remembers exactly what it was like to be eight years

old in 1935, in Maycomb, Alabama.

Scout is the reason I loved this book, because her voice rings so clear and true. Not only does

she make me see the things she sees, she makes me feel the things she feels. There's a lot more

going on than just the trial, and Scout tells you all about it.

A man called Boo Radley lives next door. Very few people have ever seen Boo, and Scout and

her friends have a lot of fun telling scary stories about him. The mystery about Boo Radley is

just one of the reasons you want to keep turning the pages to find out what happens in To Kill

a Mockingbird.

Scout and her big brother, Jem, run wild and play games and have a great time while their

father is busy with the trial. One of their friends is a strange boy called Dill. Actually Dill isn't

really so strange once you get to know him. He says things like "I'm little but I'm old," which

is funny but also pretty sad, because some of the time Dill acts more like a little old man than

a sevenyearold boy.

To Kill a Mockingbird is filled with interesting characters like Dill, and Scout makes them all

seem just as real as the people in your own hometown. Here's how Scout describes Miss

Caroline, who wore a redstriped dress: "She looked and smelled like a peppermint drop."

Dill and Boo and Jem are all fascinating, but the most important character in the book is

Scout's father, Atticus Finch. You get the idea that Scout is writing the story down because she

wants the world to know what a good man her dad was, and how hard he tried to do the right

thing, even though the deck was stacked against him.

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The larger theme of the story is about racial intolerance, but Scout never tries to make it a

"lesson," it's simply part of the world she describes. That's why To Kill a Mockingbird rings true,

and why it all seems so real.

The trial of the wrongly accused Tom Robinson takes place during the time of segregation,

when black people were not allowed to socialize with white people. In that era, when a white

man said a black man committed a crime, the black man was presumed to be guilty. The law

required that they have a trial, but everybody knew the defendant was going to be convicted.

Atticus Finch, the quiet hero of the book, tries to persuade the jury that bigotry is wrong. His

words are eloquent and heartfelt. He demonstrates that Tom Robinson couldn't possibly have

assaulted the victim. Atticus even reveals the identity of the real villain, which enrages a very

dangerous enemy. This act of courage endangers not only Atticus Finch but his family as well.

They become the target of hate mongers and bigots.

Even though the story took place many years ago, you get the idea that parts of it could

happen today, in any town where people distrust and fear each other's differences.

In a just world an innocent man should be found not guilty. But if you want to know what this

particular jury finally decides and what happens to Scout and Jem and Dill and Boo Radley

and the rest of the people who live and breathe in To Kill a Mockingbird, you'll have to read the

book!

WRITING AN OBITUARY

What Is An Obituary?

More than merely a `good-bye' to the deceased, this is a farewell which can, in chronological order, detail the

life of the deceased. An obituary also serves as notification that an individual has passed away and details of the

services that are to take place. An obituary's length may be somewhat dictated by the space available in the

newspaper it is to appear in. Therefore it's best to check how much room you have before you begin your

composition. Remember that the obituary needs to appear in print a few days prior to the memorial service.

There are some cases where this may not be possible, therefore give some consideration to the guidelines

below when composing the obituary.

Many newspapers just put down the facts, and most guides to writing an obituary will suggest this pattern:

1. Name of deceased.

2. Date of death.

3. Cause of death

4. Date of birth.

5. Who the survivors are.

6. Anything notable done by the deceased.

7. Funeral information, plus visitation/viewing information if any.

This obituary will look like this:

Joe Blow, a 26-year resident of Podunk, Nevada, died Feb. 27, 2007, of cancer.

Born on Feb. 28, 1930, he married Sue Monish on Feb. 14, 1922. She preceded him in death.

He was a veteran of the Second World War and had received the Navy Cross and the Purple

Heart for bravery.

Survivors are son Bill, Podunk, daughter, Jill Johnson, Las Vegas, 6 grandchildren.

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Funeral services Saturday, 2 p.m., Podunk chapel Visitation one hour before the service Burial

at Podunk cemetery with full military honors

Unless someone is notable, that's the kind of obit they're going to get.

Source: http://www.stetson.edu/~rhansen/prhowto.html

http://www.prweb.com/pressreleasetips.php#content#content

http://writing.colostate.edu

http://Teacher.scholastic.com

http://www.enc.edu

XXX

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