How to write effective news briefs

1. 5 tips
for writing
effective
news briefs
Office of Marketing & Public Relations / Sherry Fletcher
Monday, Jan. 7, 2013

2. TODAY’S TIPS
1 Target your audience
2 Know what news is
3 Understand 2 basis tenets
of journalism
4 Composing a news brief
5 Publish once, reprint often

3. 1 2 3 4 5
TIP #1
TARGET YOUR
AUDIENCE

4. 1
ASK YOURSELF
Who are you writing for?
What do they care about?
What are they facing?
What can you tell them?
Does it address the City’s mission?

5. 1
POSSIBLE AUDIENCES
Stillwater City Council
Administration Team
Operations Group
City of Stillwater Employees
Stillwater Residents
Media, Professional Groups, etc.

6. 1
REMEMBER
Anything that is shared
by email can and
will be forwarded.
Is this information ready
to be shared with the all
of the possible audiences?

7. 1 2 3 4 5
TIP #2
KNOW WHAT
NEWS IS

8. 2
What’s the point?
NEW Factual INTERESTING
Conflict CURRENT Impact
PROMINENCE Proximity
Timeliness HUMAN INTEREST

9. 2
BE USEFUL
Our readers race
through the News Briefs looking
for something interesting.
Convey a sense of benefit or value.
Be specific.

10. 2
NEWS FOR EMPLOYEES
Organizational culture and value
How to get things done
Roles and responsibilities
Where to find information
Expectations

11. 1 2 3 4 5
TIP #3
UNDERSTAND
2 BASIC TENETS
OF JOURNALISM

12. 3
OBJECTIVITY
Expressing or dealing with facts
or conditions as perceived without
distortions by personal feelings,
prejudices or interpretations.
Let the facts speak for themselves.
Limit fluff or puffery.

13. 3
INVERTED PYRAMID
Must Have Information
Not Crucial Information
Background
Information
Nice
to Have

14. 3
INVERTED PYRAMID
Newsroom standard for writing.
Summarize first. Explain later.
Helps readers grasp facts quickly.
Helps writers arrange facts
quickly and efficiently.

15. 1 2 3 4 5
TIP #4
COMPOSING
A NEWS BRIEF

16. 4
“I have to make this letter longer
than usual, because I lack
the time to make it short.”
~ Blaise Pascal
“Not that the story need be long,
but it will take a long while
to make it short.”
~ Henry David Thoreau

17. 4
3 Cs
of Powerful Content
Be Be Be
Clear Concise Compelling

18. 4
• Did you answer the 5 Ws?
Who, what, when, where, why and how
• Use inverted pyramid.
• Write active voice rather than
passive.
Be
Clear • Use everyday language.
• Use strong verbs.
• Suggest subject heading
One of the Ps).

19. 4
• Make your point and be done.
• Omit needless words. Do a word
count. Go back and cut by 10
percent. Don’t take out useful
information or detail; instead,
remove extra words.
Be • Avoid redundant phrases, jargon
Concise (words only your profession uses)
and clichés.
• Use adjectives, adverbs, pronouns
sparingly.
• Avoid flattery and puffery. Instead,
use facts to make your point.

20. 4
Avoid redundant phrases
afford an opportunity allow, let
as a means of to
at this point in time now
due to the fact that because
during the period during
has a requirement for needs
in a timely manner quickly, promptly
in accordance with by, following, per, under
in advance of before
in regard to about, concerning,
in the event that if in the near future shortly, soon
no later than June 1 by June 1

21. 4
• What do you want to happen as a
result of this News Brief?
• Ask yourself: “What's the point of
Be this News Brief.”
Compelling • Be an advocate for your
department or division. Use the
News Briefs to further explain
issues. What can you tell your
audiences that they don’t know
but should?

22. 4
News Brief Sample
The Stillwater Public Library family suffered a loss
last week with the death of one of its strongest
advocates, board member Linda Rodgers. During her
tenure that began in 2007, the Library accomplished
many milestones including the dedication of the Dr.
Angie Debo statue; the receipt of an estimated
$93,000 federal broadband grant; and the
establishment of the Oklahoma Virtual Library
consortium. Linda’s leadership and her support of
the Library will have an impact on the Stillwater
Public Library for many years. She will be missed by
those who were privileged to have known and worked
with her.

23. 4
News Brief Sample
Patty Evans, Paula Dennison and Jason Peek met with
Oklahoma Department of Transportation to review
Stillwater’s Urban Area Boundary Map. After each
census, the Federal Highway Administration proposes
adjustments to each map depicting urban areas. The
City Council will be acting on the adjusted map at
its Dec. 17 meeting. The map will be used for
transportation planning purposes until after the
next census in 2020.

24. 1 2 3 4 5
TIP #5
PUBLISH ONCE,
REPRINT OFTEN

25. 5
OPPORTUNITIES
Media Releases Web Pages
Video/YouTube Facebook/Twitter
PowerPoints/SlideShare Utility Newsletter
Public Presentations Blog Topics
Interviews with Media Print Materials
Public Presentations Intranet

26. AND REMEMBER…

27. Don’t be afraid
to break the rules.
Communications
is art,
not science.

28. Discussion Topics
• How often to publish?
Bi-weekly? Once a month?
• How many briefs from your
department? Are all divisions
represented?
• Other improvements?

29. -30- ### The End