Writing & Reporting
📋 What it is
News writing puts the most important facts FIRST (the "inverted pyramid") so readers get the key point immediately.
🗣️ Coach says
News isn’t a mystery novel — you don’t save the ending. Put the most important facts at the TOP (the inverted pyramid), then details below. A reader should get the whole point from the first sentence.
🧠 Memory hook
Most important facts FIRST — the inverted pyramid. No saving the ending.
😂 Giggle
Why did the journalist bring a ladder?
To get the top story!
😲 Whoa!
The "inverted pyramid" was partly invented so editors could cut a story from the bottom without losing the key news.
✅ Quick check: Why do news stories put the most important information in the FIRST sentence?
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
So readers get the key facts immediately (the inverted pyramid), and editors can trim from the bottom without losing the main point.
Structure-first writing is the core reporting craft.
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Rewrite a story so the single most important fact is the very first sentence.