MODULE THREE: WORDS IN PRINT

Table of Contents
MODULE THREE: WORDS IN PRINT ...............................................................................................................................1
Learning Objectives: .................................................................................................................................................2
Activities....................................................................................................................................................................2
Print Media: From Topic to Article ................................................................................................................................3
Quiz 12: The Process and the Front Page ......................................................................................................................6
Private Journal 9: Create Your Outline ..........................................................................................................................7
Types of Leads ...............................................................................................................................................................8
Creating a Lead ............................................................................................................................................................11
Quiz 13: Leads and Lead Types ....................................................................................................................................14
Private Journal 10: Write your lead .............................................................................................................................15
Discussion: Write Your Lead ........................................................................................................................................16
Language Focus: Subject-Verb Agreement ..................................................................................................................17
Quiz 14: Subject-Verb Agreement ...............................................................................................................................19
Writing Articles Using the Inverted Pyramid Style ......................................................................................................20
Private Journal 11: Write your article ..........................................................................................................................22
Quiz 15: Applying AP Style ...........................................................................................................................................23
Language Focus: Structure of Active & Passive Voices ................................................................................................24
Language Focus: Use of Active & Passive Voices .........................................................................................................26
Quiz 16: When to Use Passive Voice ...........................................................................................................................28
Reporting Accurately ...................................................................................................................................................29
Private Journal 12: Edit Your Article ............................................................................................................................32
Discussion: Publish Your Article ...................................................................................................................................33

© 2021 by FHI 360. “English for Journalism MOOC – Module Three Packet” for the Online
Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State with funding 1
provided by the U.S. government and administered by FHI 360. This work is licensed under the
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This work is a derivative of untitled images by Thought Catalog and Thomas Charters under Unsplash license and annekarakash under Pixabay license. This derivative
is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by FHI 360 for use in Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

Welcome to Module Three of English for Journalism! Writing for newspapers and magazines requires a specific
style and voice. A print journalist needs to understand how to write briefly and with emphasis, create a lead that
makes the audience want to read more, and effectively edit and proofread article drafts. To develop these skills,
video lectures will break down both the different parts of an article and individual sentences for style and voice.
Video lectures and current print media will help students understand these ideas.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
• Identify the process of writing a story in a newspaper and the general structure of an article.
• Identify types of leads and how to create a lead.
• Be able to ensure that the subject of a lead agrees with its verb.
• Be able to form a lead using both active and passive voice.
• Be able to proofread and apply elements of Associated Press Style (capitalization, numbers, and dates)

ACTIVITIES
Part One: How to Begin an Article
Print Media: From Topic to Article
Quiz 11: The Process and the Front Page (Required)
Private Journal 9: Create Your Outline (Optional)
Types of Leads
Creating a Lead
Quiz 12: Leads and Lead Types (Required)
Private Journal 10: Write Your Lead (Optional)
Discussion: Write Your Lead (Optional)
Language Focus: Subject-Verb Agreement
Quiz 13: Subject-Verb Agreement (Required)
Writing Articles Using the Inverted Pyramid Style
Private Journal 11: Write Your Article (Optional)
Part Two: The Style of Print Media
Writing Using Associated Press Style
Quiz 14: Applying Associated Press Style (Required)
Language Focus: Structure of Active & Passive Voices
Language Focus: Use of Active & Passive Voices
Quiz 15: When to Use Passive Voice (Required)
Reporting Accurately
Private Journal 12: Edit Your Article (Optional)
Discussion: Publish Your Article (Optional)

2
Print Media: From Topic to Article

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license

[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

Hello! In this lesson, we will look at:

• the process of writing a story in a newspaper
• the general structure of an article.

Let's start with the process from draft to print. We have talked about how to take a topic and turn it in to a pitch,
and then, how to research that story idea by interviewing sources and gathering documents. Now, we are ready to
write the article.

THE PROCESS OF WRITING A STORY IN A NEWSPAPER

Step 1: Create an outline
Generally, the first step is to create an outline. This helps organize the content of an article before it is written. A
journalist's outline could look like this:

Sample Outline for an Article on the Presidential Election:

Paragraph 1 - (Summary Lead)

Who - two candidates
What - ran for president
When - November 4th
Where - all over the country
Why - Every four years leadership changes
How - Citizens voting

Paragraph 2 - (Quotes from Sources)

Supporters of candidate 1
Supporters of candidate 2

Notice the ideas are not written in full sentences yet. An outline only focuses on where the sentences will go in
the article.

Step 2: Write the first draft

The next phase in the journalist's process is drafting. Now that the journalist knows the order of the ideas, they can
write their first draft. A draft is the first try at writing the article in sentences and paragraphs.

3
Step 3: Edit the article
Once the draft is completed, it is taken to a copy editor who makes sure or checks that the article is clear,
connected, understandable, and written in as few words as possible. A copy editor is similar to an editor of a book
or of a paper, but a copy editor does not always change the words of the journalist. The copy editor sees the big
picture of the newspaper. He or she knows how much space is available for a particular story. A journalist only
focuses on their story. The copy editor has to make sure that article fits with the rest of the newspaper
in size, tone, and style.

4
STRUCTURE OF A NEWS REPORT:
Now that we understand the process, let's talk a little bit about the structure of a news story. As you read, use the
image below to see the structure or parts of a newspaper article. NOTE: It is not necessary to read the article; just
note the structure.

There are several parts other than the article that the journalist needs to create for every story. Let's start at the
top.

The first thing the reader sees is the headline. The headline is a title that should give the main idea of the article,
but also capture the reader's attention.

The second part of the article is the byline. This identifies the author and the author's job. Sometimes the byline
can include the date and the location of the main event described in the article.

The next part is the lead. The lead is the first paragraph of an article, and it often tries to give the most important
facts and information: who, what, where, when, why, and how. Later in this module, we'll talk more about
different types of leads and how to create a lead.

In the body section of the article, the journalist usually includes several quotes or information from other sources
that are details of the news story.

The final sentences in the article are the conclusion. Sometimes journalists will use a final quote to end the article,
or they'll add a summarizing statement.

Finally, many journalists include images, graphs, or maps that accompany the article. These generally have
a caption below the image. The caption is a small explanation of the image and will include the photographer's
name.

SUMMARY
• Before an article is printed, journalists must complete three steps in the writing process.
o creating an outline,
o writing a draft,
o getting approval from a copy editor
• An article should include a headline, a byline, a lead, a body, and a conclusion.
• Captions should be written to accompany any images, graphs, or maps.

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Quiz 12: The Process and the Front Page
Instructions: In questions 1 to 3, match the definition with the correct part of the print journalism process
(outlining, copy editing, or drafting). For questions 4-10, you will use the image above question 4 to guide your
answers.

Each question is worth one point. There are 10 questions. You must get seven out of ten questions correct to pass
the quiz.

You can take the quiz as many times as you like. Your highest score will be saved.

>>>> Please note that this quiz can only be completed in Canvas. <<<<

6
Private Journal 9: Create Your Outline
Important: This is a private journal. It will not be graded or seen by your peers.

In the last module, you wrote your pitch and interviewed sources. Did you complete your other interviews?

Now, it is time to write an outline for your article. You can use this space to write your outline.

Example:
1. Paragraph 1: Summary Lead
Who - Volunteers (ages 14 and up)
What - to feed baby birds
When - March, April, and May
Where - The Bird Rescue Center, 400 Main Street, Anytown, USA
Why - babies are injured or sick, need to be fed every thirty minutes, 24 hours a day

2. Paragraph 2: Quotes from sources

Sue Kravitz, volunteer coordinator - "We are looking for volunteers who can commit to at least four
volunteer hours per month. We will provide training on how to safely handle and feed the birds."

Jose Garcia, volunteer - "This is my third year volunteering. It's a great way to make friends and help my
community. I've learned so much since I joined."

Elena Ito, Wildlife expert - " Often babies found outside their nests are just wandering and their parents
are nearby watching them. If you find a bird that is injured or sick, call a wildlife rescue. Only take a bird
from the wild if you are certain they won't survive. Keep the bird in a well-ventilated dark space, like a
shoe-box with holes in it and contact a wildlife expert immediately."

Maximum 200 words

7
Types of Leads

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license

[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

Hello! Welcome to our lesson on types of leads. In the previous lesson, we talked about how articles usually start
with a headline, byline, and a lead. Headlines are the title of an article. The byline tells us who wrote the article,
and the lead is the first paragraph. In this video, we’ll talk about three types of leads: summary, anecdotal,
and contrast.

SUMMARY LEADS
Let's start with the summary lead as it’s the most commonly used lead in news writing. Similar to the content of a
news story, a summary lead presents just the facts, often the who, what, where, and when. Breaking news, or
news that is happening right now, often uses summary leads because it’s important to get information out to the
public in the quickest way possible, by putting the facts in the beginning.

Let’s look at an example of a summary lead:

"Royal Baby 031" by Christopher Neve was found on Flickr site and is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

Prince William and Princess Kate introduced their daughter to the world as they left St. Mary’s
Hospital in London on Saturday. The tiny princess slept in her mother's arms during her first
public appearance. The princess was delivered at 08:34 BST after a short labor. Prince William
was in the room for the birth of the 8lbs 3oz baby.

In this type of lead, itis clear what happened, who was involved, and where/when it occurred. We have the facts of
the event without much detailed description.

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ANECDOTAL LEADS
The second type of lead is the anecdotal lead. An anecdote is a personal story; therefore, an anecdotal lead grabs
the attention of the reader, or makes the reader interested in reading more, by introducing a personal story of
someone involved in an event. This type of lead is often used in human interest stories, but not as often in a news
story. These types of leads attempt to make the reader emotional about the issue.

Here’s an example:

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Unsplash under Unsplash license. This derivative is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by FHI 360 for the Online Professional English Network (OPEN),
sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

Once again, Mark Kline took out his tools so he could fix the floor of his house in
Juneau, Alaska. This has been Mark’s springtime routine for the last 20 years. As the
snow and ice melt, it moves the ground beneath his home, and in recent years, he can
tell it’s getting worse. The Center for Cold Climate Housing says that Mark is not
alone. The harsh effects of climate change are causing problems for at least 200,000
homes in the great state of Alaska.

From this lead, the reader knows that this article will be about effects of climate change. The descriptions paint a
picture for the reader.

9
CONTRAST LEADS
The third type of lead is the contrast lead. In this type of lead the author uses opposite ideas or facts to grab the
reader’s attention.

Here’s an example:

"Mark Zuckerberg F8 Keynote" by Brian Solis from Wikimedia Commons is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Ten years ago, Mark Zuckerberg was a college sophomore sleeping through his college
days while staying up all night coding his little-known website, ‘Facemash’. Today,
Zuckerberg is worth $46 billion dollars, and that website, now called Facebook, is one
of the most popular social media sites in the world.

The author contrasts Mark Zuckerberg’s life before and after his success to try and excite the reader into
reading the rest of the article. A contrast lead, similar to an anecdotal lead, is generally not used in news
stories but is used with investigative journalism or human-interest stories.

SUMMARY
• The lead is the first paragraph in an article. It is often times the most important paragraph and helps a
reader decide whether or not to read the entire article.
• A summary lead includes the most important details of the article
• An anecdotal lead tells a personal story to gain the reader's interest
• A contrast lead uses opposite idea to grab the reader's attention

10
Creating a Lead

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license

[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

In the previous lesson we talked about different types of leads: summary, anecdotal, and contrast. Since the
summary lead is the most common in news stories, in this lesson, we’re going to focus on what to include and
what not to include in a summary news lead.

A summary lead is the first paragraph in an article, and it contains the most important information. This is
important especially if the information may affect the readers’ lives.

Let’s look at an example:

"untitled" by Chris Karidis via Unsplash under Unsplash license

A fire started at 8:14 AM on Friday on the 200 block of South Jessup Street. Two adults and one child went to
Chestnut Hospital shortly after 9:00 AM when firefighters rescued them from the second floor of that apartment
building. Fire fighters put out the flames by 10:12 AM, but unfortunately residents cannot return to their homes
because of the fire damage. At this time, firefighters do not know the cause of the fire.

In this example, we can see some of the things to include and not include when writing a summary news lead. Let’s start with
things to include. In a summary news lead, it’s important to give wh-information, be specific, and be brief.

11
WHAT TO INCLUDE IN A SUMMARY LEAD :

This work is a derivative of "User" by Sergey Demoshkin, "Question" by Jessica Lock, "help" by tezar tantular, "time" by Dmitry Mamaev, and
"Maps" by frederick allen via The Noun Project under CC BY 4.0. This derivative is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by FHI 360 for the Online Professional
English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

Give wh- information (who, what, when, where, and why)

WHAT happened: a fire
WHO was involved: residents and firefighters,
WHERE it happened: 200 block of South Jessup Street
WHEN it happened: 8:14 AM on Friday

Can we tell why the fire started? No, but let’s notice that the journalist was transparent about their process for
finding that information. They said that the firefighters did not have that information at the time this news story
was published. Remember, transparency is one of the principles of journalism we talked about in Module One.
Be specific
Being specific means giving exact details. Notice the journalist in this lead did not just say that a fire happened in
the city of Philadelphia. They provided the exact address. Also notice the lead includes the exact time, 8:14 AM.
This information informs the reader in case they know someone who was in that area at that time.

Be brief
Being brief means being short or using few words. Notice in our example, the journalist was able to write all of the
necessary information in just four sentences.

WHAT NOT TO INCLUDE IN A SUMMARY NEWS LEAD:

Do not include extra details or descriptive words
Because this is a summary news lead, we don’t want to include any extra details like descriptive words. A summary
news lead should use concrete words that clearly communicate the important parts of story.

Is this a good lead?

The bright orange, yellow and cherry red flames from the fire interrupted the busy traffic on Friday
morning.

12
 While it may paint a picture of what it looked like, it doesn’t get right to the important information.

A fire started at 8:14 AM on Friday on the 200 block of South Jessup Street.
Starting a summary news lead this way gives the reader the important information first.

Do not include extra words that repeat information

In addition to descriptive words, summary news leads should also not include extra words that may repeat
information. For example, what if this lead instead said, “A fire started at 8:14 AM on Friday morning...” Here,
because we said AM, we know that it’s the morning time. Remember, we want summary news leads to be
specific, but also brief.

SUMMARY
When writing a summary news lead:
• a journalist needs to include wh- information, specificity, brevity
• journalists should avoid descriptive language and unnecessary words.

13
Quiz 13: Leads and Lead Types
Instructions: Identify the type of lead below as either summary, anecdotal, or contrast.

>>>> Please note that this quiz can only be completed in Canvas. <<<<

14
Private Journal 10: Write your lead
Important: This is a private journal. It will not be graded or seen by your peers.

You've written your outline. Now, it's time to start writing your lead. As we discussed, the most common type of
lead for a news story is a summary lead. A summary lead should only include the facts.

Here is an example:
The Bird Rescue Center at 400 Main Street in Anytown, USA is seeking volunteers to feed baby birds between the
months of March and June. The center takes in wild birds that are sick or injured. Baby birds need to be fed every
thirty minutes around the clock.

15
Discussion: Write Your Lead
Important: This activity is optional. It will not be graded. This is a public post. Your classmates will see your post.
This course has thousands of participants and the facilitator is not able to review all responses. You can help by
reading your classmates' work and offering suggestions!

STEP 1. SHARE YOUR QUESTIONS WITH YOUR CLASSMATES.

Copy your lead and paste it in the discussion board below. Remember, a lead should be brief and specific.

Please keep your post to a maximum of 200 words.

STEP 2. READ YOUR CLASSMATES' LEAD AND POST A

REPLY:

• Is this a good example of a summary lead?

• Is it brief?
• Is it specific?
• Is there anything you would recommend changing?

Example reply: This is a great lead. You were brief and specific and answered the WH-questions. The sentence
about how often baby birds should be fed may be extra information. You might want to put this in the body rather
than the lead.

>>>> Please note that this activity can only be completed in Canvas. <<<<

16
Language Focus: Subject-Verb Agreement

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license

[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

Hello! In the previous lessons, you looked at different types of leads and how to create a lead. In this lesson, we’re
going to look at a type of grammar called subject-verb agreement, and how to make sure that the subject in a lead
agrees with the verb that relates to it.

We are going to look at:

• third-person singular subjects;
• specific cases for words built on every and no;
• what to do when the subject involves certain types of numbers.

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
In general, subject-verb agreement is fairly simple in English.

If the subject is I, you, we, or they, then the verb in simple present is in base form.

In leads and headlines the most common subject is going to be third-person plural (they).
For example,
• Residents ask for more protection.
• Victims report more crime.

Here, we can replace the subject nouns residents and victims with they:
• They ask for more protection.
• They report more crime.

THIRD-PERSON SINGULAR SUBJECT -VERB AGREEMENT

If the subject is third person singular, it can be represented by the pronouns, he, she, or it.
In this case we add -s, or -es to the base form of the verb.
For example,
• A grateful patient thanks the hospital.
• The mother watches her son win the game.

WORDS THAT CONTAIN "EVERY" OR "NO"

Words with "every"
A third part of subject-verb agreement involves words that contain every. These are words such
as everything, everyone, everybody and everywhere. These words sound like they should be plural
subjects; everyone means a lot of people, so that sounds plural, right?

17
However, all subjects involving the word every are single subjects, so they agree with single verbs. That means,
that an –s or –es is added to the end of the verbs.
For example:
• Everything changes but you.
• Everyone needs love.
• Everybody hurts.
• Everywhere seems to be changing.
• Every journalist needs to follow the principles of journalism.

Words with "no"

The same idea is true for words that begin with no, for example, nobody, nowhere, or nothing. These are always
single.
For example:
• Nobody walks in this town anymore.
• Nothing lives on the surface of Mars.

NUMBERS
The last part of subject-verb agreement that we’re going to look at in this lesson is about different kinds of
numbers. When a lead or a headline contains subjects that are a fraction, a distance, or an amount of money,
these subjects will all be third person singular. Once again, that means that an –s or –es is added to the end of the
verbs. For example:
• Two-thirds is usually enough to pass a law in Congress
• 500 miles seems like a long way if you have to walk
• Twenty thousand dollars was raised by the charity last year.

Notice that in all of these examples we need to use the third-person single form of the verb: is, seems and was.

SUMMARY
In this video we looked at different types of subjects in leads and how to make sure the subject agrees with the
verb. We looked at third person singular when, one, the subject is a phrase, two the word contains every, and
three with certain kinds of numbers.

18
Quiz 14: Subject-Verb Agreement
Instructions: Choose the form of the verb that best matches the subject. Refer to the video, "Language Focus: SV
Agreement with Complicated Subjects."

>>>> Please note that this quiz can only be completed in Canvas. <<<<

19
Writing Articles Using the Inverted Pyramid Style

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license

[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

Hello! In this lesson, we will look at one common way to organize a news article: the inverted pyramid. We will
describe this style, look at an example, and talk about why it is useful. You probably know what a pyramid looks
like. So, what does inverted mean? It means upside down. The biggest part of the pyramid is at the top.

HOW IS AN INVERTED PYRAMID STYLE ARTICLE

ORGANIZED?
If we think of a news article as an inverted pyramid, it means that the biggest part—the most important
information—comes first, or at the top. Then the key details follow, and the article ends with background
information or less important details.

If you write an article using the inverted pyramid style, you will start with a summary lead. Remember, a summary
lead puts the key information- who, what, when, where, et cetera- in the beginning of the article. As the article
goes on, each paragraph contains information that is less and less important.

Let’s look at a simple example of a news story about the weather:

Heavy rain is expected on Wednesday from Baltimore to Washington, D.C., according

to the National Weather Service in Maryland.

A system of low pressure off the coast will bring rain to the mid-Atlantic area on
Wednesday. The rain will begin in the early afternoon and last throughout the night,”
according to the National Weather Service.

Baltimore is expected to receive one inch of rain, and Washington D.C. could see up
to two inches. Winds may also be strong throughout the area.

You can see that the most important information comes first:

What is expected? Heavy rain.

When? Wednesday.

Where? Around Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

By reading just this first paragraph, readers can understand the most important ideas. They could even understand
the ideas pretty well, without reading further than this first paragraph.

20
What comes next? We see an explanation of the cause of the rain, more details about when the rain will occur,
and the amounts of rain. These answer questions like:

• Why?
• When, exactly?
• How much?

This information is good to know, but less essential than the facts in the first paragraph.

The last sentence talks about wind, which we can usually expect during a storm. This detail is less important, so it
belongs at the end.

N O T E V E R Y O N E A G R E E S W IT H T H E I N V E R T E D P Y R A M I D
STYLE
The inverted pyramid style is only one way to structure a news article. Some journalists and editors criticize this
style. There are other ways to organize your story. For example, if you use an anecdotal lead or a contrast lead,
you will need to organize information very differently. But, the inverted pyramid style is a traditional style that is
still very common in English-language media, so it’s good to know how to use it.

WHY IS THE INVERTED PYRAMID STYLE POPULAR?

One reason for the popularity of this style is that it makes articles easy to edit or cut. When editors or writers need
to shorten articles, they can simply cut from the bottom without leaving out any important information.

Let’s look at what happens if we cut from the bottom of our story about the rain. We can delete the last sentence,
and the article still gives the information that readers really need to know.

Heavy rain is expected on Wednesday from Baltimore to Washington, D.C., according

to the National Weather Service in Maryland.

A system of low pressure off the coast will bring rain to the mid-Atlantic area on
Wednesday. The rain will begin in the early afternoon and last throughout the night,”
according to the National Weather Service.

Baltimore is expected to receive one inch of rain, and Washington D.C. could see up
to two inches. Winds may also be strong throughout the area.

21
Private Journal 11: Write your article
Important: This is a private journal. It will not be graded or seen by your peers.
You've written your lead. Now, it is time to finish your article. Let's try using the inverted pyramid style. Start with
the most important information and end with the least important

Example:

The Bird Rescue Center at 400 Main Street in Anytown, USA is seeking volunteers to feed baby birds
between the months of March and June. The center takes in wild birds that are sick or injured. Baby birds
need to be fed every thirty minutes around the clock.

The Bird Rescue Center opened in 2008 and has rehabilitated over 2,500 sick and injured birds. Sue Kravitz,
volunteer coordinator for the Bird Rescue Center, said that she was looking for volunteers who could
commit to at least four volunteer hours per month. She said the center would provide training on how to
safely handle and feed the baby birds.

Elena Ito, of the Department of Fish & Wildlife, is supportive of the volunteer program. She also said that
people should leave wildlife rescue to experts. "Often babies found outside their nests are just wandering
and their parents are nearby watching them," she said. She urged people who find a bird that is injured or
sick to call a wildlife rescue. "Only take a bird from the wild if you are certain they won't survive," she
warned. "Keep the bird in a well-ventilated dark space, like a shoe-box with holes in it and contact a
wildlife expert immediately."

Jose Garcia, an Anytown resident, has been volunteering for the last three years. He encourages other
community members to volunteer. "This is a great way to make friends and help the community. I've
learned so much since I joined."

22
Quiz 15: Applying AP Style
Instructions: You will see two versions of the same sentence. Choose the one that follow AP style correctly.

>>>> Please note that this quiz can only be completed in Canvas. <<<<

23
Language Focus: Structure of Active & Passive
Voices

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license
[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

Hello, in this language focus video, we will talk about the structure and meaning of the active and passive voice.
Let's start with active voice. The subject in an active sentence does the action of the verb:

"Bear Attacks" by NPS Photo / Jim Peaco was found on NPS.gov and is licensed under Public Doman / U.S. Government Works

The bear attacked the man.

In this sentence, it is clear that the bear was the one in the sentence who attacked, and the man is the victim. The
structure of an active sentence is subject + verb + object.

Now what about passive voice? Let's take a look at the same sentence but this time we'll use passive voice.

The man was attacked by the bear.

In passive voice, the subject, the man, receives the action of the verb, attack.

Active voice: The bear attacked the man.

Passive voice: The man was attacked by the bear.

The meaning is the same, but the grammar is different. Here are a couple more examples of the passive voice:

Olympic athletes are admired all over the world.

Some mistakes were made in the article.
My wallet was stolen.

Notice, in these examples we do not know who did the action. For instance, we do not know who exactly admires
athletes. We can understand that it means people in general, but it is not stated. Similarly, we do not know who
made the mistakes in the article. But we can understand that it means the journalist who wrote the article.

Finally, in the last example we do not know who stole the wallet. So, in this example, the emphasis is on the
action was stolen. The focus is not on who did the action (the person who stole the wallet). Therefore, you can see

24
that we use passive voice to focus on the action or the receiver of the action. We do not use the passive voice to
focus on who did the action.

Let's look back at our original example:

Active Voice: The bear attacked the man.

Passive Voice: The man was attacked by the bear.

In this example, we know who did the action, the bear. And we use the preposition by to identify it.

The man was attacked by the bear.

If we did not know who attacked the man, then we would have ended the sentence without mentioning the bear.

The man was attacked.

STRUCTURE OF THE PASSIVE VOICE
Now, let's look at the structure of passive voice.

1. Passive voice sentence structure: object + be + past participle

The verb is expressed in two parts. The verb to be, (am/is/are/was/were) and the past participle.

2. The verb “to be” shows the tense.

Example 1: Olympic athletes are admired all over the world.

We can see that this is in the present tense because the verb to be is in the present tense: are.

Example 2: My wallet was stolen.

We can tell that this happened in the past because the verb to be is in the past tense: was.

In many cases, the past participle is the past tense. As it is with verbs attack in our first example: The man was
attacked by the bear.

3. Past participles can take regular and irregular forms

If you can add -d or -ed to put a verb in the past tense then the past participle is the same form but remember, as
we discussed in Module 1, there are as many as 400 irregular verbs. For some of those irregular verbs, the simple
past in the past participle forms are the same, but for others they are different.

Example 1: Mistakes were made.

Made is the irregular past tense and past participle of the verb to make.

Example 2: My wallet was stolen.

Stolen is an irregular past participle of the verb to steal. Stole is the irregular past tense, (steal/stole/stolen).

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Language Focus: Use of Active & Passive Voices

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license

[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

Hello! In the lesson, we will look at the uses of the active and passive voices. In the last video, we talked about the
structure and meaning of the active and passive voice. In this video let's talk about when and why we use each
voice.

WHEN TO USE THE ACTIVE VOICE:

Let's start with the active voice. Most of the time, we use the active voice because it's simple and brief. Using
active voice in many cases accomplishes this goal.

Example 1: The Russian team won the gold medal for men's volleyball in the 2012 Olympic Games. (In this case,
we want to know who won so we use the active voice.)

Example 2: The students protested the increase in university tuition.

Example 3: Celebrity Chef Sue Vidam wrote a new cookbook highlighting international recipes.

WHEN TO USE THE PASSIVE VOICE:

Even though most of the time we use the active voice, sometimes it is necessary to use passive voice. Let's talk
about when the passive is necessary.

1. If the focus is on the receiver of the action instead of who did the action, we
use passive voice:

This work is a derivative of “Lionel Messi 31mar2007" and "Brown bear (Ursus arctos arctos) running" via Wikimedia Commons under CC BY SA
2.5 This derivative is licensed under CC BY SA 2.5 by FHI 360 for use in Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S.
Department of State.

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Let's think back to our example from the last lesson: The bear attacked the man.

Now, let's pretend that the man is very famous, like soccer superstar Lionel Messi. If he were attacked by the bear,
this would surely be in the news.

In this case, since the receiver of the verb is very famous, we would want to put this information first and therefore
use the passive voice. Lionel Messi was attacked by a bear.

2. If we do not know who did the action:

This work is a derivative of ”untitled image" by TheDigitalWay via Pixabay under Pixabay license This derivative is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by
FHI 360 for use in the Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

Example: My car was stolen.

Here, I may not know who exactly stole my car. The most important part of this sentence is the receiver of the
action, my car, and the action itself, stolen. In the active voice this sentence looks like this. An unknown person
stole my car. We want the most important information in the front of the sentence. So we use the passive voice
here.

SUMMARY

• Active voice is often the clearest way to give information.

• If the action or the person receiving that action is the most important part of that sentence, journalists use
passive voice.

Next, check your understanding with a quiz on passive voice.

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Quiz 16: When to Use Passive Voice
Instructions: Choose the correct verb form to complete the sentence.

>>>> Please note that this quiz can only be completed in Canvas. <<<<

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Reporting Accurately

Untitled Image by 200 degrees via Pixabay is licensed under Pixabay license

[Video available online for viewing. Script below.]

Hello! In Module 1, one of the principles of journalism that we looked at was completeness. This means that a
journalist needs to tell the whole story by speaking to as many sources as possible.

In this lesson, we will look at reporting more accurately by gathering multiple perspectives and seeing if they
agree. Multiple perspectives means more than one point of view on the same thing. When a journalist is writing a
story, the more perspectives they can get, the better. We will then look at how one source can confirm the story of
another.

Let’s think about the facts of a story.

Imagine that there is a fire in a building. The firefighters are called, and they put out the fire. Nobody is hurt, but
afterwards everybody wants to know who or what caused the fire.

Now, let’s imagine that a journalist wants to write a story about the cause of the fire.

This work is derivative of "Fighting Fire" by Daniel Tausis via Unsplash license. This derivative is licensed CCBY by FHI 360 for
the Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State

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She decides that the landlord – the person who owns the building - would be a good source.

She interviews him and he says, “The fire started in the apartment at the top of the building. It was probably the
tenant smoking. I told him not to smoke in the apartment many times.”

This work is derivative of untitled image by Janko Felic via unsplash. This derivative is licensed CC BY 4.0 by FHI 360 for
the Online Professional English Netowrk (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

Now if the journalist decided to stop there and only interview the landlord, the story that she writes would say
that the tenant – the person who rents the apartment from the landlord- is responsible for the fire. But this would
not be telling the complete story and so the journalist would not be reporting the story accurately. The journalist
needs to talk to other sources: they need to get multiple perspectives.

So, the journalist talks to the tenant. The tenant says: "The fire started at the bottom of the building, in the
basement. The heater down there is very old and dangerous. I keep asking the landlord to replace it, but he
refuses.”

This work is derivative of "untitled image" by Jeslyn Chanchaleune via unsplash license. This derivative is licensed CC BY 4.0 by
FHI 360 for the Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

30
Now, if the journalist decided to stop here, she has two different sources, who say completely opposite things. This
is better than just interviewing the landlord, but not much, because the readers do not know who is telling the
truth. She needs to try and confirm one of the stories by interviewing more sources.

This work is derivative of "untitled" by Carlos Alcazar via Pixabay license. This derivative is licensed CC BY 4.0 by FHI 360 for the
Online Professional English Network (OPEN), sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.

If one person’s version of the story agrees with another person’s, then we call this confirmation. Confirmation
means checking for truth and accuracy. So, the journalist interviews the fire expert who looked at the building
after the fire was put out. This expert says: "The fire clearly started in the bottom of the building. It was probably
caused by an old heater exploding and then spread until the whole building was burned down.”

The fire expert confirms the story of the tenant. So, the journalist knows that he is probably telling the truth.
However, to make sure, the journalist knocks on the doors of all the neighbors to try and find an eyewitness.
Luckily, one neighbor saw the fire start and even has a video of the fire on his phone. The journalist can clearly see
that the fire begins in the basement. This neighbor is a citizen journalist. An ordinary person helping to accurately
report the news. We will learn more about citizen journalists in Unit Five. So now, because she has gathered
multiple perspectives, the journalist knows that she is reporting the story accurately. The story she writes will be
the truth.

SUMMARY

• The more perspectives a journalist can get, the more different types of sources they can interview, the
better.
• If a journalist can find one source who confirms the story of another, they are more likely to find out and
therefore write the truth.

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Private Journal 12: Edit Your Article
Important: This is a private journal. It will not be graded or seen by your peers.
You have written the first draft of your article. Now, it is time to edit it.

1. We have looked at three elements of Associated Press Style: Capitalization, Numbers and Dates. Did you format
these correctly in your article?

2. During this course, we have also reviewed past tenses, question forms, and active and passive voice. Have you
used these correctly?

3. Finally, we wrote our articles using the inverted pyramid style. We started with the most important information
and ended with the least important. Your editor needs the article to be 250 words or less. Is there anything you
would like to remove from your article? Now is the time to do so.
Example:
The Bird Rescue Center at 400 Main Street in Anytown, USA is seeking volunteers to feed baby birds
between Mar March 1st 1 and June 30, 2020. The center takes in wild birds that are sick or injured. Baby
birds need to be fed every thirty minutes around the clock.

The Bird Rescue Center opened in 2008 and has rehabilitated over 2,500 sick and injured birds. Sue
Kravitz, V volunteer C coordinator for the Bird Rescue Center, said that she was looking for volunteers who
could commit to at least four volunteer hours per month. She said the center would provide training on
how to safely handle and feed the baby birds.

Elena Ito, of the Department of Fish & Wildlife, is supportive of the volunteer program. She also said that
people should leave wildlife rescue to experts. "Often babies found outside their nests are just wandering
and their parents are nearby watching them," she said. She urged people who find a bird that is injured or
sick to call a wildlife rescue. "Only take a bird from the wild if you are certain they won't survive," she
warned. "Keep the bird in a well-ventilated dark space, like a shoe-box with holes in it and contact a
wildlife expert immediately."

Jose Garcia, an Anytown resident, has been volunteering for the last 3 three years. He encourages other
community members to volunteer. "This is a great way to make friends and help the community." I've
learned so much since I joined."

Final Version:
The Bird Rescue Center at 400 Main Street in Anytown, USA is seeking volunteers to feed baby birds
between March 1 and June 30, 2020. The center takes in wild birds that are sick or injured. Baby birds need
to be fed every thirty minutes around the clock.

The Bird Rescue Center opened in 2008 and has rehabilitated over 2,500 sick and injured birds. Sue Kravitz,
volunteer coordinator for the Bird Rescue Center, said that she was looking for volunteers who could
commit to at least four volunteer hours per month. She said the center would provide training on how to
safely handle and feed the baby birds.

Elena Ito, of the Department of Fish & Wildlife, is supportive of the volunteer program. She also said that
people should leave wildlife rescue to experts. "Often babies found outside their nests are just wandering
and their parents are nearby watching them," she said. She urged people who find a bird that is injured or
sick to call a wildlife rescue. "Only take a bird from the wild if you are certain they won't survive," she
warned.

Jose Garcia, an Anytown resident, has been volunteering for the last three years. He encourages other
community members to volunteer. "This is a great way to make friends and help the community."

32
Discussion: Publish Your Article
Important: This activity is optional. It will not be graded. This is a public post. Your classmates will see your post.

This course has thousands of participants and the facilitator is not able to review all responses. You can help by
reading your classmates' work and offering suggestions!

Congratulations! Your editor has approved your article! It will be published in tomorrow's paper!

STEP 1. SHARE YOUR ARTICLE WITH YOUR PEERS.

Copy your article and paste it in the discussion board below. Please keep your post to a maximum of 250 words.

STEP 2. READ THE OTHER ARTICLES AND POST A REPLY:

Example reply: Great work! I enjoyed reading your article. I think there may be an error with your date format. In
AP style, we should just write the number without =st or -nd.

>>>> Please note that this activity can only be completed in Canvas. <<<<

>>>> This is the end of Module 3 <<<<

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