How Newsrooms Work: Understand How News is Made
The inside track on the news cycle, what makes a story and how journalists make news decisions
This one-day course provides a back-to-basics grounding in what makes a news story, how news organisations function today, and who decides what gets editorial coverage.
What you’ll learn: How newsrooms work to news writing principles
What makes a story news? How do reporters decide what to cover and where do they find stories? What determines which stories lead the news agenda or go viral? With insights from reporters and editors who are making the news, you’ll learn how journalists think and reveal the secrets of their decision making – helping you develop your own “nose for news”.
We’ll demystify newsroom structure and show you how some of the UK’s most well-known and reputable outlets are organised. From day-to-day operations to long-term planning, you’ll broaden your understanding of how newsrooms work and what goes on behind-the-scenes at broadcasters and publications.
Finally, you’ll learn the the key principles and golden rules of news stories. We’ll walk you through the fundamentals of news writing – from the 5Ws and beyond – so that you’ll develop the skills to write engaging news stories and craft attention-grabbing introductions.
How you’ll learn
This three-module course will be led by an experienced trainer who will share their practical expertise through presentations, discussion and practical exercises – ensuring you have opportunity to reinforce your learning, test your understanding and receive feedback from an experienced editor.
Who the course is for
This course is for you if you want to hone your news sense and understand how newsrooms really work, build your practical news skills, and/or try to secure more coverage for your campaign, company, organisation or clients. We also offer a full-day writing course, News Writing Fundamentals: Write Stories With Impact.
We currently offer this course as bespoke training for teams and can deliver it remotely, or in your offices. Get in touch using the button below to discuss times and dates, as well as how we can tailor it to your needs.
If you’re booking for yourself, find all of our scheduled courses here.
Course Modules
What Makes News?
- What makes a news story
- News sources and demographics
- ‘Hard’ and ‘soft’ news
- Recognising fact and opinion
- Knowing your audience
How Newsrooms Work
- How newsrooms are organised
- The editorial decision-making process
- What journalists want (and don’t want)
- Matching a story to the right journalist
- Opportunities outside the news cycle
News Writing Basics
- Story structure and the 5Ws
- Writing a good introduction
- Building out the body of the story
- How and where to use quotes
- Language usage in news
How Newsrooms Work: Understand How News is Made
The inside track on the news cycle, what makes a story and how journalists make news decisions