EDITORIAL WRITING

What is an Editorial?
It is the official stand of the publication on a relevant development or issue. It is a concerted commentary written by
any member of the editorial staff who comments or gives the newspaper’s or staff’s opinion on an issue which is of interest
and importance to the public.
The editorial is considered the soul of the newspaper for it stirs the conscience of the readers to action; it influence
and molds public opinion. It is usually written in formal language, expressing the stand of the paper on controversial issues of
the day. It has no byline.
TYPES OF EDITORIAL
 Informative – are those which just give information, review, or announce certain facts or events.
 Interpretative – those which explain or bring out the significance of an event, situation, or idea
 Editorials of crusade and reform – those which criticize certain conditions, then suggest a solution or
change; or which just give a message of reform without necessarily pointing out a problem or a bad
condition.
 Editorials on special occasions – those which are written to give meaning to occasions such as Christmas,
Labor Day, heroes’ birthday, and other significant events.
 Editorial liners– short, witty paragraphs, either serious
or light.
 Editorials that offer entertainment – those which are written to give in a light vein, primarily to
entertain readers.
 Editorials of tribute – commemorating someone who’s worth emulating.
 Editorials that praise or commend – those that express appreciation for a
worthy action.
PARTS OF EDITORIAL
The beginning
The body and
The conclusion
HOW TO WRITE AN EDITORIAL
1. Introduction
Contains the newspeg with the reaction. It is usually one short paragraph.(A newspeg is a brief statement
about the news event upon which the editorial is based or an existing issue that needs to be solved right away)
2. Body
It may take two to four short paragraphs that support or justify the reaction. Cite reasons, statistics,
interviews, or figures.

3. Ending
The ending, sometimes called the clincher, summarizes the editorial’s stand. It must be crispy and difficult to
forget.
The Beginning: Editorial Lead
 The editorial lead, like in the news story, is the showcase of the write-up. However, it is not considered the heart of the
story unlike in the news.
 The heart could be in the middle or at the end, depending upon the whims and style of the editorial writer.
 Remember that it must contain enough “sparks” to urge the readers to read the whole article. A flat, dull and dragging
lead will readily turn readers away.
 It does not have to follow the traditional five W’s and one H.
 The editorial writer has more freedom to display his creativity than the news writer in the writing of the lead.
The Body
-The body should include the editorial’s basic facts, the causes and effects behind incidents, situations, illustrations and
arguments.
The Conclusion
-The last part drives home the final important thought or direction. This conclusion may be in the form of advice, challenge,
command or just a rounding out or a simple summary.
TIPS FOR WRITING
1. Simple style
 Avoid high fallutin’ words
 Learn to develop a simple, clear, direct and vigorous style of writing
 Choose your words that will accurately describe or explain a point or issue
2. Brief, exact & concise
 150 to 200 words
 Complex sentences and long paragraphs are wearisome and dull the senses
3. One-editorial, one-point rule
 Focus on a theme
 Always have one point to convey to the readers
 Several points confuse the readers
4. Be specific
 Use concrete facts and figures not general ideas, terms or statements
 Hazy and broad generalizations do not impress
 E d ito ria l W ritin g

Intro:
Present the
problem or
situation.

Take a stand!

Reason #1 for position

Reason #2 for position

Reason #3 for position

Present Recap
a logical the staff
solution. stance.

FEATURE WRITING
FEATURE STORY
a. CREATIVE sometimes SUBJECTIVE article, designed primarily TO ENTERTAIN and TO INFORM readers of an
event, a situation or an aspect of life; it is often NOT PERISHABLE.
b. is NOT a news story written in an inverted pyramid structure, it is not a fiction story for most features deal with
facts, it does not provide opinion like an editorial.
c. appeals to the emotion, it also instructs, informs and advices but its main objective is to entertain.
d. presents information of human interest. It aims to entertain rather to inform although it may do both at the same
time.
e. displays the three ‘S’ qualities: storyline, surprise & style

ELEMENTS OF A FEATURE STORY

1. Creativity
2. Subjectivity
3. Informativeness
4. Entertainment
5. Imperishability
Creativity
Not bound by a strict FORMAT or FORM like news.
Subjectivity
Sometimes uses the first person; own thoughts and emotion.
Informativeness
Though lacking in hard news value, a feature article can constructively informs the reader of a situation or
aspect of life.
Entertainment
A break in the monotony of negative/bad news about people, humanness.
Imperishability
not time bound
QUALITIES OF A FEATURE STORY
1. It deals with any topic.
2. It usually entertains rather than it informs, instructs or advices.
3. It may be long or short as long as it covers the subject adequately and keeps it interesting to the readers.
4. It may be light or serious, depending on its purpose.
5. It could be formal or informal and written in any form or style but well organized.
6. It may or may not be timely.
7. It begins with a novelty lead.
8. It is written in ascending interest.
9. It is based on facts. Though the writer sometimes uses his imagination to play up the details, it is still anchored on facts.
10. It can be garnished with adjectives, figures of speech, dialogue, anecdote, color & idiomatic expressions.
11. It can be written on the first, second & third person.
TYPES OF FEATURE STORY
1. Personality Profile/Sketch
2. Interview Article
3. How-to Article/Self-help
4. Personal Narrative or Anecdotes
5. Travel Story
6. Human Interest Story or True-to-life Drama
Personality Profile/Sketch
 An in-depth story on an individual that captures the essence of the person on paper
 Brings out the person’s distinctive traits or personality.
Interview Article
 You can interview somebody to obtain information about an issue (e.g. Municipal Mayor about disaster preparedness)
 You can interview about a person.
 How-to Article / Self-help
 Contains information about something/advise
 Readers are always interested on things that will benefit them mentally, physically, emotionally
Personal narrative or anecdotes
 Deals with an unusual experience as accomplishment that an author or somebody else has faced
 e.g. articles on unusual hobbies or extreme sports, how you survived being trapped in an elevator
Travel Story (Travelogue)
 Focuses on a destination.
Human Interest Story or True-to-life Drama
 Deals with a simple topic given a new attention
PARTS OF A FEATURE STORY
1. Lead- sets the tone of the story.
Descriptive Lead
 detailed and vivid;
 should paint a clear and precise picture of a scene, an individual, an event, and set a mood for the reader
 should enable readers to visualize exactly what is happening.
Example: The four o’clock bell blares throughout the building, followed by the trample of students’ feet pounding down
the halls. Soon, all is quiet and the dust begins to settle, but just for a moment. It isn’t long before the dust, paper wads,
candy wrappers, broken pencils, and other trash are whisked away into a dustpan with the swish of a broom guided by
an experienced hand.
The students’ day is over, but for Cardo and other janitors, it will be awhile before they start home.

Narrative Lead
 Put central character into a scene and begins telling a story.
Example: They pulled the car to the side of the road, turned off the motor and waited silently as the memories washed
over them in a series of gentle waves…(Tom Hallman, 3/8/1990)

Summary Lead
 Symbolized the story's central theme.
Example: Hidden beneath a heap of inner-tubes in a tiny storeroom on an island in the middle of Vistula River in the
statue of Lenin that stood for decades inside the Gdansk Shipyard…(6/18/1991)

Contrast Lead
 Draws contrast between two opposite extremes – tragedy with comedy, past with present, age with youth and beauty
with ugly.
Example: Less than three years ago, two college friends decided to build a website to exchange their favorite videos.
Today, Youtube is owned by Google and gets over 25 million unique visitors to the site each month.

Comparison Lead
 Draws comparison between two subjects.

Shocking Statement Lead

A shocking, interesting, and engaging statement that will captivate readers and will make them read the rest of your
story.
Example: “I hate babies!”

Suspense/Teaser Lead
 An open-ended beginning
Example: The only thing Manny lacks to be considered as the best boxer ever is…

2. Body-
 The essential ingredient of a good feature story is extensive, thorough research.
 Quotes and descriptions.
 Observation, take down notes.
3. Conclusion- ties the story together (summary).
Several ways to end a feature –
1. Lead replay or summary ending
2. Proximity ending
3. Restatement ending
4. Word play ending
5. Quote ending
6. Surprise ending
Steps in Writing Feature Story
1. Choose a topic which you know very well.
2. Limit your subject to only one area.
3. Think of a more interesting & fresh angle of the topic.
4. Make a tentative title.
5. Make an outline.
6. Use an appropriate & striking novelty lead.
7. Garnish your article with anecdote, dialogue and color.
8. Use graphic description. Don’t just tell, show it through the use of senses.
9. Place direct quotation in the beginning.
10. Use simple words & shorter paragraphs.
11. Avoid being wordy.
12. Make sure your article has drama.
13. Give examples to make your article convincing & easy to understand.
14. Tie up ending with the opening paragraph.
15. Make a striking title.
SCIENCE JOURNALISM
(NEWS, FEATURES, EDITORIALS)

Scientific English Filipino

Singultus spasm Hiccup Sinok

Nasopharyngtis Cold Sipon
Cephalalgia headache Sakit ng ulo
Bilateral periorbital hematoma Bruise Pasa
Torticollis Stiff Neck Ngalay
Allergic Rhinitis Hay Fever Sipon
What is Science and Health Writing?
- Writing about scientific subject matter, often in a non-technical manner for an audience of non-scientists.
1. Translating jargons, and hard to understand science and health concepts to the general public
2. Catching and touching their lives that will make them feel important, involve and be aware on how science can change or
break their philosophies in life.

SCIENCE STORIES
1. Science fair
2. School events
3. Local science community
4. Make the process of learning science newsworthy
 EUREKA (pagtuklas at pananaliksik)
- scientific breakthroughs and research outcomes (S&T discoveries)
 EXPERTS (mga dalubhasa) – scientists and technologists and their feats
 SCIENTIFIC EVENTS (mga pangyayari)
- fora, exhibits, seminars and conferences
 SCIENCE ISSUES (isyu patungkol sa agham)
– Problems affecting S&T, crises and disasters
 SCIENCE HOW-Tos (hakbang o direksyon)
– tips on procedures and applications

STYLES OF WRITING
 Straight news –5 W’s and H, use summary lead, facts-laden
 Features – human interest angle, use novelty lead
 Interpretative – more in-depth, and multi-angles, more complex and multi-sourced

SCIENCE STRAIGHT NEWS

Results or outcome of scientific experiments

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) discovered that the pulp and peel of kalamansi, a citrus fruit common to
the Philippines, contain more vitamin C and other essential elements than what can be normally derived from the juice.

• Researcher with a discovery

• Milagros A. Ramos, a Filipino researcher from the National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST) has
developed a new process of producing oil from coconut by using microorganism.
• Scientific meetings and other gatherings that tackled problems
Pediatricians will hold their 16th annual convention next week at the Philippine International Convention Center
(PICC) to focus nationwide attention on two problems: infections and malnutrition.

SCIENCE FEATURES

informal, creative, and amusing style of writing human interest stories

often found in the Lifestyle Section of newspapers
have a more creative organization than those found in the news section
have considerable freedom of expression and stories are far more varied in style than news stories
 while news stories tend to maintain a consistent level of fact sharing, feature stories can exhibit
sophistication
HOW TO WRITE GOOD INTRO FOR SCIENCE FEATURES

Rhetorical question (Patalumpating tanong)

– Do you know that bacon is safer to eat than tilapia caught from the pond?

Provoking statement (Nakapupukaw na pahayag)

– Just add C to ash and it will spell cash through the waste recycling technologies in turning the ash fall after the Mt.
Pinatubo eruption, into useful products of commerce.

Narrative opening (Pakwentong pahayag)

– When I was a child, there was something in my grandmother’s kitchen while she was cooking, as she made me taste a
sweet gum-like concoction from coconut. Now, I realized that this is what the coconut industry boasts of as an export
winner – the “nata de coco”.

Direct quotation (Tuwirang sabi)

– “The banana industry is a sagging enterprise”, according to the DOST.
A saying (Isang Kasabihan)
– An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.
Punch (uses a one-sentence paragraph as catch line)
Example:
 Alcohol and driving can mix. (The alcohol-gasoline blend)
Crusade (campaign against a problem)
Example:
 There is a drugstore in your backyard that is nature’s gift to mankind from medicinal herbs found to cure
illnesses more than what some branded drugs do.
Exclamatory (an exclamation!)
Example:
 According to Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the coconut industry is now facing a decline!

BODY OF SH ARTICLE
It contains the flesh of the article, the well-chosen facts.
Observe the following:
a. unity of thought
b. coherence in ideas presented
c. emphasis on the priority facts
END/CONCLUSION

It refers to the conclusion of the science story.

It contains the summary of the feature in a thesis statement that captures the point of view of the writer.
It could be a question that is not meant to be answered by the readers but something to reflect.

TIPS:
1. MAKE AN INTERESTING YET EASY TO COMPREHEND TITLES/HEADLINES
2. USE SUBTITLES THAT WILL SERVE AS KEY POINTS
3. USE TRANSITIONAL DEVICE TO LOGICALLY CONNECT IDEAS TO OTHER
4. DO NOT OVER EMPHASIZED, BE FACTUAL AND OBJECTIVE
5. USE STATISTICS BY RESPECTED INSTITUTIONS, EXPERTS SAYINGS
6. MAKE A CLEAR ANALYSIS OF DATA
7. ALWAYS LOCALIZE IDEAS, CONNECT CONCLUSION TO YOUR INTRODUCTION