In Depth Reporting

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In- Depth Reporting

• Journalism gives its greatest respect and its
  highest honors to those who dig the deepest.
• Melvin Mencher, journalism professor, Columbia
  University

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In-Depth Reporting

• Reporting and writing in which reporters dig
  beneath the surface to provide a deeper
  understanding of a person, issue or event.
  In-depth reports present a thorough examination
  of an issue or event, drawing on many different
  sources of information.

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In-Depth Stories

• Reporters strive to uncover hidden truths or seek
  out answers to difficult and complicated
  questions.
• Expose wrongdoings or poor decision making.
• Present information on important issues
• Can benefit readers lives in many ways
• Involves strong interviewing and research
• Careful and accurate writing
• Story-telling techniques

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Tackling the In-Depth Story

• Going beyond obvious stories
• Special or unusual stories
• Requires more time, effort, energy and
  creativity. Thorough reporting- research
  organization, time for reflection on what your
  research uncovers, and writing.
• Provides a deeper understanding of a person,
  issue or event.
• Exposes an injustice
• Celebrates the remarkable

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Finding Stories to Cover

• Ideas for stories are everywhere
• Observe your friends and classmates
• Do they feel unsafe on campus? Examine the rise
  in youth violence.
• Are your classrooms overcrowded? Explore how
  student-teacher ratios can affect your schools
  quality of education.

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Finding more story ideas

• Stay in touch with national events and trends to
  find subjects for stories.
• Find a local angle to keep readers aware of what
  is happening in the world.
• Localize state or national stories by exploring
  how a large issue might affect your community.
• Look for subjects such as education, health, the
  environment or technology.

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More places to find stories

• Talk frequently with those in authority or those
  who are well-informed about the school or
  community.
• School employees and officials
• School programs (Bilingual classes, drug
  prevention and Natural Helpers)
• School budgets and financial records
• Compare athletic funds, compare spending in other
  districts, teacher salaries

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Some Examples

• The Little Hawk, devoted an entire front page to
  the nationwide debate over gun control.
  Interviews with local gun store owner and police
  officers. It also had a brief recap of federal
  legislations, including the Brady Bill.
• Often the stories are broken down into several
  different stories. One school wrote a series
  titled Family Ties, including stories on
  sibling rivalry, birth order and coping with
  divorce.

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From the story idea Sharpen the FOCUS

• Be flexible, your search for information may lead
  to a story you never expected to find.
• What do you want the story to explore?
• What main point do you want to convey?
• Focus on a small piece of a broad issue.
• Start small and work with a team

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Specialized Reporting Techniques

• In-depth reporters get close to their stories by
  immersing themselves in the lives of their
  subjects.
• Interview many people with varied points of view
  and observe them in their environments.
• The setting can reveal information about a
  persons life and character, as well as what role
  he or she plays in the issue youre
  investigating.

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In-depth Interviews

• Consistent and untiring efforts
• Ask the tough questions and expect an answer
• Seek out the truth
• Capture the details
• Be persistent
• Spend time with the right people in the right
  places.

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Characteristics of an In-Depth Story

• Run longer than a routine story
• Quality of writing
• Careful writing and organization
• Require an introduction, not just leads.
• Scenes, anecdotes, a first-person approach in the
  introduction
• Objective
• Emphasis on the why

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Questions???

• What is In-Depth Reporting? How is it different
  than a feature story?
• Brainstorm events going on at Keller for an
  in-depth story for your student readers. Select
  five that relate to Keller High School.
• Think of three large issues concerning the
  country right now. How can you make these stories
  into an in-depth story for Keller High School?
  Example The economy.

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More Questions???

• Come up with two lighter issues that would make a
  great in-depth story. Who would you interview?
  What would the angle be? Example What students
  drink in the morning? Which is better? Poll the
  students, talk to the nurse or nutrition teacher.
  
• Write an introduction for one of the story ideas
  you came up with. Use anecdotes, scenes or
  first-person approach.