It’s Time to Write the Story
By Shellie Branco
Facilitator David Donald
is a training director
for Investigative Reporters
and Editors.
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When the dust has settled and all your data have been gathered, it’s time to get down to business and write the story.
In the second part of his Western Knight Center seminar session on campaign finance, David Donald, a training director for Investigative Reporters and Editors, told a gathering of journalists that if assigned to a routine check of campaign filings, don’t go overboard with numbers, and keep it short.
When starting a story, Donald advised, think first about the minimum story promises you can make to an editor, then communicate to that editor. And be careful not to promise more than you can deliver.
“You can deliver a minimum story if the bigger one doesn’t pan out,” Donald said. “It’ll build your credibility in the newsroom.”
While many editors look for early conclusions, Donald suggested that reporters let their editors know that early in their investigation they are working on hunches. Reporters should be sure they have done enough reporting before pitching their story so that they don’t oversell the premise.
To sell the story to an editor, anticipate his or her responses and needs. Use buzzwords, if necessary, Donald said.
He noted some tips from longtime investigative reporter Paul Williams, author of “Investigative Reporting and Editing.” When conceiving an investigation, pound the pavement and visit areas where public spending is going on. Talk to the sources you’ve cultivated, look for angles after writing a onetime story and check the newspaper archives for leads.
Williams also advised reporters to make sure the investigation is feasible. Ask yourself if the proper resources are available, Donald said, and what the competition has that you don’t. Be aware of your skill level, consider your time frame and seek cooperation from fellow reporters.
“This is not the era of ‘Lone Ranger’ journalism,” Donald said. “You have to work together. Others have skill levels you don’t have.”
Plan your files and your schedule, research the paper and people trails, and do an outline and chronology of your story before you begin to write, he added.
But all this planning doesn’t end when the story is finally published. That’s when it’s time to think of the follow-up plan.
“You never really finish the story if you want to explain or dig,” Donald said.
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