Writing and Reporting the News

Writing and Reporting the News, Third Edition, is a comprehensive and accessible introductory text for journalism students. Jerry Lanson and Mitchell Stephens provide thorough instruction on writing and reporting, hundreds of examples of good and bad writing and extensive opportunities to apply their advice through practical exercises. Based on the authors' careers as journalists and journalism professors--and on the experience of dozens of other first-rate reporters--this unique textbook/workbook gives students a clear, logical introduction to the craft of journalism. The book is designed to accomplish three goals:

* to teach clear, concise and accurate writing
* to teach students how to find reliable information about newsworthy events and issues and how to set this information within an understandable and meaningful context
* to explain the workings of print, online and broadcast newsrooms and how the gathering and delivery of news are changing in today's increasingly digital and cross-media age

Discussions and examples have been updated throughout for this new edition. A new section covers writing for the Internet, the authors have added boxed sections in which reporters offer tips on how to cover specific types of stories and beats, and the Instructor's Manual to accompany the book is now available on the companion website.

Jerry Lanson is Associate Professor in the Department of Journalism at Emerson College and served as its first chair. A former editor at the San Jose Mercury and an experienced writing coach, he is the coauthor of News in a New Century: Reporting in an Age of Converging Media (1999).

Mitchell Stephens is Professor in the Department of Journalism at New York University. He is the author of A History of News (OUP, 2007), the rise of the image the fall of the word (OUP, 1998), and Broadcast News (2004).