Assignment Paper

Paper details
What is it?
For this assignment, we will look at how to use new releases (also called “press releases”) as the basis of
an article. News releases are excellent resources for journalists as they bring the lead for a story to you.
However, you must be careful not to let the news release dictate your story as the author of the release
may have an agenda that does not match yours as a journalist. Chapter six in NR&W provides a thorough
breakdown of what you will be doing with this article.
Where can I find news releases?
There are three main sources for local news releases. The first is the News and Events pageLinks to an
external site. on the Wilson College website. The second is the Events Calendar (Links to an external site.)
on the Greater Chambersburg Chamber of Commerce website. While many of the entries are not
necessarily formal new releases, I will count them as ones for this assignment. The third would be the
Franklin Country website’s Press Release page (Links to an external site.). Some of these stories may
require travel on your part, but they will also be “meatier” (for those of you looking to hone your journalistic
chops). You can consider using the Franklin Country website’s Calendar page (Links to an external site.)
for leads as well.
lly, a news release provides a contact for reporters. I would like you to at least interview this person.
However, as with your interview, you should probably need to interview more people to get a full
perspective of the issue.
How long should it be?
I would like your interview to be 500-750 words long. Since many editors ask for precise word counts,
stories under or over this range will be docked.
What paper format should I use?
This will be in AP format. You will also want to pay particularly close attention to the grammatical
conventions around quoting. News Reporting and Writing chapter 4 has a good breakdown of these.
When is It due?
Your final draft will be due to me, electronically via Canvass, on Friday, March 5.
What is it worth?
This assignment will be worth 10% of your final grade.
https://www.wilson.edu/news-and-events
https://franklincountypa.gov/index.php?section=public_news
https://business.chambersburg.org/events/calendar?_ga=2.268968691.384401326.1550446762-
1682935359.1550446762
These 3 links are the preferred sources for the article written from a news release
The textbook that the professor refers to is News Reporting and Writing 12th Edition. ISBN #978-1-319-
03481-8