Matthew Collins commented on "Auburn Montgomery students have mixed emotions on healthcare" (12 months ago)

For a first effort you've done a good job!

For your next article I would consider obtaining more specific quotes rather than general ones like in this paragraph, "Faculty and students in favor of the bill say it will help the country a “great deal” but others, however, feel it will only cause “more damage” to an already failing economy. " I look forward to reading your next article.

Sonja Eberly commented on "Auburn Montgomery students have mixed emotions on healthcare" (12 months ago)

Desiree,

It's great to see your first submission! Especially first starting out, reporting can be a bit intimidating, but you've made a good effort here, and the more you practice calling and interviewing people, writing concise ledes, and finding interesting angles, the more natural it feels.You might try picking up an assignment from the "assignment desk" section on UPIU, just for the extra practice.

Harumi makes some great suggestions above. If you follow some of the basic rules she listed, you'll be well on your way to becoming a great reporter. I look forward to seeing more of your work in the coming weeks!

Harumi Gondo commented on "Auburn Montgomery students have mixed emotions on healthcare" (12 months ago)

Hi Desiree:
a good effort for your Reporting 1 class. I had a few recommendations.
Your lede, or the opening graf (paragraph) of your story, is very important and you should quickly get to your point: no need to write an introductory graf; the most common lede tells the who, what, when, why and how of the story. Remember, people clicked on your story to read about Auburn students' thoughts on healthcare, not to read about the weather in Montgomery.
You don't need to cite your sources (MLA style, Chicago style, etc.) as you did in grafs 3 and 6; news writing is a bit different from academic writing when you need to cite the source of all your information. You do, however, need to cite your sources when you quote someone. For example, who are these people who think the bill will help the country a "great deal"?
Keep writing!