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Sample SyllabiMedia Writing Links
Discussion QuestionsExercises and AssignmentsOnline Media Writing ExamplesInstructor ResourcesWriting The Opening
 Writing Across the MediaCh1. Writing with Clarity and CoherenceCh2. Writing with ResponsibilityCh3. Writing for AudiencesCh4. Writing and Gathering InformationCh5. Writing the OpeningCh6. Writing Basic StoriesCh7. Writing with Visual and Audio ImagesCh8. Writing Complex Stories

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Online Writing Examples

LINK 1: www.gotmilk.org

The www.gotmilk.org page is sponsored by the California Milk Processor Board, a trade group that promotes milk consumption and is responsible for the "Got Milk?" advertising campaign.

Use the "Got Milk?" Web site to compare and contrast the effectiveness of advertising openings. Go to www.gotmilk.org, then click on the "get linked" icon to open it. At "get linked," you will find links to several food companies advertising milk-related products. Link to three of these companies and read the openings on their Web sites. Which openings catch your attention? Why? Which openings are the most effective for their audience and why?

Also, to connect the "Got Milk" opening to the audience issues discussed in Chapter 3: "Writing for Audiences," bring several "Got Milk?" magazine ads to class. Discuss which ads feature which celebrities. How are those celebrities appropriate for the audience of the magazines in which they appear? For example, where did the Bill Clinton/Bob Dole milk ad appear after the November 1996 election? Where did the "Party of Five" cast's milk ad appear?

LINK 2: www.ajr.org

Use the home page for American Journalism Review, a professional journalism magazine, to compare how online media sources deal with the same set of facts. Go to ajr.org and look at the links for the news services. Begin with the link for the U.S. Information Agency, which is the government office that provides news releases and transcripts of speeches by federal officials, agencies and departments. Select a transcript from a recent speech by the president or a high-ranking federal official. Then link to Voice of America, a broadcast service, and read the opening of the story about the speech.

Finally, check the links to the print news services from four countries — the United States (Associated Press), Britain (Reuters), France (Agence France Presse) and Canada (Canadian Press) — to see how the speech was covered. Compare and contrast the openings and stories from each news service. How do the openings written for print compare to the Voice of America broadcast opening? How do the print openings and stories compare to one another? What is similar about the openings? What is different? Why?

 
Sample SyllabiMedia Writing Links