Sunday, October 21, 2007

Story Ideas

Story Idea #1

1) Slug: Just Knock It Down

2) Section of newspaper story would appear (no Op-Ed):

FEATURES

3) What are the most dominant news elements in the story? Explain in-depth:
#1-Proximity, because it is happening in Edina, in our neighborhoods. It is a problem that is affecting the community. It doesn’t happen as often in other places, because Edina is a wealthy community with not a lot of land space for building new houses.
#2-Conflict, because it is making a lot of neighbors angry. It is something that is very controversial at this time and people should be aware of the topic.
#3-Other(emotion), because I know people who have grown up in a house all their life and when they go back to show their kids what it looked like, it is not even there, rather they find a castle where their childhood haven used to stand.

4) In a few sentences, describe what the story will be about: The story will be about how in Edina, people are purchasing regular sized houses and then knocking them down and building castles in their place. These houses do not fit in with the neighborhood. It will present the sides of the people living in the castle as well as the people living in the now “shoe-box” next to the castle.


5) Specifically, who will you interview or contact? Why those people?
Mary Torsch, her family built a large home in a smaller-homed neighborhood.
Molly Forbes or Jessica Bok, because they live in regular sized homes nearby this large home.
The City of Edina, to find out the rules on knocking down homes and rebuilding them.

6) What information do you need to gather before you begin interviews?
I need to find out more background information and regulations.


7) What questions do you definitely need answered in your interviews? Why?
I need to see why people knock houses down and build new ones. How the people around these new houses feel about it? Was it a major inconvenience when the house was being built? I need to find out what the city is going to do about the problem. Answering all these questions in a story, will give the reader a more complete view of the situation.

8) What photo opportunities are available to go alongside this story (give names, places, times, etc.)? I will take a picture of a large house that sticks out from the neighboring houses. An example is of Torsches house across from lake cornelia. I will do it during the day, so that it can be visible.

9) Who should a photographer contact to set up photographs?
The people whose home they will be taking pictures of.

10) What concerns or problems do you foresee in getting this story together?
It will be hard to interview the people, because I won’t want to seem rude like I am insulting their decision to knock a house down by writing a story about it.


Story Idea #2

1) Slug: Finally Open

2) Section of newspaper story would appear (no Op-Ed):

NEWS

3) What are the most dominant news elements in the story? Explain in-depth:
#1- Timeliness, because the bathrooms by our journalism room have just been opened.
#2- Proximity, because they are in our school and having them open will be much more convenient for a lot of the students.
#3- Conflict, because they were not opened until just recently.

4) In a few sentences, describe what the story will be about: This story will be about the good news that the bathrooms are finally opened. It will also investigate what took them so long to be open. It will then say what needs to be done, to keep them open.


5) Specifically, who will you interview or contact? Why those people?
- A student from the high school, because they will be able to explain what an inconvenience it has been since the bathrooms haven’t been open.
-A Janitor, because they will be able to explain what needs to be done to keep the bathrooms open.
-Dr. Lochlear, because he will be able to explain why these bathrooms have been closes for so long.

6) What information do you need to gather before you begin interviews?
I need to gather information on the budgeting of the school and investigate the other bathrooms that have been open all school year.

7) What questions do you definitely need answered in your interviews? Why?
Why haven’t the bathrooms been open? This is the question that students are dying to find out. And What can students do to make sure that the bathroom stays open? This question will help keep the bathrooms open.

8) What photo opportunities are available to go alongside this story (give names, places, times, etc.)? Taking a picture of the new bathrooms and how nice they are. This would best be done at the beginning of the day and also a picture of the old bathrooms for comparison.

9) Who should a photographer contact to set up photographs?
The school or the janitorial staff

10) What concerns or problems do you foresee in getting this story together?
Setting up interviews with the people will be a concern, because they all have very busy schedules.