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Expert Commentary

(Shorenstein Center)

Basic principles of writing a story lead

by Leighton Walter Kille | April 28, 2009

A lead (also known as a lede) is the first paragraph or several paragraphs of a story, be it a blog entry or a long article. Its mission is to catch readers’ attention and draw them in.

Expert Commentary

Code of ethics of the Society of Professional Journalists

by Leighton Walter Kille | March 30, 2009

A good place to learn about journalists’ rights and responsibilities is the code of ethics of the Society of Professional Journalists, which is widely used in newsrooms and classrooms as a guide for ethical behavior.

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  • Know Your ResearchTip sheets and explainers to help journalists understand academic research methods, find and recognize high-quality research, investigate scientific misconduct and research errors, and avoid missteps when reporting on new studies and public opinion polls

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Editors’ Picks

Researchers rush to preserve federal health databases before they disappear from government websites
Health, Media, Politics & Government, Race & Gender

Researchers rush to preserve federal health databases before they disappear from government websites

January 31, 2025

We include several tips that journalists can use to help preserve the data.

Covering Trump’s proposed tariffs? Here are 4 things you need to know
Economics, Politics & Government

Covering Trump’s proposed tariffs? Here are 4 things you need to know

January 28, 2025

The Journalist’s Resource and Econofact recently hosted a webinar featuring two trade economists and an NPR producer whose reporting teams have covered tariffs. Watch the recording and read key takeaways.

The future of the US Department of Education: 8 tips for journalists covering the agency under Trump’s second term
Education, Politics & Government

The future of the US Department of Education: 8 tips for journalists covering the agency under Trump’s second term

January 23, 2025

These tips will help you interrogate President Trump’s proposal to close the U.S. Department of Education, provide historical context and evaluate the agency’s effectiveness.

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A project of Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center, The Journalist’s Resource curates, summarizes and contextualizes high-quality research on newsy public policy topics. We are supported by generous grants from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The National Institute for Health Care Management (NIHCM) Foundation, Lumina Foundation, and individual contributors.

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