The difference between hard news and soft news is that hard news is an important story that needs to be published immediately. On the other hand, soft news is an important story, yet it lacks the need to be published as quickly as a hard news story. A story that would be considered hard news is a hostage situation in progress or if a dangerous storm system is approaching an area. A soft news story would be something like, an increase of kids using facebook at school or a story about the upcoming Chatham Homecoming! I would definitely rather write a hard news story because it is actually important enough to effect people's decisions and it would be more exciting to be writing about an armed robbery than how much beer will cost at homecoming this year. When Surtee's says "hard" and "soft" lead, he is talking about the difference in a breaking news, urgent lead and a more indirect, feature centered lead. I would much rather read a soft lead because in hard news stories, the story is all facts and little literary expertise. Soft leads, when used in feature stories, I believe make for a much more enjoyable read.
Oh, Don Murray. What a wonderful author, and I just love that "little green book that never goes away"! So glad I ordered it early so I could have some light reading before I go to sleep!
The only tip I didn't really understand from Surtee's article was his "reveal" tip. A good writer should be able to just describe what they see and paint a picture in the reader's mind. Writers shouldn't have to be so literal and step by step explain or "reveal" the point of the story.
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