A news flash is a piece of breaking news that interrupts radio or television broadcasts and provides quick updates on current events. It can be local, national or international and is an excellent way to keep audiences informed on topics that affect them. Newsflashes usually last between one and three minutes and don’t offer any developed stories, but they can provide practical information (traffic, weather, a summary of a decree) and even highlight something funny or humorous (a kicker).
A good newsflash will begin with an attention-grabbing headline that accurately and enticingly reflects the main subject of the article. The lead, also known as the flash, should be powerful and use a narrative hook or anecdote that encapsulates the topic and entices readers to keep reading. It should also cite its sources and include any additional details that are important to the story. It’s a great idea to follow the lead with a nut graph that adds context and ties the facts you have introduced into a bigger picture to help explain why the story matters.
To practice writing a news flash, divide the class into two teams. Give each team six newspaper headlines, black out one word in each and see if they can tell what the story is about from only the title and a short sentence of text. The team that guesses the correct news item correctly wins. This is a fun exercise that can be used to promote lexical variation and the use of complex sentences.
About the Author
