Week of October 4: Rick Bragg, Possum Trot and Finding the Extraordinary in the Ordinary

This week, please read Rick Bragg's "Somebody Told Me." I'll lecture on Bragg and his work on Tuesday.

For Thursday, please come to class with the following:

* The name and contact information for someone you'd like to do a short profile piece on. The person should be newsworthy (per all our discussions about what makes news). The person should not be related to you or be a close friend. Please be aware of your own biases. Remember objective method.

* The name and contact information of at least one (more is preferred) secondary source you can use for the story. This person/these persons should have insider knowledge of your story subject. Try to go for both expected and unexpected sources. Again, this person/these persons should not be directly connected to you in any way.

* A rationale for why your subject is newsworthy now. (A few sentences addressing the 5Ws/1H; what this person is involved in now that's newsworthy; what makes this person interesting/extraordinary; etc.)

* A rationale for how you'll do the interview and where/why.

Once your subject is approved, you'll write a short profile piece. Your piece will be due in class on Thursday, Oct. 14. Bring an e-copy of your piece and your interview notes to class. You'll work with one of your classmates and with me to polish your story for The Insider.

Your story should be structured something like this:

First paragraph: Lead (you can be more creative/follow Bragg's style/color)
Second paragraph: Follow-up information for lead
Third paragraph: Quote from primary source
Fourth paragraph: Weave (we'll discuss in class -- background info)
Fifth paragraph: Quote from primary source
Sixth paragraph: Weave and introduction of secondary source
Seventh paragraph: Quote from secondary source
Eighth paragraph: Weave
Ninth paragraph: Final quote from source

Approximately 500 words. AP Style. Grammar counts. Accuracy counts.