The inverted pyramid is a metaphor used by journalists and other writers to

illustrate the placing of the most important information first within a text. It is the most
widely preferred method in writing news stories.[citation needed]

The "inverted" or upside-down "pyramid" can be thought of as a simple triangle

with one side drawn horizontally at the top and the body pointing down. The widest part
at the top represents the most substantial, interesting, and important information the
writer means to convey, illustrating that this kind of material should head the article,
while the tapering lower portion illustrates that other material should follow in order of
diminishing importance. It is sometimes called a "summary news lead" style.[1]

The format is valued because readers can leave the story at any point and
understand it, even if they don't have all the details. It also allows less important
information at the end to be more easily removed by editors so the article can fit a fixed
size.

Other styles are also used in news writing, including the "anecdotal lead," which
begins the story with an eye-catching tale or anecdote rather than the central facts; and
the Q&A, or question-and-answer format.

Journalists usually describe the organization or structure of a news story as

an inverted pyramid. The journalist puts the essential and most interesting
elements of his or her story at the beginning, with supporting information
following in order of diminishing importance.

This structure enables readers to stop reading at any point and still come
away with the essence of a story. It allows people to explore a topic to only
the depth that their curiosity takes them, and without the imposition of details
or nuances that they could consider irrelevant, but still making that
information available to more interested readers.

The inverted pyramid structure also enables articles to be trimmed to any

arbitrary length during layout, to fit in the space available.
The inverted pyramid style of writing. It will help you to get your message across faster.

The inverted pyramid principle says you should put your most important point at the top
of the article, followed by your next most important point, and so on, in diminishing
order of importance.

Yellow journalism is a type of journalism that downplays legitimate news in favor of

eye-catching headlines that sell more newspapers. It may feature exaggerations of news
events, scandal-mongering, sensationalism, or unprofessional practices by news media
organizations or journalists. Campbell (2001) defines Yellow Press newspapers as
having daily multi-column front-page headlines covering a variety of topics, such as
sports and scandal, using bold layouts (with large illustrations and perhaps color), heavy
reliance on unnamed sources, and unabashed self-promotion. The term was extensively
used to describe certain major New York City newspapers about 1900 as they battled
for circulation. By extension the term is used today as a pejorative to decry any
journalism that treats news in an unprofessional or unethical fashion, such as systematic
political bias. Yellow journalism can also be the practice of over-dramatizing events.

Frank Luther Mott (1941) defines yellow journalism in terms of five characteristics:[1]

1. scare headlines in huge print, often of minor news

2. lavish use of pictures, or imaginary drawings
3. use of faked interviews, misleading headlines, pseudo-science, and a parade of
false learning from so-called experts
4. emphasis on full-color Sunday supplements, usually with comic strips (which is
now normal in the U.S.)
5. dramatic sympathy with the "underdog" against the system.

Present day (successful) exponents of the yellow journalistic style would include the
British red top tabloids, notably The Sun, the Dutch daily newspaper "De Telegraaf",
and the German Springer owned Bild.
Yellow journalism, in short, is biased opinion masquerading as objective fact.
Moreover, the practice of yellow journalism involved sensationalism, distorted
stories, and misleading images for the sole purpose of boosting newspaper
sales and exciting public opinion. It was particularly indicative of two papers
founded and popularized in the late 19th century- The New York World, run by
Joseph Pulitzer and The New York Journal, run by William Randolph Hearst.

The term was derived, through a series of peculiar circumstances, from a

cartoon by the famous 19th century cartoonist, Robert Outcault called "The
Yellow Kid" (see second from top). The cartoon was first published in The
World, until Hearst hired him away to produce the strip in his newspaper.
Pulitzer then hired another artist to produce the same strip in his newspaper.
This comic strip happened to use a new special, non-smear yellow ink, and
because of the significance of the comic strip, the term "yellow journalism" was
coined by critics.

What is the remedy to yellow journalism? Simply double- and triple-checking

one's sources and reading between the lines. If one disregards the obvious
marketing that is used to hook readers, newspapers may actually prove to be
reliable sources of information.

One of the more disturbing features involved with the former practice of yellow
journalism, and the period in which it was most active in is that there is no
definite line between this period of yellow journalism and the period afterwards.
There only exists evidence that such practices were frowned upon by the
general public - by 1910, circulation had dropped off very rapidly for such
papers. But regardless, does this mean that yellow journalism simply faded
away, never to return? Or did it absorb itself into the very heart of our
newspapers, where it will remain forever? One thing is for certain - after the late
1800s, newspapers changed drastically, and still show no sign of changing
back. The modernly present newspaper appearances of catchy headlines,
humorous comic strips, special interest sections, intrusive investigative
reporting, et cetera serve as a constant reminder that one must always stay
skeptical when examining our news sources.

Journalism that exploits, distorts, or exaggerates the news to create sensations and attract readers.

• Who? Who was involved?

• What? What happened (what's the story)?
• When? When did it take place?
• Where? Where did it take place?
• Why? Why did it happen?
• How? How did it happen?