Top-down Writing or the so Called Inverted Pyramid

 

 

 Why is it that some articles grab our attention immediately after reading the first paragraph, while others remain tedious until the very end?  Yes, journalism writing techniques exist for centuries. Without any doubt the most commonly used text-structure technique in news journalism and on the web is the so called “inverted pyramid”. According to many historians the inverted pyramid was invented by 19th century wartime reporters, who disseminated their stories by telegraph. They aimed at transmitting the most significant information first, just in case the transmission was interrupted.

  This top-down structure leads the majority of news reporting both in print media, as well as, on the web simply because it enables the reader to leave the story at any point and understand it, even without the details. The “base” of the inverted pyramid consists of the most important facts which appear at the top of the story, in the introduction paragraph. Less essential information appears in the paragraphs below, or “nut” graphs which are arranged in order of importance.

  By essential information we generally mean the “Five Ws” of journalism: What, When, Where, Who and Why (also How). An effective introduction paragraph communicates, the essential facts of who did what, where, when, why and how exactly. The paragraphs that follow contain supporting facts, key quotes, additional information, background and alternative explanations and least important information.

  Unfortunately like almost every other theory, the inverted pyramid also received some criticism from numerous media scholars. They critique it for being artless and not right for every news story. Moreover, editors claim that it leads to a decline in newspaper and magazine readership by presenting the ending first.

  According to me, turning the traditional pyramid writing style around is the key to grabbing your audience’s attention and ensuring that they are informed enough at any point or reading. Obviously, despite of all the critics, the inverted pyramid remains one of the most widely used approaches to mass media news writing.