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Writing and reporting advice from 4 of The Washington Post’s best

Roy Peter Clark — Mon, 20 May 2013 18:21:53 +0000

Last Saturday I had the honor of teaching at a public writing conference at The Washington Post. After I finished my part of the program, I spent the day listening carefully to four of the Post’s most accomplished writers … Read more

What writers see in life, language and literature

Roy Peter Clark — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:20:07 +0000

At the end of this essay, I will be asking for your help in writing a proposal for a new book: “What Writers See: In Life, Language, and Literature.”

What do I mean when I ask the question “What do … Read more

How some narratives can benefit from more translucence, less transparency

Roy Peter Clark — Wed, 08 May 2013 13:35:36 +0000

Transparency, transparency, transparency. Say it loud and there’s music playing. Say it soft and it’s almost like praying.

Transparency is the new pillar of responsible practice, inside and outside of journalism — including at Poynter. When it comes to reporting … Read more

How to include narrative elements in a hard news story

Mallary Jean Tenore — Thu, 02 May 2013 10:28:55 +0000

During this week’s writing chat, we talked with Boston Globe reporter Eric Moskowitz about his story that describes the experience of a young man who was carjacked by the Boston bombing suspects.

Poynter’s Roy Peter Clark praised Moskowitz earlier this … Read more

Boston Globe reporter shows how news writing can unfold ‘like a story in a book’

Roy Peter Clark — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:51:30 +0000

A story from the Boston Globe has been getting a lot of buzz, and rightly so. It was written by Eric Moskowitz, and describes the harrowing experience of a young Chinese man carjacked by the two Boston Marathon bombers. … Read more

From ancient Greece to modern Boston, how stories help us survive

Roy Peter Clark — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:46:40 +0000

The events of recent days — from the bombing of the Boston marathon to the explosion of the fertilizer plant in Texas — should remind us of the power of stories. In a daily sense and over the course of … Read more

Vague descriptions in Boston bombings hurt more than they help

Roy Peter Clark — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 20:00:49 +0000

My colleague Al Tompkins reminds journalists to remember the case of Richard Jewell as they cover the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings. Jewell was the security guard wrongly accused of the bombing at the 1996 Olympic games in Atlanta.… Read more

Why Roger Ebert was a good writer

Roy Peter Clark — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:50:09 +0000

Before I tackle what made Roger Ebert a good writer, I’d like to tell a story about why he was a good colleague and good person. It was 1978 and I was spending the year as a substitute film writer … Read more

AP dumps ‘illegal immigrant’ but not neutrality

Roy Peter Clark — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 14:08:22 +0000

All big political wars are fought more often with words than with weapons.

Your “terrorist,” so the saying goes, is my “freedom fighter.”

Your “illegal alien” may be my “undocumented worker.”

: Immigration activists demonstrated in Miami in January. (AP Photo/Alan

Why we should stop criminalizing practices that are confused with plagiarism

Roy Peter Clark — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 12:26:49 +0000

Editor’s note: This essay represents the personal and professional opinions of Roy Peter Clark and should not be used to characterize the opinions of Poynter or the standards and practices of Poynter.org.

It is time to decriminalize certain practices now … Read more