Writing Tools

Contributors: Ellyn Angelotti and Mallary Tenore

Here are our lists of finalists for the Wonders of the Journalism World. Our original plan was to have seven wonders in each of seven categories but, like most journalists, we were not slaves to the numbers. We wound up with five viable categories: story forms and shapes, institutions/organizations, technologies, documents and people. And, to be provocative, we have listed them in order of importance or influence. To whet your appetite, here are our top choices in each category:

Story forms and shapes: The Inverted Pyramid
Institutions/Organizations: The New York Times
Technologies: The QWERTY keyboard
Documents: The First Amendment
People: Edward R. Murrow

Some of our preferences are predictable (The Pulitzer Prizes), others whimsical (The Playboy interview).

So far, I have used the royal "we" and "our" to hide the identity of the jury. So in this age of transparency, I'll admit that "royal" is really "Roy," and the "we" is "me." These lists enumerate my preferences, not Poynter's, although I did work from the recommendations of Poynter faculty and staff.

My partners in this project are two youthful brainiacs, Ellyn Angelotti and Mallary Tenore. We cooked up the idea for these wonders at Pizza Hut. They will share with you their own opinions on what they have learned along the way.

From Ellyn and Mallary:
Young journalists can learn a lot about the scope and history of the journalism industry through the Wonders of the Journalism World. We were well aware of some of the more obvious choices, like the inverted pyramid or nut graf, but we only knew about some of the other finalists superficially, if at all. Working with Roy to develop this list has helped illuminate aspects of journalism history that have led us to understand more clearly how journalism has become the industry it is today.

Also, the inclusion of the younger journalists' perspective has also contributed to the comprehensiveness of the list. We shared insight about the impact Google and Facebook have had on recent journalism and its future development. 

This project has bridged the gap between past achievements and present technologies and, more importantly, it has helped create a collaborative dialogue between users and authors. When we first launched the Seven Wonders project last fall, dozens of users made their nominations, which ended up on a Wiki. We've taken those suggestions and used them to massage out a list of our finalists for the Wonders of the Journalism World.

Now it's your turn: What does not belong on these lists? What is missing? What is out of order? Below you will find links to each of the five categories.

We hope you will add your feedback/suggestions in the comments section of each post: Story forms and shapes, institutions/organizations, technologies, documents, people.