Task 4: Writing City, State and National Leads.
Date: 2015-10-07; view: 305.
Your editor-in-chief has asked you to write a lead for any of these stories, choose the story and write a suitable lead. While writing, correct errors if necessary. Imagine that the first set of stories (A) involves events in the city; the second set (B) involves events in the state; and the third set (C) involves events in the nation. Take into consideration your audience. Think how you are going to represent the key discourse categories in the text of the story.
A) CITY BEAT
1. The restaurant is located at 480 Parkside Dr. and specializes in Chinese cuisine. It is owned by Fred Lee, who also does all the cooking. City health inspectors suspended its license late yesterday. They complained of poor food handling and storage. “The condition of the licensed premises was so serious that it was condemned as posing an immediate threat to public health,” the city's emergency license suspension order states. Chester Garland, a city health inspector, said the city suspends licenses only when there are serious violations. “It has to be something that is a major problem,” Garland said. “We don't just do it on minor stuff.” Garland added that the restaurant has consistently failed to comply with city health codes. Violations cited yesterday by city inspectors include rodent and roach infestations. The inspectors found rodent droppings strewn about storage areas and on canned goods. Garlands report adds: “A mouse was seen running across the dining room. A live mouse was spotted in the pantry. Another mouse jumped on an inspector. Toxic materials were stored in food-preparation and dish-washing areas. Food was found improperly stored in a janitor's closet as well as in uncovered containers and in locations less than 6 inches off the floor.”
2. Marlene Holland is a junior at Colonial High School. She was enrolled in a biology class there last term and objected when, as part of her class assignments, she was asked to dissect worms, frogs, and a fetal pig. She said the assignments violated her religious beliefs. The teacher then gave her a grade of “F” on the assignments, and she flunked the course as a result. Her parents sued the school district, and the trial was supposed to begin at 8 a.m. next Monday. The lawsuit charged that the Board of Education violated her freedom of religion by giving her failing grades for refusing to participate in dissection experiments. There was a settlement today. “I learned that it's worth it, in the end, to act on your convictions,” the girl said when interviewed after the settlement. The board's attorney, Karen Bulnes, said the district decided to settle, giving her a passing grade based upon her other work, a grade of “B,” because Marlene would have proven in a trial that her refusal to cut up dead animals stemmed from sincere religious beliefs. The district also agreed to pay $12,500 in legal fees, which will go to the American Civil Liberties Union, which represented her. Marlene said her spiritual doctrine bars her from harming animals or cutting them up. They also keep her from wearing leather or wool, eating meat, or drinking milk. She also shuns makeup, which is often tested on animals.
B) State Beat
| 1. It was an interesting little idea proposed today by a state senator from your city: Neil Iacobi. Today Iacobi made a proposal that would affect most newspapers in your state, or at least those that publish editorials. Iacobi said he is drafting legislation that would require newspapermen to sign the editorials they write so people know the writers identity. “It's one of the most blatant attempts at press-bashing in recent memory,” responded Tony DiLorento, executive director of the State Press Association. Iacobi said he has already found 32 co-sponsors for his bill. Violations would be punishable as second-degree misdemeanors. “It doesn't say you can't write something-only that you have to sign what you write,” Iacobi said. “Editorialists should be accountable to their readers. They can attack you and tear you apart and do anything to you, and no one even knows who they are. That's not right or fair. Only cowards would do something like that.” | 2. Last spring, Rachel Young was named the states “Outstanding Teacher.” She is a high school economics teacher. She was invited to give a speech today at the annual convention of the National Education Assn. in the state capital. The main thrust of her speech was to criticize the fact that many high school students hold part-time jobs. She called minimum wage jobs “the silent killers of quality education,” and explained that too many teens jeopardize their futures by working part time in high school. She continued in her speech: “Flipping burgers and running a cash register teach youngsters next to nothing and leave them scant time to study, keep up on current events, or participate in extracurricular activities. If you look at these students, few have to work to help support their families, put food on the table, or save up for college. Instead, most working teens are middle class students who labor to buy themselves flashy cars, pay car insurance premiums or clothe themselves in the latest fashions. They are trapped in seeking material goods, and they come to school truly tired, truly burned out. They're sacrificing their future earnings and career satisfaction because these jobs compromise their ability to make the most of their high school years.” |
C) National Beat
1. The Census Bureau issued a report today concerning the problem of illiteracy. The Census Bureau set out to determine how many people currently living in the United States are literate or illiterate in the English language. It administered literacy tests to 3,400 adults in the United States. It found the illiteracy rate for adult Americans whose native language is English is 9%. For adults whose native language is not English, the illiteracy rate climbed to 48%. A large portion of those people are, by their own account, probably literate in their native language, according to the study. Of the native English speakers who failed the test, 70% had not finished high school. The test has a sampling error of 1 to 2 percentage points.
2. The nations homebuilders are concerned about a problem that affects young adults – but also the entire nation (and its economy as well). The problem is affordable housing. At its annual convention, currently being held in Las Vegas, Nevada, the National Homebuilders Association revealed that a survey it commissioned shows a drop in homeownership rates over the last 10 years among young families – and a rapidly dwindling stock of low-cost rental housing. The associations' members expect the problems to continue. The homeownership rate among families in the 25-to-34 age group has fallen to 45%, largely because they don't have the cash for a down payment or the income to qualify for a loan. At the same time, rents are at record high rates in much of the country, making it harder for young families to accumulate the money needed for a down payment. Wayne Doyle, the association's President, offered no concrete solutions to the problem, which has sent the homebuilding industry into the doldrums, with fewer sales and higher unemployment rates. “Young families face a difficult situation,” Doyle concluded. “They must accumulate enough savings to make a down payment but they are finding it harder to obtain good jobs, and also find that more and more of their money is going for rent, so it's harder to save anything for a house.” By comparison, the homeownership rate for 65-to-74 year olds is 78.2%.
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