English for Media Journalism: Essential Vocabulary

"off the record"

Information shared by a source that cannot be published or attributed to that person by name.

"The minister spoke off the record about the budget leak, so the reporter could not quote him directly."

"background briefing"

A session where officials provide context to journalists but cannot be directly quoted or identified as the source.

"The White House held a background briefing to explain the decision without putting any official on record."

"on background"

Information that can be used in a story but only with vague attribution, such as "a senior official said."

"The diplomat spoke on background, allowing the reporter to write that a government source confirmed the talks."

"tip-off"

A piece of information given secretly to a journalist, often pointing to a story worth investigating.

"An anonymous tip-off led the investigative team to examine the company's offshore accounts."

"fact-checking"

The process of verifying that statements, statistics, and claims in a story are accurate before publication.

"The newspaper's fact-checking desk reviewed every figure in the investigation before it went to print."

"corroborate"

To confirm or support information obtained from one source by finding additional independent evidence.

"Editors required reporters to corroborate the whistleblower's claims with at least two independent sources."

"whistleblower"

A person who exposes wrongdoing within an organisation, often at personal risk, by informing journalists or authorities.

"The whistleblower provided internal emails that proved the company had known about the safety flaw for years."

"on the record"

A statement that can be reported and attributed directly to the named source in a published story.

"The mayor agreed to speak on the record, allowing the newspaper to quote her by name and title."

"inverted pyramid"

A story structure where the most important information comes first, followed by supporting details in descending order of importance.

"The editor reminded the intern to use the inverted pyramid so readers could stop reading at any point and still understand the key facts."

"lede"

The opening sentence or paragraph of a news article, designed to hook the reader and summarise the story's most essential point.

"Her lede captured the tension immediately: the factory had been burning for six hours before the fire brigade arrived."

"nut graf"

A paragraph, usually near the top of a feature article, that explains why the story matters and what broader point it makes.

"After the gripping anecdote about the evicted family, the nut graf connected their experience to the city-wide housing crisis."

"kicker"

A short, punchy sentence placed at the end of an article to leave the reader with a memorable thought or a surprising twist.

"The kicker revealed that the CEO who ordered the layoffs had received a $10 million bonus the same week."

"dateline"

A line at the beginning of a news story indicating the city or location from which the report was filed.

"The story carried a Kyiv dateline, signalling that the correspondent was reporting from the conflict zone."

"sidebar"

A short supplementary article placed beside the main story, providing additional context, statistics, or a related angle.

"The investigative piece ran with a sidebar listing the names of all officials who had refused to comment."

"evergreen content"

Stories or features that remain relevant and can be published at any time, not tied to breaking news.

"The features editor kept a bank of evergreen content to fill pages during quiet news periods."

"on-the-nose writing"

Dialogue or description that states the obvious too directly, removing subtext and reducing impact.

"The writing coach told the trainee to cut the on-the-nose explanation and let the quotes speak for themselves."

"editorial line"

A publication's consistent position or viewpoint on key issues, reflecting the outlet's values and priorities.

"The paper's editorial line had always favoured free-market policies, which influenced how its reporters framed economic stories."

"copy editing"

The process of reviewing a manuscript for grammar, spelling, style, and factual accuracy before publication.

"After the reporter submitted the story, it went through two rounds of copy editing before the editor signed it off."

"masthead"

The section of a publication listing the names and roles of senior editorial staff, or the publication's name as displayed at the top.

"She had worked her way up to see her name on the masthead as Deputy Editor after fifteen years at the paper."

"spike"

To kill or cancel a story that has been prepared but will not be published, often for legal, ethical, or editorial reasons.

"The editor decided to spike the exposé after lawyers warned that one key source had withdrawn consent."

"embargo"

An agreement between a source and a journalist that information will not be published until a specified date and time.

"The pharmaceutical company sent the study under embargo so journalists could prepare informed articles before the official announcement."

"op-ed"

A piece of opinion writing, not by staff editors, published opposite the editorial page, expressing a contributor's personal views.

"The former minister submitted an op-ed arguing that the government's housing policy was creating more problems than it solved."

"running story"

A developing news event that is covered continuously over time as new information emerges.

"The election became a running story for three months, with the paper publishing daily updates as new results came in."

"hold for release"

An instruction that a completed story should not be published until a specified time or event occurs.

"The foreign desk marked the article hold for release until the embassy had formally confirmed the diplomat's expulsion."

"stand-up"

A short segment in a broadcast news report where the journalist speaks directly to camera, typically filmed at the scene of a story.

"The correspondent recorded her stand-up outside the parliament building to show viewers she was reporting live from the scene."

"chyron"

The text graphic that appears at the bottom of a television screen during news broadcasts, identifying speakers or summarising events.

"The producer updated the chyron to read 'Breaking: Prime Minister Resigns' the moment the announcement was confirmed."

"package"

A pre-recorded, self-contained broadcast news report combining narration, interviews, and footage, ready to air.

"The reporter spent the afternoon editing her package so it would be ready for the six o'clock bulletin."

"live shot"

A segment in a broadcast where a journalist reports in real time from a location, connected to the studio by a live feed.

"Heavy rain disrupted the live shot when the satellite connection dropped mid-sentence during the evening news."

"SEO headline"

A headline written to maximise search engine visibility by including keywords readers are likely to search for.

"The digital editor rewrote the print headline as an SEO headline, adding the subject's full name and the word 'charged' to improve search rankings."

"native advertising"

Paid content designed to match the look and feel of editorial content, often labelled as sponsored to distinguish it from news.

"The publisher launched a native advertising programme, but critics questioned whether readers could tell it apart from real journalism."

"engagement rate"

A metric measuring how much an audience interacts with content through likes, shares, comments, and clicks, relative to total reach.

"The editor was surprised to see the long-form investigation achieve a higher engagement rate than any of the quick news items posted that week."

"paywall"

A system restricting online access to content, requiring readers to subscribe or pay before viewing articles beyond a set limit.

"The newspaper moved its premium investigative content behind a paywall to generate subscription revenue as print advertising declined."

"defamation"

A false statement of fact that damages a person's reputation; called libel when written and slander when spoken.

"The politician sued the tabloid for defamation, claiming the story falsely accused him of accepting bribes."

"public interest"

The principle that certain private information can legitimately be published if its disclosure benefits society or exposes wrongdoing.

"The editor argued that publishing the leaked documents was justified on public interest grounds because they revealed widespread tax fraud."

"right of reply"

The ethical obligation to contact the subject of a critical story and give them an opportunity to respond before publication.

"The newspaper's policy required reporters to offer a full right of reply to anyone named in a negative story at least 24 hours before publication."

"prior restraint"

Government action to prevent the publication of content before it is published, considered a serious threat to press freedom.

"The judge's injunction was condemned by press freedom groups as prior restraint on reporting about the ongoing criminal trial."

"shield law"

Legislation that protects journalists from being compelled to reveal the identity of confidential sources in court.

"The reporter refused to name her source and cited the state's shield law when prosecutors subpoenaed her notes."

"conflict of interest"

A situation where a journalist's personal or financial relationships could compromise their objectivity on a story.

"The reporter declared a conflict of interest and withdrew from covering the merger because his spouse worked for one of the companies involved."

"super injunction"

A court order that not only prevents publication of certain information but also prohibits reporting that the injunction itself exists.

"The celebrity obtained a super injunction, meaning newspapers could not reveal either the story or the fact that legal action had been taken."

"correction and retraction"

A published acknowledgement that a previously printed or broadcast statement was factually wrong, sometimes removing the original content entirely.

"The outlet issued a correction and retraction after discovering that the statistics it had cited came from a discredited study."

"FOIA request"

A formal request under Freedom of Information Act laws compelling government agencies to release public records.

"The reporter filed a FOIA request for the internal safety inspection reports that the agency had refused to release voluntarily."

"document dump"

The release of a large volume of documents at once, often on a Friday afternoon to minimise media coverage.

"Critics accused the ministry of a deliberate document dump, burying the damaging audit in thousands of pages of unrelated files."

"data scraping"

Automated collection of publicly accessible data from websites or databases for analysis and journalistic investigation.

"The team used data scraping to collect ten years of planning permission records and identify patterns in council decisions."

"cross-referencing"

Comparing information from multiple independent datasets or sources to find connections, contradictions, or confirm accuracy.

"By cross-referencing the leaked payroll database with company filings, the reporters discovered hundreds of ghost employees."

"paper trail"

A sequence of documents, records, or receipts that provide evidence of a chain of transactions or decisions.

"Despite denials, a clear paper trail of emails showed that executives were aware of the contamination two years before it became public."

"deep throat"

A highly placed anonymous source who provides crucial information to journalists, often about corruption or abuse of power.

"Decades later, the identity of their deep throat was finally confirmed as a senior official within the intelligence services."

"structured data"

Information organised in a standardised format — such as spreadsheets or databases — that can be analysed computationally.

"The data team converted the scanned PDFs into structured data so they could map the company's donations against policy decisions."

"accountability journalism"

A form of reporting focused on holding public figures, institutions, and corporations responsible for their actions and decisions.

"The Pulitzer-winning series was praised as accountability journalism that led directly to reforms in the city's police oversight process."