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CONTRIBUTING TO THE ILLINOIS APContributions from
member radio and television stations and newspapers are very important to the
Illinois AP report. Members often provide the first word on news that quickly
carries around the state, around the nation and around the world. What are we looking
for? We DO NOT need a
complete story. Just let us know some of the basics -- what, where, when, etc.
On the big stories, we ll often have our own
reporters working the phones, putting new information on the wire that you can
use to supplement your newsgathering. Early word also allows
us to get our own reporters and photographers moving, if necessary. We're also interested
in other news, sports, farm news, business news or features that might be of
interest to listeners or viewers around the state. these
stories might be general interest news (a hot local issue, a non-breaking crime
story), a human-interest story, a story about a sports event or accomplishment,
or a quirky, kicker-type story that might become the talk of the watercooler around the state, or even around the nation. What information do we
need? Be sure you tell us
who, what, when, where, why and how. We need attribution.
Who told you the facts of the story? Include their name and their title.
Instead of ``police say, we d like to know whether it s the police chief, a
spokesman, an officer at the scene, etc. And we want to know their name. If you have a news
release or other information from which you gathered facts, please send that
along, too. It really helps. Please include phone
numbers for contacts you used when you reported the story. And please include
the URL of any Internet source you may have used. Transcribe your sound
bites. Taped quotes fill in the details on the air, but without transcriptions
of those quotes, we won t know what the newsmaker said. How do you get it to
us? Can I contribute
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