Peer Editing Checklist for Hard News Stories

Editor’s Name: __________________________

Please read through your partner’s news story with an eagle eye. Here, circle “YES” or “NO.”  Make comments where needed to help the writer revise. You should also write on the draft.  You will receive a peer editor grade.

YES     NO      Does the headline contain a verb and subject and tell us what the story is about? WHAT IS THE ACTION AND SUBJECT?  ___________________________________________

YES     NO      Does the story begin with the news story lead that introduces the 5 Ws and 1 H?

YES     NO      Is the news lead organized from most important to least important?

YES     NO      Does the lead follow the promise from the headline?

COMMENTS: ___________________________________________________________________

YES     NO      Does the story go from most important to the least important? (Inverted Pyramid Format)

YES     NO      Does each paragraph develop a SPECIFIC detail?

YES     NO      Has the story maintained the focus promised in the headline/lead?

COMMENTS: ____________________________________________________________

YES     NO      Have direct quotes been used?

YES     NO      Have primary sources been quoted or paraphrased?

NAME THEM: ___________________________________________________

YES     NO      Have secondary sources been quoted or paraphrased?

                        NAME THEM: ______________________________________________________

YES     NO      Are there authority sources in the story?

NAME THEM: _______________________________________________________

YES     NO      Have people been named using their full names the first time mentioned, and then referred to only by last name in all the following references?

YES     NO      Has each quote been crafted correctly? Note the format:

Gokturk said, “I certainly hope so.” Or, “I certainly hope so,” Gokturk said.

NOTE COMMON ERRORS:  ______________________________________________________

YES     NO      Are the paragraphs no longer than 60 words? (1-3 sentences)

YES     NO      Is the whole story roughly 300-600 words?

YES     NO      Is the writing concise, omitting all padding (extra words)?

COMMENTS: ___________________________________________________________________

YES    NO      Is the story written objectively (no bias)?

YES    NO      Is the use of the personal pronoun eliminated? (No "I" or "we")

COMMENTS: ___________________________________________________________________

YES     NO      Is the spelling and punctuation correct?

YES     NO      Is the story written in the past tense (if it already happened)?

NOTE COMMON ERRORS: _______________________________________________________

To the Editor: Please return this sheet to the writer so that s/he may make revisions.

To the Writer: Please turn in this peer editor sheet after you have made your revisions so your peer gets credit!