the
news story has two parts, the
lead which quickly tells what has happened, and the
body which documents the
lead. The oldest
form and the most widely used is the inverted
pyramid. In this
form the facts are presented in the top, which takes the head and attracts
attention. After that the paragraphs are arranged in diminishing
order of
news importance. Frequently the story will be chopped off starting at the bottom, according to
space and the editor.
(BPL 10 Jan 73R)