Compose Article

How do I get started as a citizen reporter?

In order to keep track of your articles, page views, comments on your reports requires that you register with us. After you click here, you'll be asked for some basic information about yourself. Please fill out all the fields with your current information. After you've submitted your information, your application will be reviewed by a MyNews editor (this process could take up to 24 hours.)

After you've been approved as a citizen reporter, you'll be able to login to your Reporter's Desk from our main page, and submit stories from there.

When writing for MyNews.in what principles should we keep in mind?

Since the very start of MyNews back in October 2006, all citizen reporters have been required to abide by a strict Code of Ethics. They are as follows:

MyNews Reporter's Code of Ethics

1. The citizen reporter must work in the spirit that "all citizens are reporters," and plainly identify himself as a citizen reporter while covering stories.

2. The citizen reporter does not spread false information. He does not write articles based on groundless assumptions or predictions.

3. The citizen reporter does not use abusive, vulgar, or otherwise offensive language constituting a personal attack.

4. The citizen reporter does not damage the reputation of others by composing articles that infringe on personal privacy.

5. The citizen reporter uses legitimate methods to gather information, and clearly informs his sources of the intention to cover a story.

6. The citizen reporter does not use his position for unjust gain, or otherwise seek personal profit.

7. The citizen reporter does not exaggerate or distort facts on behalf of himself or any organization to which he belongs.

8. The citizen reporter apologizes fully and promptly for coverage that is wrong or otherwise inappropriate.

MyNews and Citizen Reporter's Agreement

1. I recognize the editorial authority of MyNews in-house editing staff.

2. I will share all information about each of my articles with the MyNews editing staff.

3. I will not produce name cards stating that I am a citizen reporter of MyNews .

4. When an article I submit has or will be simultaneously submitted in another medium, I will clearly state this fact to

the editorial staff.

5. I will accurately reveal the sources of all quotations of text.

6.Citizen reporters who work in the field of public relations or marketing will disclose this fact to their readers.

7. Legal responsibility for acts of plagiarism or unauthorized use of material lies entirely with the citizen reporter.

8.Legal responsibility for defamation in articles lies entirely with the citizen reporter.

The article disappeared

Articles that are selected as the top story on the main page or the various sections no longer show up on the “Select”

list. Articles on the “Select” list are shown in chronological order. If you think your article has disappeared, first check

to see if it has been placed on the main page or one of the sections.

Why is my article on the “Reject” list?

Because it hasn't been selected by the MyNews editorial staff. Reasons for not selecting articles for the main page may include

- When content is unclear because the article fails conform to news article style.

- When it is so poorly written it is fails to convey its meaning.

- When it fails to answer "when, where, who, what, how and why."

- When it's entirely one-sided or contains advertising content.

- When there are concerns of defamation.

- When the article plagiarizes other media reports.

- When there are concerns of copyright infringement.

In such cases, we may request additional work, depending on the content of the article.

How do I edit articles?

It is possible for members to edit articles uploaded on MyNews, even you can delete them

but only their approval and publication. When you move to the link "Compose Article" there is edit button. If you need

edit your article, press this button, article will open in a separate box, where you can edit it and submit again.

The headline of my article has changed.?

Articles that have been entered into MyNews undergo a complete editing

process, from basic editing for things like spelling errors and sentence structure to headlines. In this process, the

editorial staff may change the original headline. Headlines are changed in order to give readers a better idea of what

the article is about or when the headlines are either too short or too long.

I uploaded the photo, but I can't see it. Or it shows up too late.

If you can't see the photo, it means the file was saved incorrectly or the resolution is too high. Files must be saved as

JPGs or GIFs. Moreover, if the resolution is too high, the files are too large and they take a while to load. 72 DPI is a

reasonable resolution for the Internet.

Mynews.in image files come in three kinds. One is the original photo size, another is the size adjusted for the article,

and thumbnails for use in top stories. The photos seen in the articles are the adjusted ones. Photos may be

mistakenly uploaded in the wrong form.

Can't I use photos from another site if I mention the source?

Citizen reporters occasionally use photos taken from the Internet in their own articles. When you haven't gotten

permission from the copyright owner to do so, this can cause problems, even if you've named the source. Accordingly,

MyNews citizen reporters should strictly avoid doing this.

Issue of rights to one's portrait in the photographs.

Even when a photo is needed for the article, one must be careful with the faces of specific individuals. When you

show the faces of specific individuals, it can occasionally lead to defamation issues. Moreover, when you show the

face of an individual that is not particularly connected to the story, if could cause problems concerning likeness rights.

For example, when doing a piece on the homeless, it's best to take photos from the side or behind so that specific

faces aren't revealed. If you have permission to take the photographs, these precautions no longer apply.

Attaching Files

I want to upload a graph

Graphs constructed in word processors cannot be displayed on the Internet. Only graphs composed in editing

programs like Photoshop will show up after uploading.

I want to upload video and music files.

Attach them as files and inquire with the News Room. It's best to save video files in .asf format so they’ll work with Windows Media Player

Changing Your Profile

Please change my email address, cell phone number, etc.

If you'd like to change your profile, click on the “My account" button on the left sidebar of the main screen. You can

edit the information in the "Update Your Profile" menu at the top of the screen.

When your personal information changes from the time you joined MyNews you must edit your profile.

Because MyNews is based on an Internet medium, there are many times when we have to call reporters with urgent

questions related to stories. If the membership information is incorrect, fact checking could be slowed, and your hard-

written article's news value could slip.

Please include my introduction.

You can make your profile in your account. You can upload pics and details.

Various Other Issues

Can I run an article from another site, as long as I cite the source?

Like with photos, you cannot do this without prior permission from the person or body that owns the copyright of the article in question.

What about uploading in my own name an article written by another individual?

Occasionally, MyNews citizen reporters working for other media organizations take articles written by other writers

run by the company they work for and upload them onto MyNews in their own names. And sometimes, people take

good articles they find on the Internet and carelessly upload them under their own names. We operate according to a

"real name" principle, and formally adopts only articles written directly by member Citizen Reporters. If citizen reporters

commit any of the acts mentioned above, the offending article will be deleted and their credentials as a MyNews and

MeriKhabar journalist revoked due to plagiarism.

I want to delete the Readers' Comments.

You may ask MyNews editors to delete the Readers' Comments in the following cases:

-When they have nothing to do with the article;
-When they use vulgarity;
-When there is concern they may slander a particular individual.
When there are readers' comments that fall under the conditions listed above or send an email to editor@mynews.in.

Can I put a press release as an article?

A press release in itself cannot be made an article. Press releases are written and distributed by bodies or groups ahead of a particular event or incident, so they cannot be seen as 100 percent accurate information. For example, a citizen reporter who is an office worker cannot simply take a press release from a local government or central government body and turn it into an article. We encourage MyNews citizen reporters to write pieces that accord with their particular jobs, aptitudes, interests or areas of specialization.

Style Guide

MyNews (English) generally use British spellings, but one may use U.S. spellings in the personalized Sections of the portal:

Abbreviations
i. For companies, associations, organizations, etc., use the official name on first reference: United Nations High

Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
ii. On second reference, an abbreviation or acronym may be used if its meaning is clear to the reader.
iii. Use periods for U.K., U.N., U.S.
iv. Amnesty International, thereafter just Amnesty
v. Do not capitalize a.m. or p.m. Include the periods.

Capitalization
i. Avoid unnecessary capital letters.
ii. Generally, only capitalize formal titles of senior, high-profile individuals
1. President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam

Commas
i. Use a comma to separate a direct quotation from the sentence.
1. "This is a great newspaper," said reader John Smith.
2. Ram said, "I'm a MyNews reader."
ii. Avoid using a comma after 'and' unless the context makes it unclear.
1. There are pens, pencils and paper on the table.

Numbers
i. Spell out one-digit numbers and use figures for others.
1. Use figures for hours of day, ages, sums of money, street numbers, percents, dates, votes and scores.
ii. Never use d, rd, st, nd with dates.
iii. Never use "%" instead write "percent"
1. Feb. 14, not February 14th.
iii. Use figures for percentages, ages, distances.
iv. Spell out the number when it begins a sentence.
v. Figures only for those below one million:
1. 1,234; 12,345; 1, 23,456
vi. For larger figures than million
1. One million; 10 million, 100 million (NOT; 123,456,789)
2. Use billion for 1,000 million or over.

Time & Dates
i. a.m., p.m. Lowercase with periods between letters.
ii. When a time falls on the hour, omit the zeros. Follow it with a.m. or p.m. Time precedes day.
1. Wrong: The movie is at 8:00 p.m.
2. Right: The movie is at 8 p.m. Friday.
iii. Abbreviate the month (Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.) when the date is included. Use the commas. Dec. 25,

2001 or in January (no date)
iv. The 1980s; not 1980s, Nineteen-eighties

Ages
i. A 16-year-old boy
ii. The boy was 16 years old
iii. The lawyer is in her 50s
iv. The 30-year-old business
v. Amit Gupta, 33, was indicted

Currencies
Rs.31,000, $25,000; but spell out all others: five million euro; 56,000 pounds; 50,000 won; 79,000 yen
In the first reference to U.S. dollars, write US$25,000 [no periods] and for every other reference use only the dollar sign.
Provide the U.S. dollar equivalents to currencies for comparison.

Measurements
Metric system: five meters; 5-meter; 5-meter-long; 5 m

Paragraphs
i. Don't be afraid of short 1-2 sentence paragraphs.
ii. Each time the topic changes, you need a new paragraph.
iii. Quotes are generally new paragraphs.

Quotation Marks
i. Quote only the "golden" parts of what the person said. Paraphrase the rest.
1. "I shall prevail," exclaimed Bush.
2. Man Mohan was adamant that his prime ministership was secure.
ii. A quote should be in a new paragraph.
iii. Place the period and comma within the quotation marks.
1. "Rajeev Gandhi," she said, "was one of India’s youngest prime ministers." She went on to describe him as "diligent."
2. "It is important to vote," said President Kalam.
iv. Place end-of-sentence punctuation marks within the quotation marks when they apply only to the quoted matter. Place them outside when they do not.

1. Mulayam Singh asked, "Will you vote for me?"
2. What is the meaning of the term "objectivity"?
Use single quotation marks only for quotations within quotations: "When the president said 'This press conference is over,' everyone jumped up," explained the journalist.

Enclose in quotation marks the titles of books, musical compositions, movies and other titles.

MS Word vs. ASCII Quotation Marks, Dashes

Generally if you write your story in a word processor like MS Word, you'll need to save your file as plain text (.txt, not .doc), close the file, reopen the text file and then copy and paste into the Submit Story text field. For long dashes (em dashes) just use two short dashes: --

Headlines
i. Use only single quotation marks.
ii. Capitalize all words that are of four letters or longer. Minimize the use of, and do not capitalize the articles "a," "an" and "the." Do not capitalize conjunctions or prepositions, unless they are of four letters or longer.

Non-English Words, Accents

i. Generally italicized for words not already incorporated into English (don't italicize "sushi"). In this case you'll have to use HTML code: Schadenfreude.

ii. HTML has a robust character set for accented characters, but you'll have to input them manually. A good list is available by inputting "html character set" into a search engine. You can also refer to www.tedmontgomery.com/tutorial/HTMLchrc.html

HTML

Basic HTML code can be included in your copy for sub-heads and the names of media companies:
(bold): Introduction
(italics): According to The New York Times
Media company names are italicized; movies, books and song titles are in double quotes. There is no need to include paragraph breaks ().
6) Common Style Questions
A. United States: You can use "U.S." as a noun
B. Web site: not website
D. Internet: not internet
E. Do not use an ampersand in running text.
7) Tips for Better Writing

These tips are generally for "hard news" writing. If you are working on a first-person story or "soft news" piece, then we would like to encourage you to let your own style and voice come through. However, please keep the following suggestions in mind:

A. Get to the point: tell readers right away what you plan to write about. Anecdotes and warm-up platitudes are turn offs.

B. Get your facts together: put everything on a topic in one place, so readers don't have to comb the entire piece.

C. Stay clear: Think of your angle and stick with it. Write an outline first, think about the logical order of the piece before writing.

D. Write simply: a short word is always preferable to a thesaurus inspired one.

E. Write economically: 800~1,000 words is almost always a good length for both writer and reader. Cut out all redundant

F. Follow through with momentum: write using short sentences. Ensure one paragraph leads to the next, and have a words, no matter how much you are attached to them. flow to your story that prompts the reader to make it to the end of your piece without even realizing it.

G. Be positive, specific and decisive: Active speech is a must. When you have to quantify something, use actually numbers instead of "a few" or "some". Tentative writing doesn't convince anyone, not even you. Avoid "kind of," "perhaps" and "very" as much as possible.

H. Reread your copy and revise constantly. You may get it all down in one sitting, but self-editing will improve it 100%

I. Practice writing and read constantly
8) George Orwell's six elementary rules ("Politics and the English Language" 1946):
A. Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
B. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
C. If it is possible to cut out a word always cut it out.
D. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
E. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
F. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.