News and spotlight article samples
All articles and content should adhere to the university style and formatting guide.
What is a news article?
A news article answers who/what/when/where/why/how (usually in the opening) and generally reports what has taken place. This is written in such a way that the reader can stop reading at any time and still come away with the whole story.
A featured news article is a type of news article covering a more in-depth story that focuses on a specific person, angle or aspect of an event. It focuses on what's important or interesting about the subject whereas a standard news article just reports what happened.
Important: Articles should be at least two paragraphs in length to increase story value. Anything shorter than this should be combined with another article or shared as a social media post.
See our news article page template
Possible topics for news articles
- Department announcements
- Faculty and students working in the community (urban research)
- Students interning with noteworthy organizations
- Unique or timely research
- Awards/grants
- Book announcements
- Tributes and memorials
Sample news articles
- Book announcement:
Professor Nadejda Marinova publishes new book on transnationalism and foreign policy - Course announcement: Winter 2021: Law and the African American Experience
- Course sampler: English winter 2021 course sampler
- Faculty grant/research: Lesnik wins Leakey Foundation grant to study role of termites in the diets of early humans
- Internal news: Dr. Jeffery Kentor to serve as chair of Wayne State University's Department of Sociology
- Feature news: Department of African American Studies celebrates 45th anniversary
- Memorial
- News story with quotes: WSU students and faculty share their favorite Shakespeare quotes, works and moments
- Student research: Anthropology students dig into Hamtramck's past
- Tribute: A tribute to Dr. Cassandra Montgomery
Writing tips for news articles
Write in shorter paragraphs
Use shorter/bite-sized paragraphs for easier reading as opposed to longer paragraph blocks of text.
Use links for context and references
Whenever possible and appropriate, include a hyperlink to important references in the body of the page, such as the organization (who is the subject of the story), the grant, or an important element of the story (e.g., the project, portfolio, etc.).
- Example: National Institutes of Health grant GM124733.
- Example: As for Ozanich, she is currently interning for the Visitor Experience team at the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House in Grosse Pointe Shores
What is a spotlight?
A spotlight is an article that focuses on the biographical/people angle (e.g., getting to know M. Roy Wilson) of a story. Spotlights should be evergreen, not time-dependent like an event recap and be written so that the story is still relevant over time. Important: Upcoming events, post-event recaps and how-tos should be posted as news articles rather than spotlight articles.
Spotlights can include stories on faculty, staff, advisors or programs but should be student and alumni-focused so that prospective/former students can "see themselves" at Wayne State.
Important: Articles should be at least a paragraph in length to increase story value. Anything shorter than this should be combined with another article or shared as a social media post.
See our spotlight page template
Possible topics for spotlight articles
- Student community impact
- Getting to know {student name}
- Student research
- Alumni check-in
- Student Q&A
Sample spotlights
- Abbass Berjaoui helping Detroit overcome health disparities (student research)
- From Puerto Rico to Detroit: Orlando Rios finds his research home (student research)
- Environmental sciences student researches Great Lakes waterways (student research)
- Global studies student hopes to help Detroit with technology (student research)
- Alumnus James Prochaska is a change maker (alumni check-in)