For generations, newspaper reporters have depended on the inverted pyramid when they need to crank out a story on deadline.
The form has taken a beating in recent decades. The critics say it’s outdated. They are wrong.
Think about it. Today's news cycle is both 24/7 and instantaneous, even for brand journalists. Plus, more and more readers are choosing the smartphone as their main news medium.
We often have to write fast. We have to fit our stories onto smaller screens. Thus, the virtues of the inverted pyramid are clear. It is:
Easy to write
Unlike the story or the essay, the inverted pyramid is not designed to flow logically from premise to conclusion.
Instead, the inverted pyramid starts with a lead that answers the 5Ws and the H: who, what, when, where, why and how. After you’ve nailed the lead, you simply arrange the remaining paragraphs in the order of their importance.
This is child’s play with Microsoft Word. Just write the paragraphs in any order than occurs to you, and then rearrange them into order by cutting and pasting.
There is a reason this is the first form a rookie newspaper reporter learns to execute.
Easy to edit
The inverted pyramid is as easy to edit as it is to write. The editor really has only a few decisions to make. First, does the lead work? Second are the paragraphs in the right order?
Any rewriting takes very little time, even if you kick it back to the writer.
Easy to read
Readers are trained to read the inverted pyramid. They understand the rules and aren’t expecting a brilliant essay or a riveting story. They just want the facts.
The inverted pyramid is designed to deliver information quickly and cleanly. The reader can quit the story at any time and still get the gist.
Best time to use
- When you need to write fast, particularly on deadline.
- When you are reporting hard news.
- When you are starting out as a content journalist.
- Anytime you are in doubt about which format to use.
- If you have a small staff with a large workload.
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