Journalism 133: Prof. Craig: Working on Leads

WORKING ON LEADS

For today's exercise, here are the groups:

1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
Alexander Stoev Mariana Sanchez	Hunter Yates Johanna Elloso	Kaya Henkes-Power Haddy Barghouti Zachary Siedel	David Nguyen Omar Fuentes	Charity Spicer Josefina De La Torre	Javen Takhar Joaquin Cruz	Anahi Herrera Villanueva Yena Woo	Anfisa Pitchkhadze Gabriella Kelly

 

Here's an example of a bank robbery story with some unusual elements. Work together to develop five to seven different leads for it, and email them to me by the end of class -- I want to be able to use them in class next week. Be sure to include all group members' names.

A man robbed a San Jose bank Monday morning at 11:30 a.m.

Here is more information from interviews -- please note that some is general information, and some is word-for-word direct quotes.  You need to decide what you might (or might not) choose to use in the lead of the story.

• Information from Kathy Conover, bank teller: A man wearing dark glasses and a baseball cap came to her window sometime before noon on Monday, handed her a plastic Food Lion grocery bag and told her, "Give me all the money in the bank." He showed her the barrel of a pistol he had concealed within his jacket. She filled the bag with money, but also placed an anti-theft device into the bag. She said the man ordered her to immediately help the next person in line so she wouldn't call the cops when he left. The man stuffed the bag of money down the front of his pants, and kept an eye on her as he exited the building. She saw him start to run away on foot. She described the man as a white male, roughly 35-40 years of age, about six feet tall, with dark hair and "a nose that looked like it had been broken more than once." He was wearing loose blue jeans and a dark jacket.
   
• Direct quotes from Kathy Conover: "I was just at a training seminar a couple of weeks ago on how to handle robberies. They showed us how to use a dye pack. Five minutes after it's activated, it explodes and sprays bright red dye all over everything, including the money, so the robber can't spend it. They also told us that when the dye explodes, it's very hot."
   
• Information from Mike Carey, police spokesman: The police received a robbery call from the Life Savings Bank, near 38th Street and Pacific Avenue, Monday morning around 11:30 a.m. The suspect demanded money from a teller, and the teller complied but placed a dye pack in with the money. According to the teller, the suspect stuffed the bag down the front of his pants and fled on foot. Witnesses a few blocks away reported seeing a man in a leather jacket running along the street, and then saw "an explosion taking place inside his pants. He was seen hopping and jumping around." Explosive dye packs such as these burn at a temperature of about 400 degrees when activated. Witnesses said that after jumping around in contortions for a minute or two, the man was finally able to remove his pants and ran away half-naked, covered in what appeared to be blood (though it may also have been red dye). Police arrived a few minutes later and found the pants, but the robber remains at large. The dye pack seared a hole through the crotch of the jeans. Police have alerted area hospitals to be on the lookout for a man complaining of crotch burns. Investigators are also seeking the public's help in finding the robber, who may be stained with bright red dye. 
   
• Direct quotes from Mike Carey: "He's probably sitting around with an ice pack in his lap, that is, if he hasn't sought medical attention. If he has the dye on his, uh, shall we say, 'person,' it will be there for several days."

 

Practice writing and revising leads here:

 

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