Journalism students are taught that rule one of news writing is the inverted pyramid: the most important facts are squeezed into the first paragraph and the piece gradually fills up with less vital information.

But if all the important information is given away immediately, should we be surprised that readers cannot be bothered to go past the fourth paragraph? No, according to Shirish Kulkarni, a TV journalist with 25 years' experience, community organiser for the Bureau Local, and news storytelling researcher for Welsh innovation programme Clwstwr. In fact, if even journalists cannot stomach the news, how can we expect audiences to?

At our Newsrewired conference earlier this month (1 July 2020), Kulkarni delivered a workshop on how to change the way we connect with our audience through storytelling - and in this week's podcast, we bring you the highlights from his talk.

That connection is achieved not just through restructuring news writing - though Clwstwr research indicates that helps. The problem also requires having to answer hard questions about diversity in the newsroom.

Want to take your podcasting to the next level? Join our two-day advance podcasting course on 19 & 20 September 2020 here

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