The elements of a report are the headline, entry (summary, descriptive, contrast and / or quotes), development and conclusion.
The report is an investigative, scientific, explanatory, interpretive, autobiographical or formal writing, in which a succession of news of general interest for informational purposes is revealed.
In addition, they seek to contrast various sources of information to guarantee the veracity of the information provided.
The reports can be developed through the written press or through audiovisual resources. In addition, they also usually include the personal opinion of the author.
How is a report structured?
A report is basically structured in four distinct sections: the headline, the entry, the development or body of the report and the conclusion.
Each section has its own elements that distinguish the report from other journalistic genres such as the interview, the chronicle or the news.
Headline
It is the cover letter of the report to the readers. In just a couple of lines, the headline should be eye-catching enough to encourage reading the story.
The headline is characterized by being brief, it should not contain more than 10 words. In the same way as in the news, the headline can be accompanied by a pretitle and / or a subtitle.
Entry
It is the opening paragraph of the report, and its function is to capture the attention of the reader, so that he continues with the reading.
For this reason, it is highly recommended that interesting content be present in the entry that appears attractive from the reader's perspective.
Given the importance of this section in the report, the entries can have different approaches. Consequently, there are different types of tickets, which will be described below:
- Summary type entry: it is a detailed list in which the points that will be treated in the development are expressed. It can be understood as a kind of table of contents for the report.
- Descriptive entry: explains in detail the aspects of interest presented in the report, such as the review of the places, people, situations or events that the writing deals with.
- Contrast entry: gives strength to the report by comparing two different people, situations, settings or objects, to differentiate them from each other and impact the reader.
- Quote entry: a textual quote is inserted, provided that the quote has been issued by some of the characters involved or is an aspect that reinforces the main theme.
Development
The development or body is made up of the main ideas of the report, structured through the use of connectors to give coherence and continuity to the writing. This section should be punctual, short and concise.
In turn, the development of the report can be chronological, by topic, enigmatic, or through the development of the elements of the investigation, that is, documents, places and / or people involved in the case.
conclusion
The final paragraph or conclusion should close the writing structure. For this, it is recommended to include a brief summary of the ideas described in the body of the report or include the author's personal opinions.
References
- Example of Characteristics of a Report (2017). Examplede.com magazine. Recovered from: examplede.com
- Olmedo, F. (2010). What is a report? Recovered from: findos.com
- Ríos, R. (2015). Characteristics and structure of the report. Recovered from: rosaliarios.udem.edu.ni
- Serrano, Erit. (2017). What are the elements of a report? Recovered from: question.me
- Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia (2017). Reportage. Recovered from: es.wikipedia.org