Answer: A. Person, organization, or document. A source is a person, organization, or document that provides information for a news story.
Which material can provide evidence about an event?
A A headline alone
B A video, record, or witness
C An unverified comment
D A reporter’s guess
Answer: B. A video, record, or witness. Reporting can draw on documents, recordings, and firsthand witnesses, while each source still needs careful evaluation.
How does a beat reporter usually work?
A Writes only editorials
B Avoids familiar sources
C Covers one area consistently
D Changes topics every hour
Answer: C. Covers one area consistently. A beat reporter regularly covers a geographic or subject area and builds specialized knowledge of it.
What distinguishes a general-assignment reporter?
A Reports one subject only
B Works only from documents
C Writes only breaking headlines
D Covers varied stories
Answer: D. Covers varied stories. A general-assignment reporter handles a range of stories and must learn unfamiliar subjects quickly.
Why read earlier coverage before reporting a new development?
A To ask better current questions
B To copy old wording
C To replace new interviews
D To avoid checking sources
Answer: A. To ask better current questions. Background reading helps a reporter understand what happened before and ask more informed questions about what is happening now.
Which research materials should be tracked for a story?
A Anonymous posts alone
B Verified records and reputable coverage
C Rumors from a group chat
D Unlabeled screenshots
Answer: B. Verified records and reputable coverage. The reporting guide recommends tracking information from verified sources such as government records, lawsuits, and reputable news outlets.
Before contacting sources, what should a reporter learn about the subject?
A Which headline will trend
B What the source will approve
C What previous coverage covered
D How to avoid follow-up
Answer: C. What previous coverage covered. Knowing prior reporting and available background makes interviews more focused and useful.
What question can help test a story’s relevance?
A Which source is most famous?
B How long is the headline?
C Who will share it first?
D Why should readers care?
Answer: D. Why should readers care?. A reporter should identify why the information matters to readers and whether it could affect them.
Why take notes even when recording an interview?
A To track details and quotes
B To avoid listening
C To replace source consent
D To invent missing answers
Answer: A. To track details and quotes. Notes help organize information and recordings can serve as a backup for checking details and quotations.
When reporting takes longer than expected, what may be necessary?
A Publish unverified claims
B Follow up with sources
C Skip additional interviews
D Use one side only
Answer: B. Follow up with sources. Reporting may require patience and follow-up as sources return calls or provide information.
What does the U.S. FOIA let the public request?
A Private company files
B Court testimony automatically
C Federal agency records
D Every state record
Answer: C. Federal agency records. The federal Freedom of Information Act gives the public a right to request records from federal executive agencies, subject to limits.
Which records are outside federal FOIA’s scope?
A Federal agency records
B Executive branch records
C Federal agency emails
D State and local records
Answer: D. State and local records. Federal FOIA does not govern state or local records; states have separate public-records laws.
Why might a federal record be withheld or redacted?
A A FOIA exemption applies
B The request is from media
C The record is old
D The topic is unpopular
Answer: A. A FOIA exemption applies. FOIA contains exemptions for protected interests, including privacy and national security; agencies may release nonexempt portions.
What is a common role of an organizational spokesperson?
A Independently audit every claim
B Connect reporters with information
C Represent all affected residents
D Replace firsthand witnesses
Answer: B. Connect reporters with information. Spokespeople can provide organizational information or connect reporters with relevant sources, while their role and perspective should be clear.
When is an expert a useful reporting source?
A When no facts exist
B When a headline needs humor
C When information is complex
D When records must be hidden
Answer: C. When information is complex. An expert with relevant knowledge can help explain complicated or conflicting information.
Why seek people who oppose a proposed project?
A To guarantee equal quotes
B To create a staged argument
C To replace official records
D To include affected perspectives
Answer: D. To include affected perspectives. Reporting should seek affected perspectives from more than the people who support or benefit from a proposal.
How can a reporter strengthen the range of public voices?
A Reach people across settings
B Interview one group repeatedly
C Use only online comments
D Choose sources by popularity
Answer: A. Reach people across settings. Different locations, times, and communities can surface a wider range of experiences and views.
What does a directive interview question usually seek?
A An open-ended conversation only
B Specific information
C A source’s private records
D A prepared headline
Answer: B. Specific information. Directive questions seek particular information and often call for short answers.
Which question is nondirective and open-ended?
A Did you vote?
B Was it Tuesday?
C What do you think?
D Is the door open?
Answer: C. What do you think?. Nondirective questions invite the interviewee to shape the answer and offer perspectives in their own words.
Why use both directive and nondirective questions?
A Shorter deadlines and headlines
B Fewer sources and notes
C More anonymous answers
D Facts and new perspectives
Answer: D. Facts and new perspectives. Specific questions can establish facts, while open questions can reveal new perspectives and anecdotes.
What should an interviewer decide before meeting a source?
A The interview’s purpose
B The source’s preferred quote
C The final story headline
D The publication’s correction
Answer: A. The interview’s purpose. A clear purpose helps the reporter determine what information to seek and explain why the source was chosen.
Which question style is easier for sources to answer?
A Several questions at once
B Short and precise questions
C Long questions with jargon
D Questions with hidden assumptions
Answer: B. Short and precise questions. The interview guide advises keeping questions concise and precise because multi-part questions are difficult to answer.
Which sequence moves from causes toward consequences?
A Spatial sequence
B Topical sequence
C Cause-to-effect sequence
D Problem-solution sequence
Answer: C. Cause-to-effect sequence. A cause-to-effect sequence first explores causes and then asks about possible effects.
How can an interviewer demonstrate active listening?
A Interrupt every sentence
B Read the next question
C Avoid all follow-ups
D Summarize the source’s answer
Answer: D. Summarize the source’s answer. Summarizing a response can show the interviewer understood it and can encourage useful clarification.
When a shy source gives little detail, what can help?
A Open questions and silence
B Rapid-fire yes-or-no questions
C A leading accusation
D An unrelated anecdote
Answer: A. Open questions and silence. Open questions and patient silence can give a reluctant or shy source room to elaborate.
What is useful preparation before an interview?
A Memorize a preferred answer
B Research the source and topic
C Skip background reading
D Write only one question
Answer: B. Research the source and topic. Prior research helps shape relevant questions and prepares the reporter to follow up.
Before recording a source, what should a reporter do?
A Ask permission to record
B Start secretly
C Assume agreement
D Ask after publishing
Answer: A. Ask permission to record. The interview guide recommends explaining the recording and getting the source’s permission before recording.
What can an in-person interview offer?
A Guaranteed truthful answers
B No need for notes
C Rapport and direct observation
D Automatic anonymous sourcing
Answer: C. Rapport and direct observation. Meeting in person can help build rapport and allow the reporter to observe the setting and source.
How should a reporter describe a source’s visible behavior?
A Guess private emotions
B Invent a motive
C Treat inference as fact
D Use objective observations
Answer: D. Use objective observations. Report observable behavior accurately; do not present an unverified guess about what someone feels as fact.
If an interviewee talks at length off topic, what can the reporter do?
A End the story immediately
B Redirect them respectfully
C Ignore all their answers
D Publish every tangent
Answer: B. Redirect them respectfully. A reporter can respectfully guide a chatty source back to the topic and the information needed.
When should an interviewer generally ask the toughest questions?
A Toward the end
B Before introducing the purpose
C Only after publication
D Before researching the source
Answer: A. Toward the end. The interview guide recommends beginning with easier warm-up questions and saving difficult questions for later.
If a source is speaking too quickly, what is a suitable response?
A Guess the missing words
B End the interview
C Ask them to slow down
D Change the subject
Answer: C. Ask them to slow down. A reporter can politely ask a source to slow down so answers can be accurately understood and recorded.
Which interview sequence focuses on physical locations?
A Time sequence
B Topical sequence
C Problem-solution sequence
D Spatial sequence
Answer: D. Spatial sequence. A spatial sequence organizes interview questions around where people or things are physically located.
Which question is useful at the end of an interview?
A Can I approve your quote?
B What else should I know?
C Will you write my headline?
D Can you guarantee publication?
Answer: B. What else should I know?. The interview guide recommends asking whether there is anything else the reporter should know.
Why ask a source who else to contact?
A To find additional sources
B To avoid independent research
C To transfer editorial control
D To replace all documents
Answer: A. To find additional sources. A source may identify other people who can add relevant reporting, but those sources should be evaluated independently.
What should a reporter collect for possible follow-up?
A A private password
B A guaranteed endorsement
C The source’s contact information
D A preapproved article
Answer: C. The source’s contact information. Keeping contact details makes it possible to clarify facts or ask follow-up questions after the interview.
Under AP usage, what does “on the record” allow?
A Publish without identifying anyone
B Keep all details unpublished
C Use only paraphrases
D Use information with attribution
Answer: D. Use information with attribution. On-the-record information may be used without caveats and attributed to the source by name.
What does “off the record” mean in the cited guide?
A Publish the source by name
B Information cannot be published
C Use direct quotes freely
D Publish after one day
Answer: B. Information cannot be published. The guide defines off-the-record information as not for publication or attribution.
Under the cited guide, what does “on background” generally permit?
A Use information without naming
B Use nothing from the interview
C Publish any private detail
D Quote without agreed conditions
Answer: A. Use information without naming. On-background information may be used under agreed terms without naming the source; details should be clarified before the interview.
How does deep background differ in the cited guide?
A Publish the source’s full name
B Quote the source directly
C Use information without attribution
D Keep all information unused
Answer: C. Use information without attribution. The cited guide describes deep-background information as usable without identifying the source or running direct quotes.
What is a direct quote?
A A reporter’s summary
B A paraphrase without attribution
C A headline with quotation marks
D The source’s exact words
Answer: D. The source’s exact words. A direct quote uses the source’s exact words, placed in quotation marks and attributed.
How is an indirect quote presented?
A Verbatim with quotation marks
B Paraphrased without quotation marks
C As an anonymous headline
D Without naming its source
Answer: B. Paraphrased without quotation marks. An indirect quote restates what the source said without quotation marks but still attributes the information.
What makes a partial quote different?
A Direct and paraphrased wording
B Two anonymous sources
C A quote with no attribution
D A headline and dateline
Answer: A. Direct and paraphrased wording. A partial quote combines paraphrased wording with a short verbatim phrase in quotation marks.
When is a direct quotation especially useful?
A When the answer is unclear
B When the source is unavailable
C When wording adds meaning
D When it hides the source
Answer: C. When wording adds meaning. Direct quotes can preserve distinctive wording, emotion, important statements, or new information.
If an answer is confusing or full of jargon, what may help?
A Invent a clearer quote
B Remove the attribution
C Change the speaker’s meaning
D Paraphrase it accurately
Answer: D. Paraphrase it accurately. An indirect quote can restate a confusing or jargon-heavy response clearly while remaining true to what the source said.
Why must a quotation keep its original context?
A It makes every quote shorter
B Context protects intended meaning
C It removes attribution
D It guarantees agreement
Answer: B. Context protects intended meaning. A quote taken out of context can misrepresent the speaker; if it cannot be used faithfully, do not use it.
What should a reporter do with a news release?
A Verify, supplement, and rewrite
B Publish it in full unchanged
C Remove its origin
D Treat its claims as proven
Answer: A. Verify, supplement, and rewrite. AP says releases should not be published in original form; use them as leads, verify credibility, add information from other sources, and credit them.
If a story portrays someone negatively, what is important?
A Assume they have no response
B Publish before contacting them
C Try to reach them
D Replace their response with rumor
Answer: C. Try to reach them. AP calls for significant efforts to reach people portrayed negatively and reasonable time for a response.
When is the setting of a quotation worth identifying?
A Only when source is famous
B Never in reported stories
C Whenever the source requests approval
D When it adds relevant context
Answer: D. When it adds relevant context. AP recommends describing where a quote was obtained when that setting is relevant to understanding it.
If a source raises a new claim, what should the reporter do?
A Accept it as confirmed
B Ask, clarify, and verify
C Ignore the new information
D Publish without checking
Answer: B. Ask, clarify, and verify. Follow up to clarify a new claim and verify it with reliable evidence before treating it as established.