General Rules that a reporter should also remember for his better reporting are as follows:
Rules
1. As already discussed above, a reporter should never repeat a story which has been told to him confidentially or in good faith, unless he takes the prior permission of the person concerned to make it public.
2. While collecting the local news, a reporter should keep in mind the great value of giving the names of persons in his stories. However, the names should be spelled correctly.
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3. Every reporter should try to develop the qualities of a descriptive writer.
4. A reporter must remember that practice makes a man perfect. Therefore, he should always try to improve his method of reporting and his style.
5. Every reporter should use plain English. He should avoid difficult words. He should enable his reader to visualise the scene described by him as clearly as if he had seen it with his own eyes.
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6. A good reporter should avoid the use of stereotaped phraseology.
7. A reporter should try to be accurate in his reporting. Whenever his accuracy is called in question, he should be able to produce his original notebook.
8. One main cause of the complaint against misrepresentation in newspapers is that certain persons in the heat of excitements say things, which they do not mean. And when reported accurately in the press, they deny having said such things.
9. Whenever a reporter has to report on the court proceedings, he should be very careful in his report. For example, use of a wrong name or adverse comment might land him into legal problems.
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10. While reporting ordinary public meetings, a reporter has to produce only a summary, which he should try to write up as the meeting progresses.
11. The reporter must master the art of condensing while reporting the speeches made in the public meetings. This will greatly help the reporter in writing his summaries.
12. A reporter must know what is newsworthy and what is not. Recognition of news values implies the need of ‘news nose.’ Without it a reporter cannot hope to achieve success in his career.