Ganesh Chakravarthi's Sessions

Perspective

• The topics we deal with in public policy are large.. wide so pick an entry point to a issue .. decide how are you approaching ..
• what in the large landscape are you trying to talk about
• When you convey anything, the meaning must be clear and be with singular focus

Mission Statements can help converge your ideas

Focus on
Physicality of writing
temporality of the subject
Choices Matter

Framing an Op Ed

Actively analysing information
building stories around truth (Facts)
writers should know much more than the content they are writing
if u get more and more questions after reading different materials, you are ready to be a writer

Blogs - home to your opinion, ideas and why it matter
Op Ed - Offering perspectives and call to action

Types of Op-eds
Explanation
Implication
Meaning

A Framework to Write Op-Ed

• Headline - Situation and what should be done
• Summary By-line - your position and data points - one line summary of the article
• Introduction that sets out underlying problems
• Discuss opposing points of view and incorporate / refute
• Reiterate/prove your position with supporting details
• Draw your conclusion and provide the solutions

Structure

Lead
Thesis
Argument
Counterview
Conclusion - refer back to lede

Lede

Setting the stage

Newshook

using a news to set the stage
Elements of a newshook
Timeliness
Prominence
Magnitude
Oddity
Impact
Proximity
Conflict

Story

Wit

Thesis

one line summary

Argument

• logical and evidence based
• Validity - A valid argument is a deductive statement that provides decisive logical support

How Do You Analyse Evidence

Observable Phenomena / Empirical
Facts
Anecdotal
Representative
Axiomatic

Building Blocks of a Good Persuasive Argument

The Rhetorical Triangle - Ethos, Pathos and Logos.
Be wary of Fallacy / Informal Fallacy

Counterview

Echoes popular sentiment
Counter argument
personal bias

Conclusion

Restates your argument
Offers a solution
Calls people to action
Wraps your story

Start to End
Specific to general / general to specific

On Writing

The Ladder of Abstraction

Reverse Bollywood Format

• Leading with the most important information
• Getting to the vital information as quickly as possible

First sentence of any paragraph, set the context for the rest of the paragraph.. topic sentence.

The Sound of Words

Best Practices

• Keep your narrative focused - do not try to be everything
• Do not ramble, but preamble
• Take a stance - do not be wishy washy
• Attack issues, not the people - no ad hominem
• Thorough grammar check and spell-Check
• Practice free writing
• Respect readers time

DON'T BE OBSESSED WITH PERFECTION