Flowery   euphemisms   —   once   the   rule   in journalistic   accounts   of   death   —   are   no   longer A   person   is   widely   known,   not   well-known. Nevertheless, even when widely known is used, it must be followed up with specific accomplishments. recommended  in  straight  newswriting.  They  are  less objective and are not more acceptable to the reader. Why say  remains,  when  body  is  a  more  accurate  description? The body is placed in a coffin, not a casket. It is usually taken  home,  not  shipped.  Funeral  services,  not obsequies, are held. The body is buried, not interned. The descriptive terms “young,” “middle-aged” and “elderly” are often misused because they are relative. The criteria used by The Associate Press is as follows: “A person is young until he is 35, middle-aged from 35 to 65, and elderly after 65.” But if you think a person’s age is important, why use descriptive adjectives at all? Why not merely identify the person as being 35, 52, 68 or whatever the age maybe? GATHERING THE FACTS Gathering the facts for a routine Navy accident story is simple. Often, the best source of information is the personnel  office.  The  “casualty  report”  made  by  the personnel  office  and  transmitted  by  priority  message will provide you with most of the necessary information. In gathering the facts for an accident story, make sure you get the following information: Status:  Active  duty  or  reserves. Casualty’s full name, including rank or rate, file or service number and branch of service. Type of death: Killed in action, died of wounds received inaction or death from whatever cause; the  extent  of  injury:  Injuries  sustained  and medical   listing   of   patient,   when   available. Remember to attribute the stated cause of death to  competent  authority  when  the  cause  is  not perfectly obvious. Date, hour, place, circumstances and cause, when determined. Location and disposition of body. Full name, addresses and relationship of next of Information stating whether next of kin has been officially  notified. These  facts  usually  provide  enough  information  for a start. Note that the following report briefly answers all the  questions  necessary  for  an  accident  story.  A  few well-placed telephone calls will provide you with any other  details  you  may  need.  The  results  may  look something  like  those  that  follow: A  Little  Creek  sailor  was  killed today when his automobile went out of control,   struck   a   railroad   track   and overturned   on   Sewell’s   Point   Road near Ward’s Corner. The   sailor   was   identified   as Gunner’s Mate First Class John J. Doe, 37, husband of Mrs. Dolores E. Doe of 1717 Atlantic Ave., Atlantic City, N.J. A   veteran   of   16   years’   naval service,   Doe   was   attached   to   the Morale,   Welfare   and   Recreation (MWR)  Department,  Little  Creek Naval   Amphibious   Base.   His   death marks the first traffic fatality involving Little  Creek  naval  personnel  since February. A routine accident story of this type usually runs about three or four paragraphs. It is brief and compact, yet  contains  enough  information  to  satisfy  the requirements of most newspapers. All accident stories, however, are not this simple. When two or more casualties are involved, you will have to dig for more details and write a story with a casualty list.  Listed  next  are  some  of  the  facts  you  should consider: the dead and injured.    Cause of the accident.  Authoritative  sources should   be   consulted   and   quoted   whenever necessary.  If  the  cause  of  the  accident  is  not readily  apparent,  the  story  should  state,  “The cause of the accident is unknown and is under accident may be unknown, qualifiers sometimes may be used to present a probable cause in the story. For example, “An eyewitness to the crash said   that   the   plane   struck   a   treetop   during takeoff.”   The   cause   of   an   accident   may   be reported after a complete investigation has been made.   Meanwhile,   do   not   speculate   in   your release  concerning  its  cause,  especially  when negligence or human error is suspected. Accurate  number  and  complete  identities  of investigation.” Although the exact cause of an kin. 3-21