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WNY Athletics News Desk Handbook
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Start with News Desk 7 min Access and staff roles 8 min Read your statement 6 min

Writing and publishing

Write and edit a post 12 min Format stories with Markdown 8 min Use the media library 7 min Review, schedule, and publish 12 min Plan coverage with the calendar 10 min Social, broadcasts, and podcasts 10 min

Scores and data feeds

Connect High School Sports 11 min Run the scoreboard and score feeds 13 min Publish standings 9 min Run the AI recap pipeline 12 min Review photo submissions 6 min

Administration

Manage staff, personas, and tags 11 min Customize post types 10 min Set up advertisers and campaigns 9 min Manage payroll and statements 12 min Settings and troubleshooting 14 min

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Help center Writing and publishing
Writing and publishing 8 min read

Format stories with Markdown

Use a small set of Markdown marks so post bodies and recap files stay readable in the editor and render cleanly on the website.

Used in
Post body fields and AI recap files
Check it with
Preview · Mobile / Tablet / Desktop
Not used for
Broadcast notes or ad records

Where Markdown is used

Story and recap copy is stored as Markdown. On an Article, the body field is a Markdown textarea. Other post types show a Markdown field only when the type’s editor layout includes one. AI Pipeline recaps arrive as .md files and become Submitted posts with the same body format.

Broadcast listings use plain Notes plus HTML Embed code. Advertiser campaigns, scores, and standings are structured records. Do not put Markdown there expecting it to format on the public page.

The marks that matter

  • Headings — put ## or ### at the start of a line. Use ## for a section and ### for a subsection. Do not use a single #; the public title already is the story headline.
  • Paragraphs — separate them with a blank line. A single line break inside a paragraph is usually ignored.
  • Emphasis — wrap a phrase in *single asterisks* for italics or **double asterisks** for bold.
  • Lists — start a line with a hyphen and a space for bullets, or 1. for a numbered list. Indent two spaces to nest a list.
  • Links — write [visible text](https://example.com). Use the full https URL. Prefer the public WNY Athletics article or standings URL over a private dashboard link.
  • Quotes — start the line with > for a pull quote or block quotation.

Embed images and files

  1. Attach the file first

    On the post’s Files tab, Upload a new image or PDF or choose From library. A file that is not on the post cannot be embedded in its body.

  2. Copy display code

    Each attached file has Copy display code. Images use #image- followed by a token. PDFs use #file- followed by a token.

  3. Paste it on its own line

    Put the code on a blank line in the Markdown body where the image or download should appear. Preview confirms the embed expanded.

  4. Add alt text and credit on the file

    Edit Alt text and Accreditation in the Media Library or on the file’s detail. Those fields travel with the file; they are not Markdown marks in the body.

Preview before you submit

  1. Choose Preview on the body field

    The preview opens a modal instead of replacing the textarea, so you can keep editing after you close it.

  2. Switch Mobile, Tablet, and Desktop

    Check headings, lists, and embeds at 390px, 768px, and 1280px before you treat the draft as finished.

  3. Fix marks that look wrong

    A missing blank line, an unclosed **bold**, or a broken link is cheaper to correct in Markdown than after publish.

Frequently asked questions

Write and edit a post Create the draft that holds this Markdown body. Use the media library Upload files and copy display codes.
Can I paste HTML into the body?

Use Markdown for story copy. Some post types include a separate HTML field for an embed. Mixing raw HTML into a Markdown body is unreliable and can be filtered on preview.

Why does my list render as one paragraph?

Put a blank line before the first list item and start each item at the beginning of the line with a hyphen or a number.

Do recap files use the same marks?

Yes. Morning-export recaps are Markdown. Keep headings and lists consistent so import and editor preview match.

Where do broadcast notes get formatted?

They do not. Broadcast Notes are plain text. Put player HTML in Embed code, then check Embed preview.