News is a collection of events and information that are of interest to the general public. It can be reported on radio, television, newspaper, magazines or even online. Whether it’s about the economy, politics or crime, there is always something to be written about. Writing a good news article requires extensive research in order to provide accurate, up-to-date information. The information should be presented in an interesting and compelling manner to make the reader want to read it.
To determine what is newsworthy, one must first think about the reasons why people read and watch the media. Most people use the media to be informed about what is going on in their society and the world around them. People also use the media to get entertainment and to be amused. The job of the news media is not necessarily to entertain, however. The entertainment comes from other areas – music and drama in the radio; crosswords and cartoons in newspapers.
If a story is to be deemed newsworthy it must have an element of surprise or novelty about it. It must also be something that affects the interests of a large number of people, such as an epidemic or natural disaster. It should also be able to generate public debate or controversy, such as when a controversial politician makes an unpopular remark.
A news article should contain the five Ws – who, what, where, when and why – to give an overview of the event or issue. It should not be written in a subjective way and should include quotes from reliable sources to add credibility. The writer should use the active voice when possible and write in clear, short sentences. It is a good idea to put the most important details at the top of the article, above the fold in a newspaper or on the screen of a computer, so they are seen immediately.
It is a good idea to focus on writing a news article that will appeal to a particular demographic. This might be based on location, such as a local paper covering Kansas City, or it might be a specific group of people such as business owners. The demographic should be determined as early on in the writing process as possible.
Although it may seem obvious that there is no such thing as unbiased news, there are some journalists who try to remain impartial. In reality, though, the biases of both journalist and news outlet will influence the outcome of a news story. This can be a problem because it can lead to the distortion of factual information, such as when a journalist decides what is “newsworthy” and what is not. This can lead to misrepresentation of the facts and a lack of objectivity. The result is that the media can be used to skew opinions and influence people’s voting behaviour. This is referred to as the’media effect’. This has led to the development of independent journalism and alternative news sources such as RT (Russia Today) and Al Jazeera.