How to Write Newsworthy Stories
News is an announcement of events which are important or noteworthy. People have been sharing information about events and issues in their communities since early times through oral communication. This practice eventually evolved into written news such as newspapers, magazines and radio programmes, which were the first modern media forms. Television and the internet have also become significant news media in recent times. News is usually reported in an objective manner, but there are varying opinions about what qualifies as news and what does not. Some journalists believe that the main role of news is to educate its readers, listeners or viewers. This can be achieved by presenting a variety of viewpoints and facts about an issue. Some think that it is equally important to entertain, which can be done by including interesting or quirky details in a story.
Some of the criteria for what makes a good news story are newness, unusualness, timeliness, significance and impact. These criteria can be applied to a range of topics, and different societies will have their own unique ways of determining what is newsworthy. For example, a farmer’s barn collapsing and killing a cow but saving a pig may not be of interest in one society but would be considered newsworthy in another, because of the relative importance of cattle and pork in that culture.
The first step to writing a news article is gathering the facts needed for the topic. This can be done by researching the subject and creating a list of facts that are essential to the article. This will help prevent any important information from being left out. It will also help the writer stay on track when writing the article, as he or she will be sure to include all the relevant points in the article.
Once the list of facts is complete, the next step is to decide which ones are the most important and should be emphasized in the story. This can be a difficult task because many of the facts will be interesting and important in their own right, but the journalist must choose which to emphasize. The simplest way to do this is by putting the most important facts at the top of the story above the fold. This refers to the crease in a newspaper page, where the top stories are displayed before the reader needs to scroll down to see more.
It is important to remember that while the news is meant to be educating and entertaining, it is not supposed to entertain to the point of making people sick to their stomachs. There are other ways to provide entertainment, such as music and drama programmes on radio and television, and crosswords or cartoons in newspapers.
It is also important to keep in mind that the news will often contain bias, or a particular point of view. While it is important to watch or read news from a wide range of sources, it is also wise to sign up for a few newsletters that are known for their non-biased and accurate reporting. This will help counterbalance the news you receive from websites and social media outlets that tend to lean towards a particular political or ideological perspective.