News is a kind of current events which informs the public about things that are happening locally, nationally and internationally. It is also important for keeping the people updated and aware about what is happening around them. It can also be used to educate and explain complex ideas and topics to the audience in a more concise and understandable way.
The definition of what makes a good news story varies from person to person and from one culture to another. However, the basic premise is that news must be interesting and significant to the audience for it to be considered as newsworthy. It must also be new and not something that has already happened. It should also be able to spark the audience’s interest and empathy towards the subject.
To achieve this, a story should have the following elements:
Controversy: People like controversies. They generate interest amongst the audience as they involve arguments, charges and counter-charges. Prominence: Events that involve famous personalities are always newsworthy. People are interested in the life of such prominent persons and love to empathise with them. Currency: People are primarily interested in the news that is happening around them at the moment. Events that have happened a while ago lose relevance and are therefore not newsworthy.
A journalist has to decide which news stories are worthy of the front page or top of the broadcast and which are not. To make these decisions, they have to take into account the interests of their intended audience and whether or not they need to know this information to go about their daily lives. They also have to consider how much detail they can afford to include without losing the audience’s attention. It is important to write in a style that is readable for everyone and avoid using jargon.
