News is information about events that affect the lives of people, communities or countries. It may be reported in a variety of media such as newspapers, radio or television. News aims to inform its audience, educate them about particular issues and also entertain them. It can do this through the use of humour and pictures. News is also meant to inspire its audience to take action and make a difference.
A good news article has five main elements – exclusivity, impact, timing, shareability and the strength of the story itself. The more of these that a news article meets, the stronger it is. A story that is new, unusual, interesting, significant and about people will have strong news value. A story about a coup in a neighbouring country will be a particularly strong piece of news, for example.
The news media is the source of most news, though some people obtain it from a number of other sources, such as friends and family. The most popular news outlets include television and the internet. They are usually commercial, but some are publicly funded such as the BBC.
Some news stories are more important than others, and the importance of a story will vary between societies. For instance, a story about an earthquake in a developing country will have greater significance in the developed world than a flood in a remote location. Similarly, a terrorist attack will have a greater effect on society than a fire in a domestic home.
There is no such thing as objective news, but journalists should aim to present the facts about an event and not their own opinions or biases. It is important that journalists interview people involved in an incident and get their views on the situation. Often, this will be enough to give a balanced overview of the incident. In some cases, the writer of a news story will not state their opinion, but instead provide readers with enough information to allow them to form an opinion themselves.
News must be timely if it is to have any impact at all. It is not much use reporting on an event that happened a week ago. Likewise, it is not very interesting to report on an event that will happen next year.
A good way to test the strength of a news story is to compare it with other similar articles in the same publication. It is essential that a journalist check their work for factual errors before publishing, and they should also be aware of the limits of their knowledge. If they are not sure of a detail, they should research it or seek out the views of experts in that area. A good news article will include a list of references at the end of the article.