News is a form of mass media which covers current events and information. The content is usually written and published by journalists and presented without the author’s personal opinion or bias. The aim of News is to inform, educate and entertain the readers, listeners or viewers.
The elements that make up a news story are the who, what, when, where and why. A good news article should start with the most important facts and then move on to more minor details. It’s also important that all facts are sourced and credited. This could be done by direct quotes, paraphrasing or by listing the source of the information, e.g. a police report, court document or census figures.
News stories cover a wide range of topics, from war and world politics to local events and weather. However, certain subjects are more likely to be considered newsworthy than others. For example, the death of a celebrity is more likely to be reported than a road accident or natural disaster. Political scandals and human interest stories are also often newsworthy. So are government proclamations and royal ceremonies. Food, drink and the economy are always of interest to the public – so are issues like shortages and gluts, crop diseases or the price of food in the market.
News stories are typically aimed at the general public and must be factually accurate, despite the lack of bias found in personal opinion pieces. This can be difficult to achieve, especially when writing a news story for a business publication, but by sticking to the fundamental questions of what happened and how it affects the people involved, you can create an informative, engaging piece of news.