Determining What's News
Journalists need to seek out stories from what is going on in the world, nation, state, and local community. But lots of things go on at every given moment--how does a journalist know if the story they are planning ultimately will be important and marketable news? To determine what makes good content, journalists consider the six ACTION factors: audience, consequence, timing, immediacy, oddity, and notoriety. A good news story will have 3-4 of these factors and a great news story will have 5-6.
- AUDIENCE: Who are the stakeholders—or, simply put, who cares? Say Chess Club loses a game. Not many students are chess fanatics, so the audience for that story is small. Now say the football team loses a game: football games involve several school groups (athletics, cheer, dance, band) and are very popular among students and the community.
- CONSEQUENCE: What is the outcome or effect of the event? Let’s say two events are cancelled because of weather: an NHS meeting and Homecoming. The former only affects a few people and can easily be rescheduled without disruption, while the latter has many consequences—hair appointments, tux rentals, DJs, all need to be rescheduled.
- TIMING: Is this news fresh and relevant in the moment? Time defines interest. A review on the newest Batman film isn’t news a month after the film has come out and everyone’s seen it. The quarterback breaking his arm isn’t newsworthy in February but is big news in August. Even retrospectives are only news when done at the right time.
- IMMEDIACY: How close is the event to the audience? A closure of a restaurant in Denver isn’t very newsworthy, but a restaurant closing in Frederick is news because it closely affects the community. National events can also be immediate if they affect specific people in the community, like a Farm Bill passing or drug decriminalization law.
- ODDITY: Is this something surprising that is not an everyday occurrence? A fire drill can be a surprise, but it’s not news since one happens every month. But a snow day is news because they are not regularly occurring. This idea is also key to good interviews: asking the vice principal about student SAT growth is not as interesting as asking him about his punk band.
- NOTORIETY: Has something of note been accomplished? Football may be more popular than chess, but the Chess Club winning State makes them bigger news, as State is notable. An interview with the governor is more interesting that an interview with a freshman, as they are ore well known and notable. Keep in mind that notable loss is also interesting, like the class president losing reelection.
Types of News: Hard, Soft, and Commentary
Once a news writer has a newsworthy story, they need to relate that news to a reader. Yet not all news articles are the same (though they all share similar writing style). Article structures are broken down into three categories based on the type of news that is being reported.
First is hard news. Also called event writing, hard news is the reporting of something that recently happened and is what most people think of when they hear "news." Hard news covers all important changes in society, including election results, law changes, economic news, political scandal, and local weather. The goal of this hard news is not just to inform readers but to explain and contextualize the event, The most important type of hard news is breaking news, which is news of immediate emergency or concern that must be delivered to the public as soon as possible. While breaking news is important, the most popular hard news across all age groups (outside of the weather forecast) is game reporting, where a sporting event is broken down play-by-play for readers, including the score, reactions, and implications for the season overall.
Not all sports reporting is hard news, however. Take, for example, a piece that focuses on how a team is rebuilding after a difficult year or an individual player and their journey to success. This type of reporting is soft news, which focuses on people and the context around community values and affairs. This includes profiles, which tell the story about a member of the community and what makes them so interesting. This also includes community news, such as the opening of new community facilities or the passing of notable citizens, and special interest coverage, like the latest fall fashions or online trends. Soft news can also report around events that are not immediate, such and anniversaries of past important events and advances, which inform readers of upcoming events and encourage them to go.
Finally, there is commentary, which is news writing that advises a reader based on a well-reasoned expert opinion. The most common type of commentary article is the simple opinion article where a writer opines on a recent news event or social movement and asks the reader to adopt their point of view. These can be as open as Letters to the Editor from readers or as formal as an editorial, which is an opinion not of an individual but an entire newspaper staff. Another common type of news commentary is the review article, where a writer summarizes, analysis, and recommends an experience, such as a film, a book, a video game, a music album, a concert, a theatrical performance, the use of a product, a dining experience at a restaurant, or an interactive experience like a haunted house or escape room. Another type of commentary is the advice column, where readers write into an expert looking for advice.
First is hard news. Also called event writing, hard news is the reporting of something that recently happened and is what most people think of when they hear "news." Hard news covers all important changes in society, including election results, law changes, economic news, political scandal, and local weather. The goal of this hard news is not just to inform readers but to explain and contextualize the event, The most important type of hard news is breaking news, which is news of immediate emergency or concern that must be delivered to the public as soon as possible. While breaking news is important, the most popular hard news across all age groups (outside of the weather forecast) is game reporting, where a sporting event is broken down play-by-play for readers, including the score, reactions, and implications for the season overall.
Not all sports reporting is hard news, however. Take, for example, a piece that focuses on how a team is rebuilding after a difficult year or an individual player and their journey to success. This type of reporting is soft news, which focuses on people and the context around community values and affairs. This includes profiles, which tell the story about a member of the community and what makes them so interesting. This also includes community news, such as the opening of new community facilities or the passing of notable citizens, and special interest coverage, like the latest fall fashions or online trends. Soft news can also report around events that are not immediate, such and anniversaries of past important events and advances, which inform readers of upcoming events and encourage them to go.
Finally, there is commentary, which is news writing that advises a reader based on a well-reasoned expert opinion. The most common type of commentary article is the simple opinion article where a writer opines on a recent news event or social movement and asks the reader to adopt their point of view. These can be as open as Letters to the Editor from readers or as formal as an editorial, which is an opinion not of an individual but an entire newspaper staff. Another common type of news commentary is the review article, where a writer summarizes, analysis, and recommends an experience, such as a film, a book, a video game, a music album, a concert, a theatrical performance, the use of a product, a dining experience at a restaurant, or an interactive experience like a haunted house or escape room. Another type of commentary is the advice column, where readers write into an expert looking for advice.
Picking a Medium: Text, Image, Audio, and Video
While all news articles start with text, they aren't always conveyed as text. Some articles become scripts and are read aloud by a reporter as audio. Some audio news (typically hard news) is broadcast on a dedicated news station like National Public Radio. Soft news and commentary are also broadcast as news podcasts, which are prerecorded and released online. Sometimes these scripts go beyond just audio and add a visual element to become video news. Like audio, hard news typically uses traditional broadcast channels while online media is more likely to host soft news and commentary.
Written articles can also vary based on whether they are published in print or online. Print articles tend to be written around the number of words or lines, as they must be typeset and formatted based on the physical page; this limits the size and quantity of associated images that can be attached to the article. Online articles allow for a greater use of media: articles can be photo essays consisting of nothing but images and captions, they can include infographics that visualize important statistics , and they can hyperlink to additional sources and media. Unfortunately, there are disadvantages to online posting, as digital media requires a consideration for user interaction and search engine optimization that isn't needed for print media.
Written articles can also vary based on whether they are published in print or online. Print articles tend to be written around the number of words or lines, as they must be typeset and formatted based on the physical page; this limits the size and quantity of associated images that can be attached to the article. Online articles allow for a greater use of media: articles can be photo essays consisting of nothing but images and captions, they can include infographics that visualize important statistics , and they can hyperlink to additional sources and media. Unfortunately, there are disadvantages to online posting, as digital media requires a consideration for user interaction and search engine optimization that isn't needed for print media.