News is information about significant events. It may be about politics, war, natural disasters, weather, education, health, fashion, the economy, entertainment or sport. It is usually reported in written form, but can also be presented orally or in a television or radio broadcast. News is an important part of the public agenda and helps to shape and inform opinions. News is usually classified by its subject matter, its impact and the source of the information.
People have been sharing news since ancient times. It used to be that news would travel slowly, as it was handed down from person to person. In modern times it can be transmitted instantaneously, as newspaper readers are updated constantly about current events via radio, television, mobile phones and the internet. This has greatly influenced the definition of news and has changed the way it is presented.
There are several models of news making, including the Mirror Model, which says that news should reflect reality, the Organizational Model, which argues that different pressures influence the selection of news, and the Political Model, which argues that the ideological biases of people and various pressure groups influence what is deemed to be important enough to be newsworthy. Future research could usefully explore how these factors play out in the selection of news for publication in different social-economic contexts.
Many things make news, but the most common are about people and their actions and reactions. This is because humans are primarily interested in other human beings, and the ways that people change their environment and each other. Weather is another topic that makes news, as are issues related to food and water. People want to know if there are food shortages, a drought or an earthquake nearby.
In addition to being interesting and significant, a news story must be accessible and readable. It should be written in clear language, without jargon and idioms. It should have a snappy headline that draws the reader in and is emotive or creates curiosity. The main paragraphs should be structured using an inverted pyramid format, with the most important points appearing first and each following paragraph adding less detail.
Getting the right balance is difficult. There is a risk that stories can be so full of facts and information that they lose their ability to be persuasive and affect the viewer’s opinion. It is essential that writers consider the audience and publication when deciding how complex or how simple a news article should be. It is also important to remember that what is considered newsworthy in one society may not be newsworthy in another. This is particularly the case with international events.