News is a collection of information about current events that are reported in newspapers, magazines or on radio or television. News can include both facts and opinions about these events. People read and listen to news because they want to know about what is happening in the world around them. The main purpose of news is to inform its audience, but it can also be used to entertain. People often enjoy humorous stories in the news, as well as stories about tragic accidents or disasters.
Choosing what to report on is the biggest challenge for journalists. What is newsworthy depends on the culture of the community in which a journalist works and what the audience wants to hear about. It is often helpful to have an editor look over a story before it is published. An editor can help to ensure that the article is accurate and that there are no grammatical errors or typos. They can also help to clarify unclear sentences or phrasing. It is often a good idea to read an article out loud after it has been written to see how it sounds and to catch any grammatical errors or sloppy wording.
If a story is to be considered newsworthy it must be new, unusual, interesting and significant. An old story cannot be newsworthy, even if it is extremely interesting or significant. For example, a man who bites a dog is not newsworthy, but the assassination of Mrs Gandhi may be.
Some events happen so quickly that they are not considered newsworthy unless the media reports on them. If a man is killed in an explosion at work, this is considered newsworthy but if a cat is killed by a car on the road the event is unlikely to be reported.
Other things that can make a story newsworthy are how the story is presented and whether it is unusual. For example, a story about an accident that is thought to be a first in Australia is likely to be a newsworthy event, while a story about an accident that is thought of as a normal occurrence in America is unlikely to be considered newsworthy.
A final factor that can be taken into consideration is how much a story is expected to affect the audience. An example of this is an earthquake that is predicted to have a serious impact on the community but an earthquake in the middle of nowhere may not be considered to be important enough to report on.
Attempts have been made to update Galtung and Ruge’s news values model to reflect the changing times. Brighton and Foy, for example, propose that news values can be grouped into the following categories: