How to Write Newsworthy Articles
News is information about current events that is of interest to readers. It can be reported in a variety of formats including newspapers, television and radio. The information is often unbiased, although some sources may have a political or personal bias. News articles should include primary and secondary sources and be written in an engaging way.
There are a number of theories on what makes something newsworthy. One is the’mirror model’, which states that news should reflect reality and be accurate. Another is the ‘Bargaining model’, which argues that different interests influence what is reported. For example, an election might be more interesting than a royal wedding because it involves more people. Finally, the ‘Emotional model’ suggests that a story is more interesting if it causes an emotional reaction in the reader.
Whatever the reason, no theory can fully explain what makes a story newsworthy. Often arbitrary factors like luck, convenience or serendipity play an important role, as when a planned story falls through at the last minute and a previously discarded one is selected to take its place.
A newspaper article is often considered to be newsworthy if it has at least three of the following criteria: it must be new, unusual or interesting. It must also be significant, which is defined as having the potential to affect many people. Finally, it must be able to be presented in a short and concise format, as many newspaper readers only have time to read a few stories above the fold (the crease in the paper where the news section starts).
The first step in writing a good news article is finding an event or development that is worth reporting. This can be difficult as many things are happening all the time. Usually an event must be unusual or unexpected to be considered newsworthy. A man waking up, eating breakfast and catching the bus to work does not make much news. However, if this same man is a celebrity and is involved in a scandal then it might be newsworthy.
Once a topic is selected, it must be researched extensively to make sure it is factual. Some of this research is done through direct interviews, such as a reporter talking to a firefighter about their experience fighting a house fire. Other research is carried out through secondary sources, which are pieces of information collected from other news sources, such as previous reports about the same subject.
In-depth news articles take a smaller topic and explore it in more detail than straight reporting. This is often achieved through additional interviews with individuals or heavy research into records and documents. When choosing a source of news, it is important to check that they have a professional website and follow writing style guides. It is also a good idea to look at the articles that have been written by the source. If they contain many emotive words and sound highly emotional, this could indicate that the writer is trying to create an emotional response in the reader rather than report the facts.