News is information about recent events that are interesting, significant, important or unusual. It covers war, politics, government, education, health, the environment, economy, business, fashion and entertainment. News stories also often include crime, especially violent or unusual crimes. They can also cover celebrity gossip, sex, money and weather. People have been transporting news through written and spoken means for centuries. Modern technology has changed the speed at which news travels. It can now be instantly transmitted across the world via television, radio and the internet.
News articles should focus on providing a factual account of an event and not contain personal opinion. Sources should be quoted and paraphrased to show that the information is not from the reporter’s own viewpoint. A good article should be clearly arranged in an inverted pyramid format – with the most important information at the top to encourage readers to keep reading.
It is often difficult to know what will be newsworthy. How do journalists decide what to include in their newspapers and broadcasts? How do they evaluate a story and decide whether it is worthy of the front page or the inside pages? Do they make the same judgments as everybody else – that a girl going to school or university is more significant than a man marrying a woman or a car killing an animal?