News is information about current events. It can be delivered in many different ways, including word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting or electronic communication. News is often gathered by journalists who may or may not be working for traditional news media organisations such as newspapers, magazines, radio, television and the internet.
A story that is newsworthy has to meet several criteria. It has to be new, unusual, interesting and significant. It also has to be about people. People want to read about people doing things that they can relate to. A man going to work on the bus, for example, does not make news because it is not very unusual. A coup in the country next door, however, does.
It is important that a news article has accurate information and that it provides an outline of all the main facts. It is also good to have a variety of quotes from different sources so that the readers can hear different opinions on the subject. In news writing, it is best not to inject the writer’s own opinion into the article. If you have a question about what is newsworthy, ask the subject and then report what they say.
It is not always easy to decide what is and is not newsworthy. It is a judgement call that every journalist makes all the time. The biggest news gets top billing in the bulletin or on Page One of the newspaper; lesser news is relegated to the inside pages.