News is information about current events that is delivered through a variety of different media. This may include word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting and electronic communication. News is a very important part of any democracy as it informs the citizens about what is going on around them and how they can make decisions to improve their lives.
When writing a news article it is not the writer’s job to inject their own opinions into the piece, instead they should let the people who are involved speak for themselves. This can be done by conducting interviews or using quotes from press releases. It is also important to note that the news should be accurate and impartial.
The best way to ensure this is by researching the topic thoroughly before writing the story. This will involve answering the who, what, where, when and why questions. Once the research is done it’s time to start writing. It is important to keep in mind that readers and listeners want to be informed, not entertained. Entertainment should come from other areas of the media, such as music and drama on radio or cartoons and crossword puzzles in newspapers.
It is often difficult to tell what makes good news as the criteria can change depending on your audience. Generally speaking though, a news item will be considered good if it is new, unusual, interesting, significant and about people.