News is information about current events, either a fact or an opinion. News can be broadcast on TV or radio, published in newspapers and magazines or posted online. It can also be passed around in person, such as a rumour or a story from a friend. News can be reported by journalists, who are trained to report and present accurate and impartial information. But people can also make their own news, such as a story about an event that happened to them or their family members.
In order to be considered newsworthy, a story needs to meet certain criteria. It needs to be new, unusual, interesting, significant and about people. News is also judged by its impact, whether it affects a large number of people or just one. A news story about a terrorist attack, for example, will have much greater impact than a flood in the next town.
People are interested in stories that relate to themselves or their families. For this reason, celebrity gossip and a range of social and political issues will always generate interest. Crime and natural disasters are also of interest, especially when they are large-scale or deadly. People are also interested in health, so there is a lot of potential for news about traditional remedies, medical research and diseases, hospitals and clinics. In addition, most societies are interested in sex, even if they don’t talk about it openly, and therefore there is a lot of scope for news about sex scandals and sex crimes.
It’s important to note that the factors that determine newsworthiness will vary between different societies and cultures. For example, a cow or pig dying will be of less interest to an audience in India than it would be to a population living in the USA, because cows and pigs are not as common there.
Another factor that determines the value of a news story is how quickly and easily it can be understood. If a news item is written in an unfamiliar language or has a lot of technical terms, it will be more difficult for non-native speakers to understand. This is why it’s a good idea to choose news sources that cater to people learning English or have sections for non-native speakers.
A final consideration is the amount of time and attention a story demands. People don’t have all day to read the news, so it’s important that a story is brief and to the point. Long, winding sentences and tangents can cause readers to lose interest in the topic and can even confuse them. Therefore, it is essential that a news story contains all of the relevant details about a topic, including who, what, where, when and why.