News is a form of communication that reports current events. This can include information about local, national or international importance. It may also include political, economic or social issues. News is typically reported by professional journalists. The aim is to convey accurate information in a way that will be interesting and engaging to the reader.
When writing a news article, it is important to know your audience. This will help you decide which details to include and which to leave out. It is also important to consider the implications of the news you are reporting. For example, a story about an attack on a local bank is likely to have a larger impact than a news item about a zoning dispute in a commercial district.
A good news story should be informative, entertaining and unbiased. It should also be well written and concise. It is also important to cite your sources, and this can be done either directly or indirectly. Direct quoting is often used for human-interest stories, but indirect quoting can also be effective in business articles.
The first paragraph of a news article should be titled and written to attract readers’ attention. It should provide a brief preview of the entire piece and highlight the most important facts. This is called the lede. The lead should be short and snappy, using Associated Press style guidelines unless your publication specifies otherwise. The lead should also contain a byline to identify the writer.
Once you have written your lead, the next step is to write a paragraph that provides more detail about the topic. It is important that the paragraphs follow the lead in order of their importance. This will create a pyramid-like structure that will keep the reader interested and help them understand the importance of each point. This section should include a description of the event or the news item, as well as the people involved.
It is important to note that news values differ from society to society. For example, a man who bites a dog will not necessarily be newsworthy in every society. In general, though, a story that is new, unusual, interesting and significant will be newsworthy.
While journalists strive to be fair, they are still influenced by their own internal system of beliefs and prejudices. These prejudices are tempered by the news values stressed by their profession, but they are still evident in the final product. This is why it is difficult to determine whether a particular news report is objective or not. For example, if a journalist has a strong belief that the Roman Catholic Church should ordain women priests, then this will be reflected in his/her reporting. A good journalist will attempt to overcome this bias by remaining neutral and avoiding making personal opinions about the news.