News is an account of a current event or development. It can be reported in a variety of media – newspapers, radio and television. The purpose of News is to inform and educate its readers, listeners and viewers. It is not necessarily to entertain, although that is sometimes the result of News – music and drama programs on radio, crosswords in newspapers and cinema or theatre shows in films.
Events have news value when they are new, unusual, interesting, significant or about people. They must also have a time dimension and be current. In addition they must be credible – a factual account supported by reliable sources. News is not always objective; journalists have their own agendas and personal prejudices that influence the selection of stories. These may be social, educational or ideological and are often unconscious. The process of deciding what is newsworthy is complex, and the same event can have different news values in different places and at different times.
The most important news values are timelinesss, impact and significance. An event that happens at a particular moment in time is timely and has the potential to affect many lives. An event that has a large number of people involved is significant. For example, a large fire affecting hundreds of people is newsworthy. An event that is happening at the same time to a large number of people is not newsworthy, but one that is unique or rare is. For instance, an individual sneezing in a room full of people is not newsworthy, but a meteor hitting the Earth is.
A story about a celebrity makes news because people are interested in what these individuals do and how they look. People are especially interested in celebrities who fall from grace, lose their money or are caught up in scandals.
People are also interested in health-related news. This can include anything from traditional remedies, medical research and hospitals to diseases, cures and treatments. People are also concerned with the environment and food – so stories about weather changes, crop diseases or droughts have news value. Sex is of interest in all societies and is usually newsworthy when it involves behaviour that goes outside of societal norms.
Exclusivity is a news value that is becoming less important as the amount of information available on the Internet increases. Previously, it could take hours or days for news to reach consumers from other towns and countries, but now news is available almost instantly over the internet and via commercial cable television. The internet has also made it easier for local news outlets, specialized blogs and local news aggregators to compete with larger news organisations. In some cases, these local outlets can even get the scoop on big stories before they appear in the national press. However, this can lead to inaccuracies and a conflict of interests.