Journalism Week 4, Lesson 6

1. What IS News? What makes an event or a situation newsworthy?

2. What IS News? Many more events occur and situations develop in the world each day than are reported by the news media. Answer this question thoughtfully on your paper: Why are some events and situations reported as news while others are not? What qualities make a story newsworthy? Suggest as many factors as you can. Explain why these factors define newsworthiness.

3. What IS News? What makes a news story different from a literary story? What makes a news story different from a history? News is often called "the first draft of history"-why? Why do people say that "dog bites man" is not news, but "man bites dog" is news? Under what circumstances would "dog bites man" become news?

4. What IS News? "News values" make stories newsworthy. News values are generally categorized according to the following eight criteria…

5. News Values/Criteria Nearness (How close was the event, situation, or revelation?) Timeliness (How recent was the event, situation, or revelation?) Importance (How many people are affected by the event, situation, or revelation?) Name recognition (Were famous or familiar people involved?) Drama or conflict (Do people's fortunes hang in the balance?) Variety (How many ways can the story be framed?) Human interest (HI) (How many types of readers find the story interesting?) Humor or entertainment (Barring some other strong emotional connection, is there a secondary story line that readers will find insightfully humorous?)

6. News Values/News Criteria Does a news story need to have to have all eight elements?

7. News Values/News Criteria People + Action + Reader Interest = News

8. News Values/Criteria Proceed with research on Handout 2