Understanding News

(News Item)
Definition and meaning

KD. 3.3 & 4.3

There is no single acceptable definition of news
because the elements that constitute news are
constantly changing, and so are the women and
men who select it for the print and broadcast.

The dramatic social, economic, political and

technologies changes sweeping the world have a
profound impact in saying it as a news.
 What is news?
Whatever new happens forms news. Whenever
something unusual, unparallel, extra-ordinary,
exceptional event, incident, happening or
development takes place, the formation of news
begins.
• News definition:
News is everything information received from
N- North
E- East
W- west
S-south
The English word "news" developed in the 14th
century as a special use of the plural form of "new".
• In Middle English, the equivalent word was newes, like
the French nouvelles and the German neues.
News is the timely report of facts or opinions that
hold interests or importance or both for
considerable number of people.
 Purpose/Social Function
• To inform readers, listeners, or viewers about
events of the day which are considered
newsworthy or important.
 Generic Structure
• Newsworthy event (recounts the events in
summary form)
• Background event
• Sources (comments by participant in,
witnesses to and authorities expert on the
event)
 Language Feature
• Focusing on circumstances
• Using material process
• Short, telegraphic information about story captured
in headline
• Use of material processes to retell the events (in the
text bellow, many of the material processes are
nominalized)
• Use of projecting verbal processes in sources stage.
• Focus on circumstances (e.g. mostly within
qualifiers).
The language feature of news item
focus on general topics of human and
non human being. It is characterized
by the dominant use of:
• Short, telegraphic information about story
captured in headline
• Action verbs
• Saying verbs (kata kerja yang identik terjadi pada
aktivitas percakapan: reported/diberitakan,
said/dikatakan, quoted/dikutip)
• Adverbs: time, place and manner
 Tips of Reporting
• We read a “news item” to find out specific
information about an event reported in the
news. Every “news item” has to have the
answers to the five WH questions.
 Things to Remember
• If you read information and write it in your
own words, you are reporting!
• If you copy someone else’s writing, you are
doing something illegal.
• No reporter is allowed to plagiarize from any
other reporter!
a heading at the top of an article or page in a newspaper or magazine.
"a front-page headline"

A headline is the title of a newspaper story, printed in large letters at the top
of the story, especially on the front page.

Byline: The byline on a newspaper or magazine article gives the name of the
writer of the article. Bylines are commonly placed between the headline and the
text of the article, although some magazines place bylines at the bottom of the
page to leave more room for graphical elements around the headline.

Subtitle: The subtitle can be an alternate headline or give further explanation of the title.
Headlines are typically shorter than subtitles. Both work together to build curiosity and tell
the reader what the piece is about.

Flag: The name of a newspaper as it's displayed on Page One; also called a nameplate.
Nature of news
1. News- a report
1st – news is a story, report or accounts. It
may be transmitted from person to person
or by news media. The story may be oral,
written or pictorial in form. It is a message.
The sender is a reporter who encodes it,
he is one who shares an idea, fact or
problem by using words or pictures.
In the communication process a receiver is
one who is a reader, a listener, or a viewer.
One who will decode the message. The
basic motto of a reporter is that his news
story should satisfy most of the them most
of the time. The consumers of a news
differs according to the religious, racial,
and regional background.
2.Ideas, events and problems
Man thinks, and an idea is born. If
shared, this idea may become the basis
for a new product or services, a new
cause or conflict. It may make a thinker
a martyr, millionaire or murderer.
People do things- usually together.
They come together to attend
weddings and funerals, to play
games and make money, to discuss
politics and worship gods. All these
are events.
 The idea, events and problems
provide the substance of the news.
People are concerned with the
both causes and the consequences
what is going and what is
happening around. So the idea,
event and the problem can be a
news.
 3. News is real
Thirdly, the news is an account of
something real. The reporter doesn’t
bring fancies news, nor they are
concerned with the fiction or drama.
The news is real the world that really
exist not the world that is being
created. The reporter is a fact finder.
 4. News is current.

News is current, news is now.

From present, it stretches a little
way into the past and into future.
All news is timely.
 5. News interest people

Fifth, news is an account of

something that interests people.
What ideas, events, problems
command the publics interests…
Qualities of news
 Qualities of news
• Accuracy- it is basics of any news items. If a
reporter fails in accuracy, he/she loses
credibility. The reporter should cross check
the facts and information, figures and names,
and even how to spell their names…people
are generally offended by misspelled names.
Humours and gossips need to be excluded
from the reports.
 Qualities of news

Balance- it is as important as credibility.

If a reporter is writing about a controversy,
he/she should give both sides of a story.
 Qualities of news

Objectivity- the reporter should not

mix his/her opinions in the story. He/
she should only reports the facts and
other people opinions and should not
taking any sides. What is his duty
should be the main objective that is to
report the facts.
 Qualities of news
Clarity- a story should be easy in
understanding. The introductory
subject should be short and in
active voice to the maximum
extent possible. The ideal length of
each para may be of three- four
lines containing small sentences.
 Qualities of news
Impact- the most important is to
know the impact of the story by
the reporter. The reporter should
develop a nose for news, so that
the news can motivate the desired
authorities to work on.
E.g. Non-availability of street lights
News Elements
 NEWS ELEMENTS
• 1.Conflict (tension, surprise)
physical conflict is considered news worthy
because it may lead to injury and damage.
War is a classical example
war, murder, and violent strikes.
E.g. Simple Game story to riots happened
during games.
2. Progress and Disaster
Progress (triumph, achievements)
Disaster (defeat and destruction)-
man made or natural often
dominate the news in a
community
e.g. New advances in science and
medicines
4. Consequences:
Consequences (effects on
individuals or community)-
conflicts have consequence, so it is
also news worthy to note down for
the audience
5. Prominence – (the well known
or the famous)-Names make news
and bigger name makes more
news.
What a prominent person says or
does makes the news.
6. Novelty- (the unusual)-
e.g.
Two headed calf
a 50 kg pumpkin
a cat that walks 200 km to find its
owner who moved to another city.
7. Human Interest- (emotional,
interesting)- The stories not consisting
conflict, consequence etc. These are
also called feature story.
A news story like 105 years marrying
90 years lady.
Some new women products in market.

Children kidnapping
 Where to look for a news??
• Unusual events
• Mysteries and unknown
• Prominent people, places and things
• Statements of a persons in authority
• Whatever the people are talking
about
• All ideas that effects the lives of the
readers
• Conflict between man and man, man and
nature
• Violence, calamities, disasters
• Tragedies and comedies that will interests the
imagination of the readers
• Health, environment, science, money, crime,
sex, humour, human interests, food,
minorities, weather, environment happening