News is new information or current events. The reporting of news falls into the field of journalism. News can be reported by a variety of sources, such as newspapers, television and radio programs, wire services, and web sites. News reporting is a type of journalism, typically written or broadcast in news style. Most news is investigated and presented by journalists and can be distributed to various sites via news agencies. If the content of news is significant enough, it eventually becomes history.

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Newsworthiness

To be considered newsworthy, an event usually must have broad interest due to one or more news values:-

* Effect (how many people were, are or will be affected?)
* Timeliness (did the event occur very recently?)
* Revelation (is there significant new information, previously unknown?)
* Proximity (was the event nearby geographically?)

In recent years increasing weight has also been given to the following news values:-

* Entertainment (does it make for a fun story?)
* Oddity (was the event highly unusual?)
* Celebrity (was anyone famous involved?)

News items and journalism can be divided in various ways, although there are gray areas. Distinctions include between hard news (serious and timely topics) and soft news (lighter topics); breaking news (immediate events); news analysis; and enterprise or investigative reporting, in which a topic is examined in great detail.

News coverage traditionally begins with the "five W's"—who, what, where, when, why.

Objectivity

In democracies, news organizations are often expected to aim for objectivity: Reporters try to cover all sides of an issue and eliminate bias, as compared to commentators or analysts, who provide opinion or personal point-of-view.

In the United Kingdom, limits are set by the government agency Ofcom, the Office of Communications. Both newspapers and broadcast news programs in the United States are generally expected to remain neutral and avoid bias except for clearly indicated editorial articles or segments.

Many single-party countries have operated state-run news organizations, which may present the government's views. Even in those situations where objectivity is expected, it is difficult to achieve, and individual journalists may fall foul of their own personal bias, or succumb to commercial or political pressure. Individuals and organizations who are the subject of news reports may use news management techniques to try to make a favourable impression.

Etymology

The word "news" came from the adjective "new": "new things", compare Latin aliquid novi? = "any news?" and French les nouvelles = "the news". It is not an acronym for "north, east, west, south".

See also

*Hard news &
soft news
*Current events

List of news websites

*WikiNews homepage
*International Business Times(IBT) website
*All Headline News (AHN) News Briefs Page
*News Headlines
*BBC News website
*ITN News website
*Yahoo News website
*Indian News website
*Google News website
*Associated Press (AP) website
*United Press International (UPI) website
*One World website