The Role of News in Society
The Role of News in Society
News is an unpublished account of human action, which seeks to enlighten, inform, or entertain the readers about current affairs. The first demand of news is that an article should not be published anywhere else before its publication in a news paper. It can also be published only after going through the normal procedures of any other newspaper.
There are many types of news that are published in various newspapers or periodicals. There are news reports on breaking news, sports events, weather forecast, celebrity news, political debates, and even in the form of feature stories in some newspapers. In addition, there are many columns or feature articles in most newspapers on various current events such as politics, religion, business, health, and entertainment. News readers can also find celebrity gossip columns where celebrities are accused of any wrong doing. Some newspapers or periodicals publish material that are referred from other newspapers or magazines.
In news reporting, two forms of media are distinguished – live and recorded media. A live reportage in the sense that it is being reported by a live reporter, and recorded media refers to a news story that has been broadcasted either on television or radio. News readers should ensure that both types of media have been used for the same news story so that the news item can be judged by its own merit. The judgment of the reader is to determine if the information is worthy of being published or not.
The importance of news media is great because it informs the listeners and viewers of what is happening in the world at that time. In fact, the listeners get to know what the government is doing especially in its policies, and what actions are being carried out in the field of defense. News readers can get to know what their elected officials in the state or country are thinking because they make periodic statements during election campaigns. This also makes the news readers well-informed about local affairs.
There are times when a news story is a product of human interest. It is a story that is written to amuse its readers or audience. A news story, for instance, about a natural disaster like the recent floods in the United States is an interesting one and it would appeal to the human interest of most news readers. Although such stories may seem unimportant to some journalists, they are actually an important part of their profession.
News readers are well informed about important events through a variety of medium. Newspapers and channels transmit their news items to a large number of readers through different means. Television news shows also reach a large number of audience through various forms of media. There is no doubt that the importance of this kind of media to the world is enormous.