The Effectiveness of News

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Sterling, a man pinned to the ground before he was shot. ... another officer pleaded guilty after shooting Walter Scott as the 50-year-old was running away.
The Effectiveness of News By: Shatha Meshal AlOtaibi

What is new? News is information about current events. Journalists provide news through many different media, based on word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting, electronic communication, and also on their own testimony, as witnesses of relevant events.1 Common topics for news reports include war, government, politics, education, health, the environment, economy, business, and entertainment, as well as athletic events, quirky or unusual events. Government proclamations, concerning royal ceremonies, laws, taxes, public health, criminals, have been dubbed news since ancient times.

Criteria of news The criteria by which news is judged are: • •

Timing Unusual

• •

Interesting Significant

 Timing The word news means exactly that - things which are new. Topics which are current are good news. Consumers are used to receiving the latest updates, and there is so much news about that old news is quickly discarded. A story with only average interest needs to be told quickly if it is to be told at all. If it happened today, it's news. If the same thing happened last week, it's no longer interesting.2

 Unusual Things are happening all the time, but not all of them are news, even when they are new. A man wakes up, eats breakfast and goes to work on a bus; it has only just happened, but nobody wants to read about it because it is not unusual. Ordinary and everyday things do not make news. Of course, if that same man was 90 years old and was still catching the bus to work every day, it would be unusual! 1

"News", Oxford English Dictionary, accessed online, 5 May 2017. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/news 2 “What Makes a Story Newsworthy?”, Media College, accessed online, 5 May 2017. http://www.mediacollege.com/journalism/news/newsworthy.html

The classic definition of news is this: "Dog bites man" is not news; "Man bites dog" is news. This definition, though, is not universal. If dogs are eaten in your society (at feasts, for instance) then it will not be news when a man bites a dog - so long as it has been cooked. What is usual in one society may be unusual in another. Again, we will expect the content of the news to vary from society to society. In every society, though, whatever is unusual is likely to be news.3

 Interesting Events which are new and unusual may still not be of general interest. Scientists may report that an insect has just been found living on a plant which it did not previously inhabit. The discovery is new, and the event is unusual, but it is unlikely to interest anybody other than a specialist or enthusiast. In a specialist publication, this could be big news, but in a general news broadcast or paper it would merit at most a few words.4

 Significant However, if that same insect was one which had a huge appetite, and which had previously lived on and eaten bush grass and if the new plant on which it had been found was rice, then the story becomes news, because it is significant. People may not be interested in bugs, but they are interested in food. If this insect is now threatening their crops, it becomes a matter of concern to them. It is news because it is significant. Similarly, if a peasant farmer says that the Roman Catholic Church should ordain women priests, that is not news. If an archbishop says it, it is news, because what he says on the subject is significant. It is the views of people such as the archbishop which help to form the policy of the Church. Once again, what is interesting or significant in one society may not be interesting or significant in another. The content of the news may be different, therefore, in different societies, but the way' it is identified will be the same.5 3

“Chapter 1: What is news?”, The news manual, accessed online, 5 May 2017 https://www.thenewsmanual.net/Manuals%20Volume%201/volume1_01.htm 4 “Chapter 1: What is news?”, The news manual, accessed online, 5 May 2017 https://www.thenewsmanual.net/Manuals%20Volume%201/volume1_01.htm 5 “Chapter 1: What is news?”, The news manual, accessed online, 5 May 2017 https://www.thenewsmanual.net/Manuals%20Volume%201/volume1_01.htm

What is effectiveness? Effectiveness is the capability of producing a desired result. When something is deemed effective, it means it has an intended or expected outcome, or produces a deep, vivid impression.6

Writing an Effective News •

Use Descriptive Titles and Summaries

The terms you use in the title (which acts as a headline) and summary of your news post can help draw traffic to your website. Incorporate keywords that someone is likely to use in an Internet search. For example, rather than a general title such as Student Presents Research, use Chemistry Student Presents Crystallography Research.7 •

Include Links to Your Website and Other Key Pages

Make a quick link to your department/office website and any other helpful pages—for example, a hub page. Remember that some readers may be seeing the post elsewhere on the Web via RSS (Really Simple Syndication), meaning they may need a link back to your website for more information. Link to outside websites when helpful to your audience, but remember that you may be leading them away from your website.8 •

Provide Context

You and your colleagues are familiar with your department or office, but don’t forget about your other audiences—for example, prospective students and their parents. Make sure those audiences can understand your post.9 •

Include Some Background

Make sure to include background information about your department/office and any faculty or staff members and organizations highlighted. If you’re posting news about a faculty member’s achievement, include background about the faculty member, your department, and the achievement itself.10

6

"Effectiveness”, Dictionary, accessed online, 5 May 2017. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/effectiveness “Writing an Effective News Post”, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, accessed online, 5 May 2017. http://www.iup.edu/web/howto/news-and-events/news/writing-an-effective-news-post/ 8 “Writing an Effective News Post”, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, accessed online, 5 May 2017. http://www.iup.edu/web/howto/news-and-events/news/writing-an-effective-news-post/ 9 “Writing an Effective News Post”, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, accessed online, 5 May 2017. http://www.iup.edu/web/howto/news-and-events/news/writing-an-effective-news-post/ 10 “Writing an Effective News Post”, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, accessed online, 5 May 2017. http://www.iup.edu/web/howto/news-and-events/news/writing-an-effective-news-post/ 7

Some examples about news that affected the public opinion or the government



News affected economically

Saudi Arabia restores civil service and military allowances RIYADH - Saudi Arabia's King Salman issued a royal decree at the weekend that restored financial allowances for civil servants and military personnel that had been cut under austerity measures. "The royal order returns all allowances, financial benefits, and bonuses to civil servants and military staff," said the decree, broadcast on state-run Ekhbariya TV. In September Saudi Arabia cut ministers' salaries by 20 percent and scaled back financial perks for public sector employees in one of the energy-rich kingdom's most drastic measures to save money at a time of low oil prices. The measures were the first pay cuts for government employees, who make up about two-thirds of working Saudis. The decree cancelled those orders, saying they had come as a response to the sharp drop in the price of oil, the main source of state revenues.11



News affected politically

Brexit: Voters choose to leave European Union LONDON - Britain has made a historic decision to leave the European Union in a referendum that stoked passions on issues of immigration and sovereignty, and prompted the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron. “The British people have made a very clear decision to take a different path and as such I think the country requires fresh leadership to take it in this direction,” Cameron told reporters outside 10 Downing Street Friday. Cameron said that transition should happen in October.12

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http://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/23/saudi-arabia-restores-civil-service-and-military-allowances.html http://www.voanews.com/a/britain-votes-to-leave-european-union/3390308.html



News affected in sport

FIFA 'bribe' officials escape punishment (CNN) - FIFA president Sepp Blatter has been cleared of any misconduct by an internal investigation into the bribery scandal that threatened to drag football's world governing body into terminal crisis. But his predecessor, Brazilian Joao Havelange, has now resigned as FIFA's honorary president for his part in the scandal. Havelange and former executive committee members Ricardo Teixeira and Dr. Nicolas Leoz were all found to have accepted illegal payments from FIFA's former marketing partner International Sports and Leisure (ISL). The payments were made between 1992 and May 2000 -- ISL went bankrupt the following year. FIFA's Ethics Committee -- set up by Blatter after the corruption scandal was investigated by the Swiss authorities last year -- said it would not take any further action, adding the case was now closed. The findings of the committee have been published in detail, following Blatter's reelection promise in 2011 to make FIFA's workings more transparent.13



News affected socially

'Black Lives Matter' cases: When controversial killings lead to change (CNN) - Three days, three different resolutions, one common trait: white officers killing black males. Just this week, we learned two officers will avoid federal charges in the 2016 death of Alton Sterling, a man pinned to the ground before he was shot. Another officer has been fired for killing Jordan Edwards, a 15-year-old honor student. And yet another officer pleaded guilty after shooting Walter Scott as the 50-year-old was running away. While officer convictions are rare, such killings have spawned "Black Lives Matter" protests and have led to notable changes -- including reforms to police policy.14

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http://edition.cnn.com/2013/04/30/sport/football/blatter-fifa-havelange-briberyfootball/index.html?hpt=hp_t3 14 http://edition.cnn.com/2017/05/04/us/black-lives-matter-updates-may-2017/