Introduction to the News:part 3 (continued) and 4

What is meant by the term slow news day?

When the term “slow news day” is used, it means that on that day there was little to no news to report and putting together a whole broadcast can be difficult and can often end up clutching at straws.

What is the final story often called and what is its function?

The final item is called a “kicker “and its purpose is to round off the broadcast on a light and happy note, normally a story to lift the heavier breaking stories in at the beginning or middle of the show.

What is meant by the term news values and what did G and R have to do with it?

News values, sometimes called news criteria, determine how much prominence a news story is given by a media outlet, and the attention it is given by the audience. In 1965 media researchers Galtung and Ruge analysed international news stories to find out what factors placed them at the top of the news agenda worldwide. They came up with a list of values which acted as a scoring system.

Part four: Discussing bias

Selection and omission: An editor can express bias by choosing whether to use a specific news story.  Within a story, some details can be ignored, others can be included to give readers or viewers a different opinion about the events reported.  Only by comparing news reports from a wide variety of sources can this type of bias be observed. An example of where this bias has been used is

Placement: Where a story is placed influences what a person thinks about its importance.  Stories on the front page of the newspaper are thought to be more important than stories buried in the back.  Many television and radio newscasts run stories that draw ratings first and leave the less appealing for later. An example of where this is present is

Headlines: Headlines are the must-read part of a news story because they are often printed in large and bold fonts.  Headlines can be misleading, conveying excitement when the story is not exciting, expressing approval or disapproval.  These two headlines describe the same event.

Shot selection: Pictures can make a person look good, bad, silly, etc.  Which photos a news producer chooses to run can heavily influence the public's perception of a person or event. An example of this is present in the New York Post showing an image of the first lady looking “miserable” inferring she isn’t happy in her role.

Names and captions: News media often use labels and titles to describe people, places, and events. In many places around the world, one person's friend is another person's enemy. On TV, images, captions, and narration of a TV anchor or reporter can be sources of bias.

Language: People can be influenced using positive or negative words with a certain connotation. People can also be influenced by the tone that a newscaster uses when saying certain words. An example of this appeared in TIME magazine in August,2000 on page 37.