NEWS VALUES II:TIMELINESS, PROXIMITY, NOVELTY, HUMAN INTEREST

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LESSON 05

NEWS VALUES II

In the previous lesson we have discussed some of the news values. Some more news values are as under:

5- TIMELINESS (IMMEDIACY)

"NOW" is more newsworthy than "THEN"

Timeliness, in the field of journalism, no matter print or electronic, means freshness. News is about what is

happening now. A saying goes, "old is gold". It is not true when it comes to a news story. What is old is not

news in any way. It is important to mention here that the word old used here must never be mistaken for

history. These two terms are entirely different and especially in journalism both have different connotations.

History itself is a news value importance of which would be discussed later on.

For instance, Pakistan has won the match. You have come to know about it and one of your friends rush

forward to you filled with thrill and excitement and wishes you to get surprised. But, since you have already

come across the victory of Pakistan in the match, how much ever you try, will not be able to come up to the

situation with natural excitement and spontaneity in reflexive actions.

It is, however, important to note, besides something that has happened just now, news is also about the first

linking of something that had happened earlier but was not known to people.

That is why,

"Radio news is what happened five minutes ago and its impact on what is going to happen in the next five minutes."-------------

(Richard Bestic)

And,

"The strength of radio is its immediacy. Exploit that by constantly up-dating stories and keeping them fresh. We are telling

people what is happening now."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (Malcolm Shaw-news editor independent radio)

6- PROXIMITY (NEARNESS)

"Local" is more newsworthy than "Foreign"

Proximity is nearness which means that an incident which is to be reported as news has taken place near the

people; the news bulletin has been put on air for. We, naturally, tend to take more interest in the news story

that is about us, or our city, or our province, or our country. The closer the accident, the more the interest

will be.

For instance, though tsunami was, more or less, equally devastating for humanity but earth quake took place

in Pakistan's northern areas and Azad Kashmir had more impact on the lives and minds of Pakistani people.

Likewise the news of a train meeting an accident in Pakistan will be heard with far more attention and

concern than news covering an accident of train anywhere in any other part of the world. The obvious rule

hence is, "big problems for them are less important than small problems for us."

7- NOVELTY

Novelty means something different, something against the general routine of people, something amazing,

something incredible, something astonishing, something unusual. Anything, any action, any hobby, any

incident, people would hardly prepare to believe in is something novel and hence carries the characteristic of

novelty.

The birth of twins is, though not very common yet is normal and can be believed in easily. But the news of

the birth of triplets (three children born at the same time to the same mother) or quadruplets (four children

born at the same time to the same mother) is capable enough to surprise people.

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Similarly, a child getting birth with two heads or four legs will provide a reporter with good news.

If you come to know that a person devours up glass or iron or blades, how will you not help yourself

getting astonished? ---. You will certainly.

A man pulling a truck with his moustache, or allowing a tractor overrun himself makes news carrying a

strong flavor of novelty.

So, anything capable enough to surprise your faculty of accepting things comes under the head of

NOVELTY.

Rightly said Charles Dana, a renowned journalist:

"When a dog bites a man, that is not news, but when a man bites a dog, that is news."

8- HUMAN INTEREST

Simply we turn to those news item, we find interest in. Listening to news pertaining to politics to some

people is interesting but at the same time it may bore to a lot of other people.

Some take interest in stories about showbiz but to some people sports news segment serves to make them

turn their radio set on.

Women are normally considered to go after fashion news. News stories regarding commerce and economy

if bore a lot of people, it gathers the attention of more than many as well.

What follows from all above lines under the head of human interest is; a balanced news bulletin one that

carries news items from all possible walks of life and caters for the tastes of maximum number of people.

People with different mindsets normally wish to know about celebrities, dignitaries, showbiz activities,

entertainment, politics and politicians; and those, the mercy of whose decisions and actions, our social,

cultural, political and economic decisions and actions rest on.

9. DISASTER

Disaster is destruction, ruin, adversity, calamity, devastation, and catastrophe. Where there is any disaster on

a considerable scale, there is an availability of news. Earthquakes, tsunami, floods, famine, starvation,

torrential rains, tornados, twisters, all these are natural kinds of disasters and devastations. People wish and

deserve to know about such stories. The coverage of such disasters is not only a professional duty of any

media but also it is a noble service to humanity and a moral and religious obligation. It is media's

responsibility to inform people about the magnitude of the disaster, number and names, if possible, of the

casualties and injured ones, aid activities, rehabilitation efforts, etc.

Destruction as a result of wars is man-created form of disaster. World war-1 and world war-2 left world

with horrible ruins of humans and humanity, death and fear of death are still dancing upon those ruins and

ashes of which are still smouldering. The repercussions of world war-2 are still pregnant with a lot of news

stories. Every year the victims and the next generations of the victims of atomic bombs dropped on

Hiroshima and Nagasaki, lit candles and observe silence to commemorate one of the most destructive

examples of catastrophe history ever witnessed and the heinous act of cruelty earth ever endured.

This gathering of people and their act is news.

10. HISTORY

It is mentioned before that there is no connection between an old event and a historical event. History is an

important source of news. Researchers are all the time working on history and historical events. The digging

of thousands and thousands years old ruins, in fact, is an effort to peep into man's past and to explore the

basic facts regarding man's creation, evolution, and old civilizations. Above all the quest to history is an

effort to quench the thirst of man' faculty of curiosity.

New truths about established truths are also attempted to discover.

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Did Hitler commit suicide? Or was killed? Or did he manage to escape and kept himself hidden till his

natural death?

Was Anarkali buried in wall? Or was she let go secretly?

The motivational force behind the erecting of Taj Mehal was Mumtaz Mehal or the story was somewhat

different?

Any new discovery at Mohinjodaro, Harrappa, or Taxila is news.

11. RELEVANCE

Relevance is another significant news value. Stories which have direct influence on our lives or have direct

relation with us are more important for us. Even a news story that is about my own city will fail to catch my

attention if I am waiting for my own interview on radio.

Any news bout the University of my City will not attract me if there is news about the school where I got

my early education at.

Any news about my own profession is more newsworthy than news about any other profession.

News about the imposition of new tax on cars will not affect a layman who will more be affected by the

news about the rise in the local transport fare.

So relevance of a man with a particular incident or place enhances the weight of the news.

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