Breaking news is information about events that are occurring right now. It can be anything from a plane crash to a fire. These stories have the highest news value because they occur in real time and must be reported immediately. Because of the importance of breaking news, media outlets compete to be first with a story, often interrupting regular programming or even their own regularly scheduled newscasts to air a live broadcast. These cut-ins can be stressful for viewers.
The first step in writing a good news article is gathering all the relevant information. This can be done by interviewing witnesses, looking through government documents or researching old articles. Then, journalists write an article that explains the events in a way that is both accurate and compelling.
When a breaking story occurs, the newscast usually stops or interrupts other programming, such as a sports event or movie premiere, with an alert graphic and a countdown sequence. This allows other network affiliates to switch to the live feed. When 24-hour news networks emerged, they replaced the need for a live cut-in by posting breaking stories online as they happen and filling their print editions with more evaluative or investigative pieces that focus on why and how.
A good news lead answers six essential questions – Who, What, When, Where, How and Why. It should also provide an indication of what kind of article the reader is in for, such as hard news (an incident with a specific person) or human interest (an event that impacts many people). The word choice and sentence structure should appeal to the target audience. Avoid jargon and use short sentences to keep the article readable on small screens.