Reportage is a journalistic textual genre with its own characteristics and whose objective is to transmit information to the recipients.
The report is marked by a larger and more detailed textual structure. The approached theme is presented in a comprehensive way, citing sources, interviews and other information obtained through research.
Despite being predominantly informative, the report can also be classified as an opinionated genre, reflecting the reporter's value judgment. Once completed, the report can be published in various media such as television, print newspapers, radio, internet, etc.
reporting structure
In general, the report has the following structure:
title or headline: is the name of the text. It must be formulated in such a way as to attract the attention and interest of the recipients. It usually consists of concise catchphrases.
Subtitle or secondary title: complements the main title and provides more information, albeit brief, about what will be found in the text. This element is optional.
lead or lead: in journalism, the lead (or lead) is the first paragraph of the text in which the main information of the story is presented, providing an overview to the recipients. Due to the more detailed nature of the report, the lead does not need to answer all the questions (What? Who? When? At where? Like? Why?) that should be answered in other journalistic genres, such as news, for example.
text body: is the development of the report. It is the element of the text that will bring together all the information acquired by the reporter, such as surveys, interviews, graphic material, etc. At the end of the body of the text, the journalist must have answered all the questions related to the topic addressed.
The story does not need to be structured in the model of inverted pyramid, in which the most relevant facts are presented first, followed by their explanations and developments.
Feature of the report
The recurring features in reports are:
Language: the language presented must be clear, cultured, objective and direct.
Predominantly informative text: the main objective of the report is to inform. However, throughout the text it is possible for the journalist to expose their value judgments, without changing the content of the information contained in the story.
Comprehensive and elaborate material: the report does not aim to communicate events (an objective of the journalistic genre of news). The report addresses the effects and developments of facts, and therefore assumes research and more time to be elaborated.
Polyphony: in the reports, the author's “voice” is presented together with others, whether interviewed (witnesses, experts, etc), documents gathered, among others. For this reason, reports are also said to use both direct and indirect language.
Types of reporting
The articles can be:
Exhibitions: when they only present the facts objectively and impartially.
Opinionated: when facts are presented together with the reporter's point of view.
interpretive: when facts are analyzed together with other elements, suggesting a certain conclusion on the subject.
Difference between news and report
News and reporting are two journalistic genres with distinct characteristics and objectives. Both, however, can be referred to by the term "matter".
News
The news aims to present facts in an agile and immediate way, without going into the causes and consequences of the reported event.
The content to be informed by the news is shorter and therefore does not require extensive research or elaboration time. As it is always related to recent facts, the relevance of the news is temporary and expires in a short time. Thus, the matter must be done directly, in a few paragraphs and in the inverted pyramid model (according to the degree of importance).
In the news, the lead must answer the questions “What? Who? When? At where? Like? Because?". In addition to the main facts, the news only supports brief statements that confirm the veracity of the information. Thus, any interpretation or value judgment should be left to the receiver.
Report
Unlike the news, the report addresses the causes and unfolding of facts. Thus, the story will necessarily be longer and more detailed, and the reporter should not be in a hurry to answer all the receiver's questions.
In reports, the reporter has the freedom and space to present more documents and statements to support his story, as well as the power to express an opinion without misrepresenting the facts.
See too:
- Journalism
- News
- fake news
- Sensationalism
- Textual Genre News