A piece of news is any event considered relevant to the knowledge of the public. The report is the deepening of the news, bringing significant details to those interested in a given subject.
They are distinct textual genres, but both are common to journalistic production.
| News | reporting | |
|---|---|---|
| Texts | Informative, with union of third and first person | Informative, with union of third and first person |
| Publication | Published or broadcast in the media (spoken or written) | Published or broadcast in the media (spoken or written) |
| Themes | Facts of immediate relevance | Miscellaneous, such as political, social, economic, cultural, etc. |
| Language | Formal, simple, clear and objective | Formal, clear and dynamic |
| Content | Real, current and everyday facts | Interpretation of narrated facts and data |
What is news?
The news is a textual genre based on a fact considered relevant to the general knowledge of society. Therefore, it deserves publication.
Like all informative material, the news deserves journalistic verification, always providing the truth in the most impartial way possible.
The news must be made (written, recorded or filmed) in a short period of time, being something that must be brought to the public almost immediately.
news structure
Because it is a job done quickly, the news genre has a basic structure, which guides the public between the facts. Each medium has its own type of structure, but they all follow a common pattern.
It is necessary to have a title, which should convey the idea of the immediacy of the issue. That is, whoever reads, hears or sees news should be able to get an idea from the title of the content that it is a really recent fact.
Afterwards, it is necessary to open the text with what journalists call deal.
The word "lide" comes from the English lead, which means to lead in Portuguese. In news, it serves so that the reader or spectator has an overview of the events in the first contact with the content.
For a complete lead, material needs to answer six questions:
- What?
- Who? (Subject)
- When?
- Where?
- As?
- Why? (If possible)
Thus, everything that is most relevant is delivered to the public quickly, without delay and directly.
In the following paragraphs or minutes, the author will build on what was revealed in the lead. Thus, it brings additional information, making it necessary that the most important points always appear at the front.
Not so relevant details, which do not cause significant changes in the reported events, are left for the last paragraphs or minutes of a news story.
In this way, the news will follow the formula called “inverted pyramid”, where the bottom of the content is on top.
example of news
To understand in practice:
Fire hits Instituto do Coração in São Paulo
A fire broke out this morning (18) at the Instituto do Coração (Incor) in the Hospital das Clínicas complex, in the west zone of São Paulo. According to a hospital spokesperson, the fire started in a cooling tower outside the building.
The Fire Department sent 18 vehicles to the scene, but the flames, which lasted only 10 minutes, were controlled by the institution's own fire brigade.
However, due to smoke, part of the patients had to be relocated.
Fix the lead: A fire [what] reached this morning (18) [when] the Heart Institute (Incor) [who / subject] in the Hospital das Clínicas complex, in the west zone of São Paulo [where]. According to a hospital spokesperson, the fire started in a cooling tower outside the building. [how and/or why].
What is reporting?
The report is a textual genre based on a fact or subject developed in more depth. It has several elements to offer the reader several versions of the same theme and interpretations of data and events.
By demanding more hours of dedication, the report may take longer to complete, since it will bring much more information than the news.
There are several types of news and reporting, both of which are important textual genres. However, a report may not be considered news, as it can be about several subjects, not having the immediate nature of news.
The report focuses on deepening the facts presented by a news item.
It brings, in addition to a detailed description, data, interpretations of events and different versions given by those who witnessed the event in question.
Structure of the report
The purpose of a report is to present several versions of the same fact or topic, ensuring that the reader forms and has his own opinion on the subject.
However, as it is a more laborious content to be made, there is not a rigid structure for the report, as there is for the news. The main aspect is that the way the story in the report is told captures the reader's attention.
As in the news genre, there should be a title.
The journalist or editor of a print communication vehicle can also opt for a subtitle. This brings more information about what is in the report and serves to draw the reader's attention, arousing curiosity.
In the rest, when presenting a lead answering the six questions of the news, the reporter will unfold in each one of them to present several versions of the same event.
For this, fact-finding is the most cautious possible, much deeper, since the report can create an opinion in the reader's mind.
Sample report
Watch a video report to understand the details of the genre:
According to the American journalist Charles Anderson Dana: if a dog bites a man, there is no news; if a man bites a dog, there is news. In this case, it will be released shortly after the fateful event, with the main information.
But if you read a true story about a man who bit a dog, described in detail, with testimonies of eyewitnesses and the interpretation of the narrated facts and diverse data, is a reporting.
See also the difference between:
- Speech, language and language
- Page and page
