Fairness in News Writing
FAIRNESS IN NEWS WRITING
News is any information that is fresh, unpublished, unusual and generally interesting. As the word itself implies, news contains much that is new, informing people about something that has just happened (Randal, 2000: 23). Newspapers are supposed to be fair in news writing for its capacity can do great harm to the society if written recklessly. Most people believe everything in the newspapers, as a result newspapers exert a profound influence on the minds of the readers. Therefore when some news is reported or written wrongly either by mistake or deliberation, it may cause a lot of harm to the society depending on how they can perceive it. On the other hand, if policy of the newspaper is to promote the welfare of the people, it could do a lot of good to the society. The natural understanding of fairness is when one care about reader and is sensitive to their needs. It is the aim of this essay to explain some of the ways through which fairness can be achieved in newspapers in news writing.
Ensuring objectivity in news writing is one of the ways in which newspapers can achieve fairness. Because of its great impact to the society, newspapers are supposed to be written according to how information was collected without distorting it and including any prejudices and taking or showing the writer’s side of view when writing. The reality is that all people are subjective, partial and biased, but if newspapers are supposed to be fair in writing they are supposed not to take side or remain aloof. The articles in the newspapers are supposed to be in a way that they are impartial and they should be written based on facts without any exaggerations (Retief, 2002: 99). Objectivity in news writing can also be achieved by ensuring that the articles in newspapers are reflecting the exact words and meanings of individuals and concepts respectively. This can be done by ensuring that sources of information are quoted correctly
News is any information that is fresh, unpublished, unusual and generally interesting. As the word itself implies, news contains much that is new, informing people about something that has just happened (Randal, 2000: 23). Newspapers are supposed to be fair in news writing for its capacity can do great harm to the society if written recklessly. Most people believe everything in the newspapers, as a result newspapers exert a profound influence on the minds of the readers. Therefore when some news is reported or written wrongly either by mistake or deliberation, it may cause a lot of harm to the society depending on how they can perceive it. On the other hand, if policy of the newspaper is to promote the welfare of the people, it could do a lot of good to the society. The natural understanding of fairness is when one care about reader and is sensitive to their needs. It is the aim of this essay to explain some of the ways through which fairness can be achieved in newspapers in news writing.
Ensuring objectivity in news writing is one of the ways in which newspapers can achieve fairness. Because of its great impact to the society, newspapers are supposed to be written according to how information was collected without distorting it and including any prejudices and taking or showing the writer’s side of view when writing. The reality is that all people are subjective, partial and biased, but if newspapers are supposed to be fair in writing they are supposed not to take side or remain aloof. The articles in the newspapers are supposed to be in a way that they are impartial and they should be written based on facts without any exaggerations (Retief, 2002: 99). Objectivity in news writing can also be achieved by ensuring that the articles in newspapers are reflecting the exact words and meanings of individuals and concepts respectively. This can be done by ensuring that sources of information are quoted correctly