Newsworthiness

Newsworthiness is defined as the timeliness, significance, proximity, prominence and human interest. I found three articles in The Baltimore Sun that I can distinguish these qualities in.

Bush foresees cut in Iraq troops by Feb.

This article is timely because the war surrounds us and some people may hope that the war is coming to a close, others may want a victory and a democracy to be established before the end is declared.

There are few people, no matter where you are in terms of proximity, human interest and prominence, who are not effected by the war. Every American knows at least one person involved in the war whether they are a friend, acquaintance, family member or someone that you hear about through someone else.

Study: Colon cancer screenings lacking

This article is newsworthy because of the impact that it has on most Americans. It is a health issue that needs to be dealt with and the title of the article alone will draw people in and make them aware.

It is timely because it lets people know that they need to be re-screened immediately to make sure that there is no cancer. It is a human interest story because of the effect that it has on many of the readers.

Palin's husband known as a tough hockey dad

This story, though not something I would define as interesting, is somehow newsworthy because of Sarah Palin's position. If she were not John McCain's running mate, this story would never have made it into any newspaper, including any local papers.

While Palin is running and if she becomes the Vice President this story will remain timely and significant. This is a human interest story because it makes Palin seem like a regular citizen. It shows that her family is simply that, a family and they are involved in the same activities as many American families.