News Values

Read Media Factsheet 76: News Values and complete the following questions/tasks. 

Immediacy: has it happened recently?
Familiarity: is it culturally close to us in Britain?
Amplitude: is it a big event or one which involves large numbers of people?
Frequency: does the event happen fairly regularly? 
Unambiguity: is it clear and definite?
Predictability: did we expect it to happen?
Surprise: is it a rare or unexpected event?
Continuity: has this story already been defined as news?
Elite nations and people: which country has the event happened in? Does the story concern well-known people?
Personalisation: Is it a personal or human interest story?
Negativity: is it bad news?
Exclusivity: do any other newspapers have this story?
Visual impact: are there amazing pictures accompanying the story?
Balance: the story may be selected to balance other news, such as a human survival story to balance a number of stories concerning death.

Time span - The event should best fit the time schedule of the news medium, for example a newspaper may be published daily so stories that are over quickly can still be published.

Intensity or threshold value - The story may have a greater magnitude than usual or there may be a sudden increase in the normal

level of events.

Clarity or lack of ambiguity -A story with clear facts that does not cause confusion would be more likely to be published.

Cultural proximity or relevance - The closer the event, in terms of geography or cultural values, the better.

Unexpectedness - Being unusual or unpredictable will add to a story’s value.

Continuity - Once a story is ‘running’ there will be some momentum to carry it further and keep revisiting the story.

Composition - News stories should normally fit the overall balance of the medium.

Socio-cultural - The norms and values of society (and the gatekeepers) at the particular news institution are likely to be reflected in the stories chosen.

Conflict - This can be any kind of conflict from war to relationship conflicts. Some theorist argue that a lot of news output is based on the idea of conflict.

Hardship and danger to the community - This refers to perceived threats either from people, nature or events.

The unusual - These are bizarre occurrences that are not normal everyday happenings.

Scandal - This is misconduct or discreditable behaviour, usually involving high-profile people such as celebrities and politicians.

Individualism - This refers to stories about individuals and their achievements

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1) What example news story does the Factsheet use to illustrate Galtung and Ruge's News Values? Why is it an appropriate example of a news story likely to gain prominent coverage?

Afghanistan, in terms of geographical proximity, is far away from the U.K. but when a young British soldier dies, the story gains cultural proximity as British audiences see the soldier as ‘one of their own’.

2) What is gatekeeping?

Gatekeeping is the process of filtering information prior to dissemination.

3) What are the six ways bias can be created in news?

Bias through selection and omission

Bias through placement

Bias by headline

Bias by photos, captions, and camera angles

Bias through use of names and titles

Bias by choice of words

4) How have online sources such as Twitter, bloggers or Wikileaks changed the way news is selected and published?

The fact that Wikileaks only publishes raw material bypasses news values, however, this information is passed on to news institutions who will use the information for their own news agenda. It is unlikely mass audiences or casual news consumers will look closely at the Wikileaks data as a source of everyday news, it will be journalists who decipher this information and decide what they consider to be relevant for mass publication.

5) In your opinion, how has the digital age changed Galtung and Ruge’s news values? 

Since nothing has to be filtered any news can be seen and people may mistake the immediacy as it can be seen all the time and anybody can post anything so it may not follow the same news values.

6) How would you update these news values for the digital age? Choose TWO of Galtung and Ruge's news values and say how they have been affected by the growth of digital technology.

Ambiguity - The news may not be clear or definite 

Negativity - There are pages that are made for good news and positive news