When choosing stories to report and publish, it is important to consider the fundamental news values. These are: timeliness, proximity, impact, magnitude, prominence, conflict, novelty and emotional value. Whether the audience is aware of these values or not, most news stories implement at least one.
Timeliness refers to when a story happened. An audience tends to have a short attention span, so the most recent news articles often get the most attention. On Saturday, September 15, 2012, at least two U.S. Marines were killed in an attack on a NATO base in Afghanistan. The Taliban reportedly told BBC that the film Innocence of Muslims was to blame. The film, in which the prophet Muhammad is depicted as a "pedophile-appeasing, bumbling spreader of false doctrine" (Slate) had also been regarded as the motivation behind the murder of US Ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens. Because the latest killing in what is becoming a string of assassinations happened today, the timeliness of the article is very relevant.
Proximity in a story refers to its location. People tend to take more interest in stories that happened nearby. For now, Boston has been out of national news, but as the NFL season begins, the Patriots will likely be making headlines soon as they seek redemption after last year's super bowl.
The impact of a story measures the general effect it will have on the public. The teacher's strike in Chicago has had an impact on all of the students of Chicago public schools that cannot attend school during the strike. According to CNN, 400 hours of negotiations could not bring an end to this conflict, and over 400,000 students are unable to go to school Slate. The parents are also affected because they must find alternatives for their children, whether they be different schools or other child care. The impact of this strike so far has been large.
A story's magnitude measures how many people are affected. It often applies to stories about natural disasters or outbreaks of diseases. In the recent months, West Nile Virus has been increasingly prominent in the southern United States and moving up the east coast into New England. By the end of August, over 1,000 cases had been reported and 42 had died from the disease. Those numbers have been increasing in September.
A story's prominence is based on who is involved. The more high-profile the subject, the wider an audience the story will likely reach. As we approach election season, stories about President Obama and Republican Candidate Mitt Romney are widely read. Now as Christian conservatives begin questioning the GOP's choice in candidate, Romney continues to make headlines.
Conflict in a story explains who hates who. The idea of Anti-Americanism is not new or exclusive to Arabic countries. With the mass release of Innocence of Muslims in Egypt, though, a response to Anti-Americanism has come back into the news. This article explains the rising tensions between the U.S. and some members of the Muslim Brotherhood after the attack on the American Embassy in Libya.
The emotional appeal of a story is what tugs on the heart strings. On the 11th anniversary of 9/11, the story of Dave Karnes and his heroism was published on Slate. The former marine along with another marine rescued two of the last survivors found at the site of the World Trade Center after it collapsed. Karnes drove to Manhattan from Stamford, Connecticut after he heard the news of the attack. He said he had a sense there were people trapped in the debris and was able to rescue two port authority police officers who had been trapped for over nine hours. The emotional appeal in this story is very evident, and it is a great read.
The novelty of a story reflects how unusual it is. In a story on Slate about gender selection, a woman's journey to finally have a daughter after birthing four sons is chronicled. The story explains some of the process behind preimplantation genetic diagnosis and Simpson's ultimately successful and very expensive journey to becoming the mother of a girl.
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