How does your newspaper conform to Galtung and Ruge’s News Values?

Value Meaning Example

ImmediacyHas it happened recently? Is it new?

Newspapers only want to lead on events that have “just happened”. If the event happened some time ago, but has only just come to light, the paper will always try to give it a “today” angle.

Familiarity

Does it mean something to us where we live? Can we relate to it?

A bus crash in Bulgaria isn’t very interesting to British audiences – unless someone British died.

AmplitudeIs it a big event? Does it involve many people?

The 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami was news in the UK because of the number of people killed.

FrequencyIs it something that happened fairly quickly?

A glacier melting is unlikely to make the front page – it takes too long!

UnambiguityIs it clear? Are the results/effects obvious?

Newspapers – especially tabloids – often ignore stories if they think they’re too difficult to explain.

PredictabilityIs it predictable? Do we expect it to happen?

Predictability can be boring, if we know what’s going to happen. However, Elections, Cup Finals and so on are predictable but interesting, and newspapers plan around these diary events.

SurpriseIs it a rare or unexpected event?

Audiences like surprises – even unpleasant ones.

ContinuityHas it already been defined as news? Is it a running story?

Newspapers are always looking for new angles on ongoing news stories, such as political intrigues, sporting countdowns etc.

Elite nations or people

Has the event happened in a country that is important to the audience? Does it concern well-know people?

Events that occur in neighbouring countries, or countries that influence our lives and culture (eg USA, France) interest audiences, as so stories about David Beckham, Prince William and Britney Spears.

PersonalisationIs it a personal or human interest story?

Stories that affect “people like us” – ordinary people – often have the “aah” or the “wow” factor.

Negativity Is it bad news?Bad news always seems to get more press and public attention than good news.

Exclusivity“Are we the only newspaper that has this story?”

Newspapers have to compete for attention on the newsstand – unique stories help them to do that.

Is there a really strong image?

Occasionally, newspapers will lead with a story based on the strength of the images that go with it.

BalanceIs it being used to counterbalance other stories?

Home news stories can often be placed in broadsheets to counterbalance a heavy weight of foreign news. Happy human interest stories sometimes appear in tabloids to balance out a lot of “doom and gloom”.

Task: Explain how your newspaper conforms to News Values

You don’t need to give an example for all fourteen categories but you should have an example for at least the following:

Negativity Immediacy Familiarity Unambiguity Surprise Personalisation Visual Impact