What Makes the News?
Ask students: What exactly is news, anyway? What do we mean when we use the word “news”?
Make sure that two answers come up:
First, we can talk about news outlets like newspapers, TV and radio news, and online news sources (either the online versions of TV or print news, like the CBC News website, or news outlets that only exist online.)
Second, we can talk about news as a kind of media. What’s the difference between news and other media like TV shows, movies, social media or documentaries?
Explain to students (you may wish to write this one the board):
To be news something has to be true (unlike a TV show or a movie)
To be news something has to be recent (unlike a documentary)
To be news something has to be unusual (“When a dog bites a man, that isn’t news. When a man bites a dog, that’s news!”)
To be news something has to be important to the audience reading or watching it.
Now, show students (either in a photocopy or onscreen) a news story from CBC Kids News.
For younger students, you may wish to show them a video news clip instead.
Ask students:
What made this newsworthy?
What recent event did it connect to?
Why is it unusual?
Why would it be interesting to the intended audience (kids)?
Now explain the a good news story answers five questions, sometimes called the “5 Ws”: Who, What, When, Where and Why.
Have students access the student chapter What Makes the News? and go through it with the class.
Have students reread or rewatch the news story and have students identify each of the Ws in it using the Structure Strip.
- Older students may be able to do this as short answers. With younger students you may wish to do this as a whole-class activity.