News and Features

'People come for the news, but stay for the features" 

News is information that is happening now. It's breaking news and therefore a current discovery. It is about what people are doing, it most certainly is not their opinion.

Features are factual and about news, but not in the sense that it is happening immediately.

Features are important in setting the 'tone' of the newspaper, whereas news is just news the consumer has very little option in choosing between one title and another.

There are several differences between News and Features:
NEWS:
The news agenda is 'events-led'

• Consumer is told about the news in a brief and summarising way
• It is aimed at a wide audience, the whole public
• The length of a news story can vary
• There are defined styles of writing news
• Pictures are useful
• News is published instantly by staff reporters

FEATURES:

Features are production-led (fitting to schedule and structure of magazine or newspaper)

• Consumer sees the feature in a lengthy and detailed format
• It is aimed at a 'niche' readership
• The length is fixed by editorial structure 
• There are many types of styles but also generic styles too
• Pictures and graphics are essential 
• The feature will be published according to schedule by production staff and freelancers

Examples of broadcasts which consist of news, features or both are as follows:

Monthly Magazines > Entirely Features 

Rolling TV or Radio News > Entirely News

Newspapers > Mixture of News and Features 

Scheduled Shows e.g The Today Programme > Mixture of news with mini-features 

Broadsheet Newspapers > Now run feature 'puffs' which are adverts for articles above the titles, so when you see the paper folded in the news agents, it is the 'puffs' which potential purchasers see. 

There are several different formats for features:

1. Confessional Interview - This is when a person is 'confessing' about something in their private lives or telling us about a personal experience, it gains general human interest as people can read and relate to "My True Story..."

Closer Magazine 25 June 2011

2. Photojournalism - This is a key feature in print, the craft of photographic story-telling is vital to capture character and personality of an individual and to help us visualise events. 

3. Profiles - This is when words and facts are used to paint a picture of somebody, essentially a living obituary. 

4. Consumer Reviews/Art Reviews -  Reviews answer two questions; What is it? Is it any good?

5. Comment/Analysis - This is simply what we say

6. News Feature -  These are "wrap-up news articles" which are printed around news pages or during a scheduled news bulletin. 

7. Feature Interview - This is reporter led, the reporter and the interviewee e.g celebrity star in this feature. The whole feature is based around this interview, typical style of interview is based on "Your chance to meet the real...". 

8. Investigations - This is where the journalist initiates the story rather then following what has happened in court, parliament, council or other schedule meetings. It's a story not on the news agenda, it has been discovered and investigated. 

9. Observational - This is where journalists act as a 'fly on the wall' overseeing events and reporting it, it's about painting pictures with words.

10. Reader Response - This used to be where readers would send letters and write in, but now it is more technologically led, e.g internet responses such as emails, twitter and reply forms 'have your say'.