5. What Makes a Story "News"?

This is a question that won't even occur to you if you see lightning strike your local nuclear reactor, or spot your pastor dealing drugs out the back of his Honda Civic. However...most news isn't so cooperative, and then you have to dig a little deeper. If you're stumped about what is news and what isn't, consider this as what most people are looking for in news content:

Tell me something new about something I care about.

It's very simple. You can ask yourself when you think you might have found a “news story,” whether it is new information, and whether you are likely to find an interested audience (ie: if Paris Hilton goes to jail again, you’re pretty much guaranteed to find someone who will read about it).