Who, What, When, Where, Why: Your First News Report

When 9-year-old Hilde Kate Lysiak heard sirens near her home in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, she grabbed her notebook and rode her bicycle to find out what happened. She interviewed neighbors, took photos, and published the story on her own news website — Orange Street News — before any grown-up reporter arrived on the scene. You do not need to be a grown-up to be a reporter. You just need to know how to ask the right questions.

After this lesson, you will be able to: • Explain what news is and why it matters • Name and use the Five W's that every news story must answer • Describe what a reporter does to gather facts • Write a short news report about something that really happened

News is a true report about something that just happened or is happening right now. It can be something big — like a snowstorm closing school — or something small — like your class getting a new hamster. News matters because it helps people know what is going on around them. When people know the facts, they can make good decisions. If you tell your classmates the cafeteria is serving pizza on Friday, you have just shared news! People who gather and report news are called journalists or reporters. Reporters work for newspapers, websites, TV stations, radio stations, and podcasts.

Every good news story answers five important questions. Reporters call them the Five W's. **WHO** — Who is the story about? Who did something, or who was there? Example: 'The third-grade class...' **WHAT** — What happened? Example: '...adopted a class hamster.' **WHEN** — When did it happen? Example: '...on Tuesday morning...' **WHERE** — Where did it happen? Example: '...at Lincoln Elementary School.' **WHY** — Why did it happen? What is the reason? Example: '...because students voted to have a class pet.' Put it all together: 'The third-grade class at Lincoln Elementary School adopted a hamster on Tuesday morning, because students voted to have a class pet.' In just one sentence you answered all Five W's. Reporters call this the lead — the very first sentence of a news story that gives readers the most important facts right away.

Reporters do not make things up. They find out the facts by: **Watching and observing** — Being present where something is happening and noticing everything you see and hear. **Asking questions (interviewing)** — Reporters ask people what they saw, heard, and felt. Good interview questions start with Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How. **Taking notes** — A reporter writes down what people say so they can remember it correctly. Getting the facts right is the most important rule in journalism. **Checking facts** — Before sharing a story, a careful reporter makes sure every fact is correct. If you are not sure something is true, you need to find out — or leave it out.

A journalist's most important job is to tell the truth. Stories that contain made-up information can hurt people — imagine if a reporter wrote that your school was closing, but it was not true! Parents would be upset and trust would be broken. Real reporters: • Only write what they actually saw or what a reliable person told them • Name where they got their information — this is called a source • Correct their mistakes right away if they get something wrong Making up facts in a news story is the biggest mistake a journalist can make.