DEFINITION

•The word journal comes from the Latin word

diurna which means “daily.” In ancient
Rome, short bulletins of battles, fires, and
elections compiled by government officials
were posted up in public places. These were
called acta diurna which meant “daily
events.”
Scope of Journalism
•Journalism may be divided into three
areas: written, oral, and visual
• Periodicals such as newspapers and magazines
fall under written journalism. A periodical,
defined broadly, is a publication that comes out
at regular intervals – daily, weekly, fortnightly,
monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, annually, etc.
• Radio and television are examples of
broadcast media while documentaries
are examples of film media.
Functions of modern
campus papers:
•Information •Documentation
function function
•Opinion function •Entertainment
•Education function function
•Watchdog function •Developmental
•Laboratory function function
Different Journalistic Writings
1.News Writing
2.Feature Writing
3. Sports writing
4. Editorial writing
5. Column
News journalism is straightforward. Facts are relayed
without flourishes or interpretation. A typical news story
often constitutes a headline with just enough
explanation to orient the reader. News stories lack the
depth of a feature story, or the questioning approach of
an investigative story. Rather, they relay facts, events and
information to society in a straightforward, accurate and
unbiased manner.
Feature Writing
Feature writing provides scope, depth, and
interpretation of trends, events, topics or people.
Features aim not only to thoroughly explore a topic
by conducting interviews with numerous experts or
the key people involved, but to offer a previously
unseen perspective on an event, issue, or person.
Feature writing commonly wins prestigious awards
when it manages to achieve this goal. Features
usually have the highest word count of all
journalism types.
Sports Writing
•Sports writing is a
form of journalism in
which a sporting
event, individual
athlete, or sports-
related issue serves
as the dominant
subject.
EDITORIAL WRITING
• An editorial is an article that presents the newspaper's
opinion on an issue. It reflects the majority vote of the
editorial board, the governing body of the newspaper made
up of editors and business managers. It is usually unsigned.
Much in the same manner of a lawyer, editorial writers build
on an argument and try to persuade readers to think the
same way they do. Editorials are meant to influence public
opinion, promote critical thinking, and sometimes cause
people to take action on an issue. In essence, an editorial is
an opinionated news story.
Column
• Columns are based primarily on the personality of the
author, allowing him or her to write about subjects in a
personal style. Column writers can take a humorous
approach, or specialize in a particular subject area or topic.
It’s important for columnists to develop their own voice that
is recognizable by their readership. Columnists can interpret
events or issues or write about their own personal
experiences or thoughts.