Importance of the Five Ws of Journalism

What, Who, When, Where, and Why: if the fact or event satisfactorily answers these five questions, the essence of the news is guaranteed, because all the data that is needed for a journalist to be able to write or write a note, and for it to be complete with data, are present.

It is a maximum within exercise and the practice of journalism and the exact and unequivocal formula that all journalists must follow and respect because they guarantees complete and accurate knowledge of the data to write or cover an event news.

Likewise, it guarantees the detailed presentation of a news or report

The data collection activity is inherent to the journalist and a fundamental phase of his job when he intuits that an event can be great news, but of course, it is not enough just with the event to build it, but it is vital to obtain subject prima to articulate it, and that is precisely what the answers to the five Ws have.

Questions that arise to the journalist himself when he advances in following a topic of interest, as well as later to the receiver of the news to understand it correctly.

Fight misinformation and fake news

In the era of "fake news" or false news, the response to the five Ws claims the corresponding approach and reality professional that a journalist or media outlet must carry out when reporting.

On the other hand, it is a tool against intentional or unintentional misinformation, for readers, listeners, or viewers.

Complete and updated news

1- Be clear about the What, what is being talked about, understand its relevance and the hook that arouses both for the public and for the medium.

2- Know who the protagonists of the event are, identify them.

3- Indicating the When helps to know and situate ourselves in the time that the event happened, its beginning, duration, and end.

4- Where the event happened opens the doors of exact knowledge of the place where it took place.

5- And Why, brings us closer to the knowledge of a close explanation about the causes or motivations that had that event object of attention and news focus.

The success of a note is in telling everything

Failure to obtain an answer to any of these questions will imply incomplete news, which will not end up informing the receiver, therefore, the most negative consequence of not following this formula is misinformation, which seriously contravenes the purpose of the journalism.

Explore the truth of a remarkable event, understand it, verify it, and finally communicate it, the essence journalistic that is condensed in the 5 W and where the secret of the success of the exercise of the journalism.

Fotolia images: Hideyuki Suzuki, Tatyana