A news feature is an in-depth look at a story with the goal of giving readers a more interesting and unusual insight into a topic. While a news feature is less formulaic than a traditional news story, there are still many common elements that should be followed to create a successful piece. When writing a news feature, it is important to remember your audience and keep them at the forefront of your mind throughout the entire planning and production process.
While there is a tendency to think of a news story as being negative and primarily concerned with disasters, accidents, deaths, etc., a good newspaper will make sure to tell stories which are positive as well. A feature is a perfect place to do this, since it gives the writer room and time to step back and view events in perspective, and to link current affairs to a larger social and historical context.
A feature is also a place for writers to experiment with their craft, and there is more scope than in a hard news story for them to let their literary skills show. However, it is important not to allow a writer’s desire to be a great novelist to get in the way of the article’s content; a feature should always inform, amuse or entertain, and not just be interesting to read. It may be helpful to develop a set of criteria for features, like Fairclough does, and use these as a guideline while writing them.
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