News is information about current events. It is usually delivered through a variety of media: word of mouth, printed or posted documents or letters, telephone, radio, television and electronically transmitted data. Democracies depend on a free press to inform the citizenry and keep them informed of events that affect their lives and interests. It is difficult for governments to stop the flow of news or silence it completely; however, they can limit access to information and news by shutting down newspapers, radio stations or television channels.

How interesting the news is depends on who reads it. For example, a story about a bug that is eating crops is of little interest to most people, but if it is the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church who says the church should ordain women as priests, this may make more of an impact on many of the readers of that article.

A good news article will be based on hard facts and present them in an inverted pyramid structure with the most important information at the top of the story. A well written piece will also include supporting material, such as additional factual information about the topic or quotes from interviews that help give readers insight into a particular aspect of the news item.

When writing an article about news, it is essential to always quote sources accurately. It is preferable to use the full first name and both initials of people being referred to in order to avoid jarring the reader with sudden switches between first and second person.