Journalism Genres and Professional Writing Standards

Opinion Genres in Journalism

Genres of opinion have a guiding function, whose purpose is to form the opinion of readers by interpreting the news. Their main features include:

• Use of the first person by the issuer.
• Use of expressive resources for a decorative style.
• Use of anecdotes, examples, and quotes.
• The presence of argumentation.

Specific Opinion Genres

1. The Editorial: Outlines the ideological view of the periodical; it is generally written by the director. It is always located in the same place and remains unsigned.
2. Column: These are critical reflections on a particular topic signed by celebrities or well-known figures.
3. Letters to the Editor: Written texts by newspaper readers on various subjects, including political, sports, or social commentary, or in response to other letters.

Structure of Letters to the Editor

• An orderly approach to the topic based on ideas.
• Arguments for the stated opinion.
• The name and location of the author. (Quotes and data may be included).

Hybrid Journalistic Genres

Hybrid genres consist of data elements mixed with personal opinions.

1. The Chronicle: A detailed assessment of facts by a person close to the event, adding their own views.
2. Critique: A critical comment about a book, record, or show, performed by a specialist. The specialist reports on the characteristics of the object and evaluates its content.

Framework of a Critique

• Technical details.
• Summary.
• Body of the story: Personal assessment with data concerning the author and a scored appreciation.

Note: A critique can never be aggressive or offensive.

The Language of the Newspaper

The purpose of newspaper language is to be clear, concise, and correct. There are five main problems that arise for reporters:

1. Literalizing the style: It is frequent to encounter rhetorical figures such as metaphor, metonymy, personification, and hyperbole.
2. Employing administrative style: Using language typical of administration and politics rather than referring to things honestly.
3. Using slang: An attempt to approach the reader which usually causes the opposite reaction to that which is sought.
4. Unnecessary use of foreign words: For example, using "nominate" for "name," "organism" for "body," "routine" for "ordinary," or "consider" for "deem," along with many Anglicisms.
5. Abuse of euphemisms.

Features of Journalistic Language

Common features include a propensity to lengthen sentences, an abundance of the passive voice, placing the subject at the end of the sentence, and a mixture of direct and indirect styles.

Codes of Journalism

These are the signs used in the press by journalists:

• Literary language: The written word.
• Iconic language: Photos, drawings, and images.
• Intermediate elements: Words that have iconic value (headlines) and text that supports icons (captions).

The borders with literary language are defined by the written format. The message consists of both text and images. This follows a hierarchical arrangement according to the newspaper's design. The most important sections are typically placed on odd pages in the top half of the layout.