Key Journalistic Genres and Writing Styles

Journalistic Genres

The main journalistic genres are categorized as follows:

1. The News

The news is an objective account of an event where no part of the journalist's opinion is present. It consists of short, critical data of general interest. Its structure includes:

• Headline: A brief sentence that stresses the general appearance of the news and is intended to attract attention.
• Entry: A paragraph that condenses the most important aspects of the news.
• Body: This is made up of a number of paragraphs that develop and complement the entry.

2. The Report

The report is a newspaper article that provides objective information about a topic of interest. It is usually of greater extent than the news. In this genre, the author arrives at the scene of the facts, knows those involved in the topic, collects data, and adds a personal touch. Reports combine information and the opinion that is extracted from the information provided.

3. The Interview

The interview consists of reproducing the dialogue between a journalist and an individual of public interest. The journalist often asks the respondent questions, providing information in a very schematic way. The interview consists of:

• Introduction: This presents the interviewee.
• Body: Contains the questions and answers.
• Conclusion: Contains the comments of the journalist, though it does not always appear.

4. The Editorial

An editorial is an expository-argumentative text that reflects the opinion of a newspaper or magazine regarding a particular current event. The editorial is not signed because the ideological stance of the paper is defended as a whole, rather than by a single journalist.

5. The Remark

The remark is an expository-argumentative text in which the journalist explains and assesses the facts. However, in this case, the journalist is responsible for the content of the work and signs it personally.

6. Informative Chronicle

The chronicle is a story where, in addition to reporting, the journalist values or interprets the facts. The chronicle always starts from the news, but it also assesses the events and describes the environment, providing a more detailed narrative.

7. Cultural Criticism

In this genre, the review of information dominates. The author describes the most relevant aspects of a literary work, a movie, or a concert, and provides their personal impression of them.