Baseada em questões começadas por W em inglês, que nos leva a estruturar de forma clara e coerente a nossa história: a regra dos 5 Ws.
…or how to successfully write a press release or news story!
It all comes down to a formula or magic rule (be careful not to confuse it with a potion!), based on questions starting with W in English, which leads us to structure our story clearly and coherently: the 5 Ws rule.
For a journalist, this is one of the golden rules, as it helps to produce any article with the necessary care to answer the curiosity of their reader, viewer, or listener. It is a standard taught in college courses and newsroom desks, and one that everyone religiously follows.
But why is the 5 Ws rule so important?
It is as important as pursuing the Holy Grail of Story Telling, because in reality this is one of the parts of that Holy Grail that all communicators and marketing managers seek.
The rule consists of the notion of relevance and importance that some of the elements that should make up a news story, or in an earlier stage (and worked on by the communication and marketing teams together with the communication agency) in the production of a press release (also known in professional jargon as a press release), giving each element a degree of importance that will lead to its final disposition in the text.
This relevance and importance always begins with the moment of framing the receiver (consumer, reader, listener, viewer) with the theme that will be reported, followed by the presentation of the actors/characters and leaving for the final part the more intricate explanation and account of the subject.
For this purpose, a very simple rule was created based on the English language, which was the 5Ws rule:
- What
- When
- Where
- Who
- Why
A further brief question has also been added to support the description phase of what happened:
- How
But what does each of the questions in the 5 Ws rule mean?
The first 4 questions are usually easily recognized and identified in the first paragraph of any journalistic text, called the news lead, with the 5th and 6th questions being used from the second paragraph onwards, also known as the body of the news.
What? – What?
Any communication, including press releases, requires a simple and clear framework, indicating the action that is the subject of communication or news.
When? – When?
To contextualize the action, it is important to indicate the moment in time when the action takes place.
Where? – Where?
The geographical/physical context of the action will bring proximity to the message receiver, reinforcing the relevance of the message to be transmitted.
Who? – Who?
It is always important to know who the characters in the action are. Whether individuals or entities, they should be described to facilitate and improve the framing and recognition of the action, as well as provide a basis for explaining the reasons for it.
Why? – Why?
With the framework providing a simple and clear description of the actors and their spatio-temporal location, it is highly relevant to explain what actually happened, and what action was newsworthy, in order to demonstrate the value of the message.
How? – How?
This is a complementary question, which leads us to give more details about the actions and other points of interest that led to the production of the news and that will lead to awareness and positioning on the part of the recipient of the message.
