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PSCI 413A Constitutional Law: Civil Liberties - Evaluating News Sources (Spring 2022) Professor Beavers

Identifying different types of news sources

Newspaper Origami by Public Domain Pictures (used under CC BY-NC 2.0)Identifying accurate and verifiable news content can be a complex task, given the nuances between different types of sources. News content is divided into distinct categories which include: news articles, news analysis, editorials and opinions.

News articles provide impartial information on current events while opinion content attempts to persuade readers of a particular viewpoint concerning an event or current issues through (usually) well-reasoned arguments.

 

Newspaper Origami from Public Domain Pictures Used under (CC BY-NC 2.0); image resized from original


Subcategories of News and Opinion Articles from News or Opinion by Christine Photinos 

(permission to use via Creative Commons license: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).

NEWS

News Article An article written to inform readers about recent events. The author reports essential information (who/what/where/when/why/how).
News Analysis    An article written to inform readers about recent events. The author reports and attempts to deepen understanding of recent events—for example, by providing background information and other kinds of additional context.

 

OPINION

Editorial
An unsigned opinion piece that represents the views of the news organization’s editorial staff.
Opinion Piece      An opinion article by a staff columnist or guest columnist. (If a guest columnist, the writer’s credentials will almost always be identified.)

 

Next: Article Examples

Type of Article Examples 
News Article Trump Impeached Again --- President is Accused of Inciting Insurrection; 10 Republicans Join Democrats in Vote, Wall Street Journal (CSUSM login required)
News Analysis More Than Just a Tweet: Trump's Campaign to Undercut Democracy, New York Times (CSUSM login required)
Editorial Journalism Got More Dangerous in 2020--Including in the United States, Washington Post (CSUSM login required)
Opinion Piece The Lies We Tell Ourselves About Race (NPR)
Letter to the Editor Letters, October 31, 2020 (Los Angeles Times)

Next: Find News Sources in the CSUSM Library