The reporting genre has been extremely popular in the Russian and foreign press since time immemorial. No self-respecting publication can do without it, because the report opens up many informational and descriptive opportunities for the journalist, which help to convey to the reader the maximum amount of information about any current event in social reality.
The term "reportage"
The explanation of why a reportage is unique is contained in the definition of this genre. So, reporting is a genre of information journalism, which has as its main goal the transmission of relevant information directly from the scene, that is, through the “eyes” of the author. This helps to give the reader the impression that he himself is present in the development of events, sees everything described in the report.
It should be noted that the term "reportage" appeared in Russian from the English report, which means "transmit". The translation of this concept in itself limits the reporting within the framework of the system of information genres of journalism,since transmitting information does not mean analyzing it, looking for relationships, finding out the causes and predicting possible consequences. The author simply has to tell the audience what he sees, to notice some small but important details that will be invisible to the layman's eye and that will help the recipients to get the most clear idea of the event, of the people present at the scene, of the environment.
Report story
In its initial meaning, reportage is the notes of travelers, people who were present when a miracle was performed by the hands of God, during any disasters, etc. It was not a genre of journalism, but, one might say, was born earlier her, before she took shape in a coherent system.
One of the first unwitting creators of the report was the ancient Greek scientist and traveler Herodotus, who explored Asia Minor, the Balkan Peninsula and the Middle East. He wrote down everything he saw. These entries subsequently formed a travel journal, which, in fact, was a reportage.
With the advent of the printing press, reporting has also changed. It was already an almost formed genre, which journalists constantly turned to. In the 18th century in England, newspaper employees received the right to attend parliamentary meetings and transmit information "from the scene." Correspondents took shorthand of the information they heard, took notes about the participants in the meeting, the atmosphere and wrote the relevant material, naturally, in the reporting genre.
Bthe end of the 19th century in America and Europe was the "golden age" of reporting. The genre finally took shape and acquired today's features. Journalists paid special attention to traveling to uncharted places on the planet (forests, jungles), as well as the secrets of the surrounding society, the most egregious crimes that were difficult to solve. William Stead, Nellie Bly, Henry Stanley - these are just a few journalists who worked in the reporting genre. They were real masters of their craft, taking the most desperate actions to sort out any problem.
Types of reporting
The most striking, characteristic and frequently encountered types of this genre include event reporting, special reporting, investigative reporting and commentary reporting.
Event reporting is a story about important and topical incidents, as well as about events in which their inner essence is important, and not just their external description. The author does not have to tell about everything that he sees. He needs to pick up the brightest facts and episodes. The most important thing in such a report is to create a "presence effect".
A special report is a type that involves the development and description of a current topic, as well as familiarizing the audience with the results of a situation.
Investigative reporting involves obtaining information on a problematic case from numerous sources, using interviews to clarify the whole picture of what is happening.
The report-commentary is focused on a detailed study of the facets of the describedevents. The author must correctly and clearly explain every detail.
Functions, subject and method of reporting
It is in terms of these parameters that it is necessary to characterize any journalistic genre. So, the subject of the reportage is a significant current event that will be of interest to society. The function is to convey the author's impressions, a detailed description of everything that happens. The method is to create a “presence effect” among recipients.
Report composition
To write a poignant report that will be interesting to read, you need to adhere to a certain structure. It can be conditionally divided into three parts: the plot of the action (should contain a bright event that attracts attention), the main part (a description of what is happening) and the results of the report (the author's attitude to the event, its comments). It is important to understand that reporting is not an analytical genre, therefore, when writing a material, a journalist should not look for reasons, relationships and make forecasts.