A news feature is a longer piece about a topic of particular interest to listeners and viewers. It is often less serious in tone and much more relaxed in format than a standard news report. The subject matter may also include elements from a different time period or culture, to help the audience better understand contemporary events.
The audience should be at the forefront of your mind from the very beginning, when you start planning a news feature and throughout its production process. The more you know your audience, the more successful a news feature will be.
Often a news feature is complex, with many angles and issues to cover. For example, if there is a plane crash, the initial news angle may be about the number of people who died. However, it is likely that the story will continue to explore other aspects – like passenger safety, the airline’s record, how the rescuers responded etc.
A story arc is a useful way of thinking about how your feature will develop and change, as it is told. It is similar to the advanced pyramid of pyramids story structure we looked at in Introduction to Advanced Techniques, but more flexible because a news feature is not constrained by length restrictions. The arc helps you to build up the overall picture of your subject and the emotions that are involved, so listeners or viewers are kept interested and entertained. This is important because a boring story will be quickly switched off.