The term 5Ws and 1H in journalism refers to the “who, what, when, where, why, and how” of newsgathering. The answers to these questions become the framework of a news story or feature, ensuring comprehensive coverage.
While its roots date back to ancient times, journalists have relied on this method since the early 20th century when journalism was being established as an academic discipline and evolving into a profession.
This checklist is useful in the research and interviewing phase as well as the writing of a news story.
Ideally in a news piece the writer should answer most of these questions succinctly in the story’s lead (lede) paragraph. This is called frontloading, inserting the important information first to quickly attract and (hopefully) keep a reader’s attention.
Feature stories can be more evergreen if they have some current relevance and interest. There is also more flexibility in lede writing.
The first 4 Ws uncover the hard facts of a story—what was the event, where did it happen, who was involved, and when did it occur. The Why gives the story more depth and context, explaining or exploring the reason, motive, or cause. The How describes the way in which an event occurred and the actions and situations leading up to it. The Why and How often overlap.
Let’s look at each one:
Who?
This question identifies the individuals, groups, or organizations involved in or affected by an event or incident. This can include victims of a crime, protestors, experts, heroes, small business owners, companies, politicians, and so on.
For example, in a story about a forest fire a reporter would probably speak to families who lost their homes, farmers or ranchers, firefighters, environmentalists and scientists (to explain possible causes), and local authorities to answer questions on response and prevention. They can also reference animals hurt or displaced by the blaze. Remember the story about the koala clinging to a tree in the 2020 Australian wildfires? It can also include those who caused the incident.
What?
This refers to the event itself. Before pursuing a story, reporters must measure its level of importance, relevance, and impact to the residents of their beat. What happened to make this story so newsworthy?
A journalist’s job is to tell people what they don’t (yet) know: proposals for a huge new condo development in a small town, a factory’s imminent closing, the impacts of a wildfire, or maybe something positive like a medical breakthrough or the opening of a new museum.
When?
When did this event occur? Immediacy and timeliness are vital in news reporting, which covers important events that are happening now, have just occurred, or are about to happen.
It could be reporting on a recent planning meeting with significant future consequences such as a proposed data center, an event happening now, like a natural disaster, or stories related to an important upcoming event like the midterm elections.
Where?
The where refers to the physical location of a story, the geographical area. It can be local, national, or international depending on the journalist’s beat and audience. Nowadays the location can even be digital as so much occurs online, from social media spats to cybercrime. Locations can range from inside a courtroom to a rocket launch site.
Local journalism focuses on a specific patch covering a state, city, or town, and this proximity alone makes it more relevant, impactful, and of immediate interest to readers.
Why?
The why uncovers or explains the motive, reason, or cause of an event, its importance and societal impact. This puts more meat on the bones of a story, offering context, depth, background, and insight. It leads to the ‘because’ of a story. This event happened because of negligence, a breach of security, incompetence, or on a more positive note, the bravery of an individual or a mother’s love.
For example, why are local businesses closing at an alarming rate? Is it because of tax hikes, online shopping, or lack of resources? Then a follow up question could be (to bring in the how in the same piece) how can small businesses survive in this economy?
How?
The how is often connected to the why, depending on the nature of the story. This often requires a deeper dive, unless you can quote from an official statement. Finding how an event occurred involves interviewing experts, authorities, and government officials, looking at historical context—what actions preceded the event, how did the situation unfold, and what mistakes were made?
For instance, if you were writing about an industrial accident that contaminated nearby areas, you’d want to ask how things got out of control, was it due to human error or machine failure? How did it affect the community’s health? How can such accidents be prevented in the future?
The why and how are crucial elements of a story, as they engage, inform, and intrigue the reader, requiring deeper research, multiple sources, and thorough fact checking. Answering these questions can lead to positive societal changes: more stringent protocols, improved safety measures, and even new government regulations.
So, let’s put this method into practice. Here’s a quick example of a succinct lead utilizing all the Ws and the H:
A July wildfire (when and what) that killed four people (who) and destroyed hundreds of Sun Valley homes (where) was caused by a discarded cigarette according to a new report released by state investigators (how and why).
Fun Fact: The term “5 W’s and 1 H” was immortalized by Rudyard Kipling in a 1902 poem, where he refers to them as ‘six honest serving-men’:
I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.
