There are several points of view on what journalism is. The Great Encyclopedic Dictionary says that this is a kind of work devoted to the phenomena of life in modern society, its current problems. This means that not only articles in magazines and newspapers can be journalistic.
It should be noted that in the Great Encyclopedic Dictionary when explaining what journalism is, the following is indicated: it can exist not only in verbal form (both oral and written), but also in iconography (caricature, poster, movie, photo), musical and theatrical and dramatic.
"Boris Godunov" by Pushkin - journalism?
In a certain sense, absolutely. Indeed, already at the time of Pushkin this drama had a political orientation. The author opposed the socio-political state of the country at that time.
Nevertheless, Boris Godunov is a work of art. This is not pure Russian journalism. This work should be attributed to the literary genre. Consequently, our definition of what journalism is not yet exhaustive. It needs to be supplemented by adding clarification.
The difference between fiction and journalism
It should be said that fiction uses fiction. She creates heroes who never existed in reality, acting in fictional conditions. But journalism must certainly rely on real facts. Author's conjecture may be inherent in her, but only within the framework of facts well known to all. Adding this clarification, we get an exhaustive answer to the question of what journalism is.
Journalism genres
All materials related to it can be disassembled according to certain criteria, on the basis of which the following 3 generic groups are distinguished:
- Informational - reporting, report, interview, note - combines the event occasion for the speech. Usually they operate with simple information from the source. Their main task is to promptly report on a particular phenomenon, event, or fact. Novelty is one of the most important features of information genres.
- Analytical - journalistic investigation, commentary, version, article, review, print review, review, open letter - they are united by a comprehensive analysis of facts, as well as an in-depth study of modern life. The journalist, creating these materials, carries out analysis-synthesis of reality. He divides the investigated phenomenon into its constituent parts, then studies them in detail, separating the main from the secondary, the essential from the non-essential. After that, he gives recommendations, makes generalizations and conclusions.
- Artistic and journalistic genres - essay, confession, conversation, sketching, pamphlet, feuilleton , epigram, parody, journalistic story, journalistic tale. They are characterized by typification, imagery, emotional expressiveness, as well as the richness of stylistic and linguistic features, visual means. In them, documentary fact recedes into the background. It is more important for the author to rise above this fact or phenomenon.
Mixing genres
It should be noted that modern journalism is characterized by a tendency to interpenetration, a mixture of genres. The genre, being filled with new content, takes on new forms, but usually does not undergo major transformations. Nevertheless, over time, some new trends turn into separate genres. An example is an essay.
Essay Features
These are meditations that are born of the author’s desire to consider aesthetic, historical, political and moral-ethical problems through a specific person, personification. This genre allows you to express and justify the opinion of the author most fully, as well as reflect personal emotions and feelings in it. The essay is also inherent in the artistic typification of the image, and a philosophical and analytical view of the subject under consideration.
Fiction
This concept means a special kind of literary work, which stands at the junction of fiction and socio-political prose. It includes feuilleton, reportage, essay, pamphlet, etc. Like satire, artistic journalism is imbued with the spirit of polemics and tendentiousness. However, there is a significant difference between them. Satire adopts laughter, while artistic journalism is an oratory.