A human interest story focuses on the people and/or events that are at the centre of hard news. It takes a piece of hard news and makes it relatable on a human level. Human interest stories humanise events that we may not otherwise be able to personally relate to.
There are two types of human interest story:
- Stories that focus on people
- Stories that focus on events
There tends to be 5 recurring themes commonly used in the human interest story. Those themes are:
- Life's little ironies
- Animal stories
- Change of fortune
- Lost children
- Romantic adventure
The use of themes in human interest stories is very important as they are representative of societal myths. A myth is a perceived concept within society. The problem with myths in popular culture is that they often distort the true meaning of something. The purpose of the human inerest story is to challenge such myths and to help uncover the humanistic point of view behind the myth.
Unlike the hard news story which commonly deals with 'knowns', the human interest story regularly deals with 'unknowns'. It brings the stories of the ordinary people into the light, giving the journalist the opportunity to bring a major event down to the more relatable level of the people.
Language Style of the Human Interest Story
The language used tends to be more expressive and personal, after all, it is promoting the more personal and human qualities of the news in order to personalise it. In this sense it is a narrative on the human dimension.
Human interest stories allow the writer to create atmosphere and context and offers the reader a better understanding of why people behave in the way that they do and how they feel about their experiences.
This kind of news story can be written in the first person, thus allowing the writer to position themselves in the story.
Writing Structure of the Human Interest Story
The human interest story has the same characteristics of the hard news and feature story in that it should convey timeliness, objectivity and accuracy. It does not follow the inverted pyramid style like that of the hard news story, instead being like a feature and following the traditional story style.
The type of intro regularly utilised in a human interest story is the delayed lead. This helps create atmosphere and context by luring the reader in and not divulging the theme until several paragraphs into the story.
Some Guidelines for Writing a Human Interest Story
- Obtain all possible facts and details
- Be specific
- Gather and use lots of quotes
- Interview, interview, interview!
- Use anecdotes to personalise events based on the subjects experiences
- Have a theme
Mencher (1991) offers the following rules, stating that "few reporters have gone wrong by making the individuals in their stories carry the action":
- Show people doing something
- Let the subject talk
- Underwrite
- Let dialogue and action carry the piece
- Keep the piece moving
Remember, focus on the subject and you will have a successful human interest story.
Sources
Mencher, M. (1991). News Reporting and Writing. New York: William C. Brown Publishers.
Amy Clare Macdonald - Bachelor Behavioural Science (Psychology) Graduate Certificate of Arts (Writing)
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