- WHAT IS REPORTING/REPORT WRITING?
According to Oxford English Dictionary, report is “a statement of the results of an investigation or of any matter on which definite information is required.” Therefore, a report is a spoken or written account of something heard, seen, done, studied, etc. specially one that is published or broadcast.
Report writing is the narration of an incident that is generally serious and important. A report may be concerned with an incident of natural calamity or an accident. It may also deal with some incidents of important political, social, cultural, economic and sports activity. A report is usually written for publicity, creating awareness and for wider circulation through newspapers or broadcast.
SOME FEATURES OF REPORT WRITING
1. A report is generally written in the past form of the verb. However, present and future tenses may be used in accordance with the sense or ideas expressed.
2. A report is usually written in Indirect Speech. Direct speech is only used when the comment of a witness or participant is given.
3. Reports are of two types—Newspaper report and School/Club report.
4. A report should be written in an unbiased way. It should never mislead the public. The reporter must not express her/his personal opinion on the given topic. Report helps the public to generate their own opinions. However, in case of school/club reports, the reporter may express his/her opinion.
5. The language of a report should be clear, lucid and comprehensible. Simple words should be used. Concrete images should be preferred to abstract images.
6. A report should have ‘Heading’ or ‘Caption’ which should be short but catchy. It should not be more than a sentence. A phrase rather than a sentence is always suitable for the heading.
7. A report should be logical and conclusive. It should help the reader to have a clear opinion or idea of the topic on which it is written.