36 5.2 News Angle

For a local news story, the people that read the section are interested in or concerned about things going on in their community. There could be a number of angles about the light rail line and different questions that could be asked:

• ECONOMIC: What will be the cost of the line and impact on taxpayers?

• HOUSING: Will light rail affect property values for nearby homeowners and if so, how?

• QUALITY OF LIFE: Will construction disrupt current neighborhoods or businesses?

• PUBLIC SAFETY: What has the existing light rail line done to public safety, accidents or crime?

If the story was being written for a business news segment there would be a different set of questions based on the interests and needs of the audience for business news:

• How will construction affect the local economy or employment?

• What businesses might prosper (or be hurt) if the proposal goes through?

• What has happened to businesses on the current line?

• How will the construction contractors be selected?

Depending on the audience needs, the questions that might be explored about a broad topic like light rail transportation can quickly get quite specific. This specificity helps to narrow the focus of the information you will need to find.