The 5 Ws + How

Today we will be talking about something all journalism students learn, the 5Ws+How. These are the question words journalist should use to make sure that they are giving their readers all the necessary information. The 5Ws are:

WHO
WHAT
WHERE
WHEN
WHY
and HOW

Whenever you read an article in the newspaper you should see if the writer answered all the 5Ws and How. Many times if the information is not known they will say something like:

"An American tourist died yesterday after being hit by a car. The accident occurred at about 5pm near Shijo station, the cause of the accident is not yet known."

So here the:

Who: an American tourist
What: an accident
Where: near Shijo station
When: yesterday at about 5pm
Why: the cause is not yet known
How: he was hit by a car

So you can see the Why information is unknown but the journalist tells us that we don't know why yet. A few days later after an investigation you might get an update on the accident:

"The fatal accident that killed an American tourist last Wednesday, was investigated by police who have now determined that he was crossing the street on a red light when he was struck by a car."

Now we have the,

Why: He was crossing the street on a red light

You are now ready to become reporters or you can use these questions in casual conversation. For example:

A: I went to a party last night.
(When: last night & What: a party)

B: Who did you go with Bob?

A: I went with my girlfriend.
(Who: Bob & his girlfriend)

B: How was the party?

A: It was great, we had a great meal at my friend's house.
(How: great Where: at a friend's house)

This is a natural conversation, as you can see in casual conversation you don't need to answer all 5Ws and How. But if you want the Why you could ask "Why did he(your friend) have a party?" but that is a little TOO direct a more natural question would be "What was the special occasion?" which would answer the reason for the party(why it occurred) indirectly.

That's all for now, have a nice chilly Thursday,

Phil