News is information about current events. It can be about political events, health issues or economic developments. It is important to keep up with the news because even if a particular issue does not directly affect you, it may impact someone you know or cause a change in your community. News also keeps you informed of what is happening in the world, which can affect your own opinions and choices.

In order to be classified as news, a story needs to meet the criteria of being new, unusual, interesting, significant and about people. This is not an exhaustive list, but it will give you a good idea of the kinds of things which qualify as news. The more of these criteria a story meets, the more likely it is to be of interest to your audience.

It is important to find a news source which is reasonably unbiased. Some websites, such as AllSides, will show you how much a particular news outlet is leaning to the left or right of centre, which can be helpful in identifying their bias. Other websites, such as FactChecking, will evaluate news outlets on their history of providing verifiable and documented information.

Often the biggest news stories will be those which have the potential to have the greatest impact on your life, or the lives of your family and friends. It is also important to stay up to date on local news because the decisions made by your city council or school board, for example, are likely to have a direct impact on you.