What can UX writers learn from journalists?

Journalism theory can help you produce better UX writing.

From the first newspaper, recognized in France in the 17th Century, to digital breaking news, journalism has changed enormously. This history and experience can help today’s writers greatly.

‘Never trust a journalist looking for a story’ — so the saying goes. Nowadays, with discussions about fake news and post-truth, this field is more vulnerable than ever. It is crucial to save journalism because is not just the study of writing techniques, it includes other aspects that can help modern writers:

History, communication theories, history of art, psychology, photography, sociology, anthropology, media criticism, reporting methods, editing techniques, fundamentals of journalism, and others.

Journalism theories to apply in content strategy

From my experience in journalism, I apply these four theories that always help me to improve my content as a UX writer.

🚧 Gatekeeping
Basically, in journalism, gatekeeping is the process to filter the information and publish only the most relevant. It’s impossible to report everything, so editors have the task of selecting the news and the best channels to publish.

Key takeaways:

• Listen to your editor, even if that’s you: we need some distance from our pieces because when we check our writing, we always think “everything is relevant and I worked hard on that”. Editing is fundamental before publishing a piece.
• Choose the right channel: we can select the right news, but if we use the wrong channel, the message will not be delivered to our public, and our work as a gatekeeper will fail. Websites, landing pages, e-mails, direct messages — take plenty of time to plan your editorial calendar in this multichannel era.

For more about Gatekeeping, read the book Gatekeeping Theory by Pamela J. Shoemaker and Tim P. Vos.

👯Mirror Theory

In journalism, the practice of reporting is based on facts and reflects what is happening in our society. Objectivity is the key in Mirror Theory.

Key takeaways:

• Honesty, integrity, and transparency: in UX writing, we should preserve these values, and take care not to overpromise when we can’t deliver. Align expectations to avoid disappointing clients.
• Be data-driven: many companies work to collect data from clients and markets, precisely to find better ways to build and update products. Use this data to keep your focus on the client’s needs.

The book Trick Mirror by Jia Tolentino offers a good “reflection” about our internet culture that can also help on this point.

📅 Agenda-setting

Elaborated by the journalists Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw in the 1970s, this theory talks about the influence of the press on the public agenda, impacting what governments and populations are concerned about.

Key takeaways:

• Don’t swim against the current: sometimes the current agenda is relevant for the consumers or market of our product. In these cases, check opportunities to participate in the conversation.
• Introduce your own agenda: we can also influence what the public will talk about in our market. Always keep space in your editorial calendar to sync our subjects with public interests. Some of them are possible to predict, like commemorative dates or holidays.

From the book Setting the Agenda: Mass Media and Public Opinion by Maxwell McCombs, we can get real insights for setting your own agenda.

🌪 The Spiral of Silence

This theory by Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann is also crucial for mass communications and political science. It investigated why people avoid conflicts and try to hide opinions when it goes against common sense.

Key takeaways:

• Be inclusive: sometimes, we have a minority group raising some difficult discussions. For a long time, companies have contributed to silencing these subjects. Today, the public observes how companies handle themselves in these situations, so don’t run away from these conversations.
• Consider the different points of view: diversity is an advantage, including when we are creating content, so pay attention to the diverse opinions of your public. Listen to them and create content tests.

The Spiral of Silence: Public Opinion — Our Social Skin by Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann is an essential introduction to this subject. I also recommend Effects of the “Spiral of Silence” in Digital Media by A.E. Hopkins, which includes some good reflections on our contemporary lives.

As a Brazilian, I have lots of Portuguese language readers — for you guys, I strongly recommend the book Teoria do Jornalismo by Felipe Pena, where you can find a great compilation of these and other roles of journalism theory.

UX writing and journalism — a fluid relationship

The term “UX writing” is recent. We can find UX writers or content strategists at tech companies like Facebook, Google, Spotify, Airbnb, Pinterest, Loft, and so many others, and the number is increasing every day.

Not only can we learn from journalists, but we can offer something too. We UX writers promote the quality of the content: consistency, clarity, readability, accessibility, relevance, accuracy, self-awareness, and other specific tones of voices.

Also, we share this mission of “following the truth”, using fact-checking both to inform people (on the journalism side) and to guide them (in the UX writing side).

How can journalism be useful in your writing? Share your opinion.