Who determines whether my story is worth telling?
EDITORS.
That's the short answer. The editors have the final responsibility for what is a credible story and what is not. It is also their responsibility to be in touch with the public's interests. Is the story a national, international or local story?
If the story is a wire story, [a story that is picked up from a national or international news services like the Associated Press [AP] or Reuters, the editor ALWAYS decides on the viability of the story! Sometimes it depends on what is going on in the local area.
There are a lot of different editors in a newspaper. There are news editors, sports editors, style editors, business editors, etc. Some newspapers are even starting to have a Readership editor. Can you guess what their job is?
The editor has to consider a lot of factors if they are going to make good decisions. A good editor must ask questions about a story's worthiness. While the editor has a certain amount of leeway in deciding what stories to run or that they believe will be of interest, there are still questions to be answered.
What kind of story is this?
Does the public care about this issue?
Will this issue change their lives in some way?
Is this simply sensationalism or a valid news topic?
During a daily meeting, editors and reporters will discuss possible topics. They have to examine the story line, the facts that have been [or need to be] gathered to support the story [this is called investigative reporting] and ask any manner of questions about the story. Sometimes the editor will go with a particular story because of a reporter's passion for the topic. This means that the beat reporters and editors have to COMMUNICATE with each other about the heartbeat of the community.
REPORTERS.
You can't forget the reporters!
What are the reporter's responsibilities?
There really are NO excuses for not getting the facts straight!
ESPECIALLY now that there is so much data available via the WorldWideWeb!
Other than the editor, the reporter and the story itself, one more thing must be considered.
READERS.
It is the job of both the editors and the reporters to be in touch with what the readers want! What a novel idea! The readership buys the newspaper, which supports the advertising, which pays for the printing of the newspaper. It is a cycle and the reader is the most important part of that cycle. Without the readers, the cycle would cease and so would the newspaper.