Business news is the branch of journalism that reports on and interprets the economic and commercial activities and changes that take place in societies. Business journalists focus on the processes, effects, and consequences of those commercial activities, disseminating this information through all types of mass media.
Many people have concerns that when a local news outlet is bought by a corporate entity, it may stop reporting the truth in favor of maximizing profits for its shareholders. This concern is especially acute when it comes to small towns, where the cost of maintaining a newspaper or television station can be prohibitively expensive.
Another issue is that large corporate-owned news outlets often present themselves as having a neutral, objective point of view when reporting on issues, when in reality they support the status quo and big business. This is particularly true of news outlets that are funded by advertising dollars.
When writing business news, it is important to consider the audience. Write for an audience of informed, interested readers. Avoid using jargon and technical terms that are not well understood by your audience, and spell out numbers when possible. Make sure you use AP style for all facts and figures; even small mistakes can damage your credibility.
One of the most effective ways to monitor corporate news is to track the amount of column inches or broadcast minutes devoted to pro-war, pro-corporate and other viewpoints by specific media sources. The organization Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) has documented this perspective extensively since its founding in 1986, documenting such essential examples as the US corporate-owned media’s uncritical support for the Iraq War while downplaying citizen opposition to the war.