The field of world news covers events and issues outside the direct purview of national governments or institutions such as multilateral organizations. A distinction is sometimes made between “world” news and the more narrowly defined topic of national news (although even this definition often includes stories concerning wars in which a country is directly involved or political summits). It may also refer to the overall international context of a story, as in a story about the economic impact of tariffs on goods produced by two countries that are waging a trade war.
The history of the term world news has been a long and tumultuous one. Initially, this was a relatively new and undefined field in journalism. During the early 20th century, newspaper editors and other media representatives were often not well informed about world events; this was especially true for journalists working in far-flung places. This was changed by the development of the news agency, which provides journalists with access to news reports from around the world.
This is now a core part of all major news organizations, both domestic and global. Many of the world’s largest news agencies have separate divisions that focus solely on this type of reporting. Occasionally, the world news is broken into smaller categories such as “breaking news” or “features.” Some of these are devoted to particular continents or regions, while others cover major events that occur worldwide. World news is a key part of the newscasts of most major public broadcasters, such as the BBC and ARD/ZDF in the United Kingdom, CNN and ABC News in the United States and France Televisions in Canada.
