soft news
Light feature stories
Soft news refers to journalism focused on entertainment, human interest, and lifestyle topics rather than breaking events or public affairs.
Celebrity profiles, feel-good stories, and cultural trends qualify as soft news.
The distinction from hard news isn't always sharp—a feature about a politician's hobbies blurs the line.
The evening broadcast ended with five minutes of soft news.
Fawning, uncritical article
- fluffLight, soft fibers
- fillerSubstance closing gaps
- clickbaitSensationalized content for traffic
- viralSpreading quickly online
trending · shareable · listicle · slideshow · watercooler · morning show
Overall state of health
- fashionCurrent popular trend
- travelMovement between locations
- foodieCasual term for epicure
- beautyAesthetic excellence
trends · fitness · recipes · gardening · parenting · self-care · DIY · budgeting
Sensationalist newspaper format
- paparazziAggressive celebrity photographers
- red carpetCeremonial welcome flooring
- gossip columnPublished celebrity chatter
- publicistMedia relations professional
starlet · A-lister · scandal · exclusive · heartthrob · fame · glamour · entourage
Evoking tender positive feelings
- profileSide-facing outline
- feature storyIn-depth magazine article
- feel-goodInducing cheerful contentment
- upliftingEmotionally encouraging
inspirational · community · personal story · triumph · resilience · overcoming adversity · reunion · slice-of-life
Written assessment of cinema
- box officeTicket sales revenue
- premiereFirst public performance
- streamingReal-time digital delivery
- ratingsEvaluative scores assigned
celebrity interview · talk show · awards show · trailer · soundtrack · fandom · spoilers · critic
puff piece
Fawning, uncritical article
viral · trending · shareable · listicle · slideshow · watercooler · morning show
wellness
Overall state of health
beauty · trends · fitness · recipes · gardening · parenting · self-care · DIY · budgeting · relationship advice
tabloid
Sensationalist newspaper format
- paparazziAggressive celebrity photographers
- red carpetCeremonial welcome flooring
- gossip columnPublished celebrity chatter
publicist · starlet · A-lister · scandal · exclusive · heartthrob · fame · glamour · entourage · tell-all
heartwarming
Evoking tender positive feelings
- profileSide-facing outline
- feature storyIn-depth magazine article
- feel-goodInducing cheerful contentment
uplifting · inspirational · community · personal story · triumph · resilience · overcoming adversity · reunion · slice-of-life · viral story
movie review
Written assessment of cinema
- box officeTicket sales revenue
- premiereFirst public performance
- streamingReal-time digital delivery
ratings · celebrity interview · talk show · awards show · trailer · soundtrack · fandom · spoilers · critic · behind-the-scenes
- newsheadlines, headline, viral content, hot topics, newsflash
- journalismreporters, interview, editors, student editors, school paper
- newspapersnewspaper, headlines, headline, articles, article
- articlesarticle, magazine article, features, feature stories, columns
- infotainmentedutainment, infomercial, infomercials, docudrama, docuseries
- journalism termsheadline, headlines, byline, bylines, lead
soft newshard news
Factual, timely journalism
breaking news · spot news · investigative journalism · urgent news · headline news
soft, news, soften, softened, softening, softer, softens, newsworthy, newscaster