reporting

reporting — noun

1. the activity of finding out facts about events and presenting them as news stori

1.nounB2
Definition

the activity of finding out facts about events and presenting them as news stories in newspapers, on television or radio, or online

Example

Mayumi works in television news reporting for a major Tokyo station.

collocation: television news reporting

The newspaper won an award for its reporting on the housing crisis.

reporting on [topic] — typical preposition pattern

Common collocations
  • investigative reporting
  • political reporting
  • news reporting
  • accurate reporting
  • war reporting
  • live reporting
Synonyms
  • journalism

    broader term that includes reporting as well as editing, photography, and commentary

  • news coverage

    focuses on the scope of what is reported about a specific event or topic

  • reportage

    more formal or literary style, often used for long-form in-depth features

Usage Note

Uncountable noun: you cannot say 'a reporting' or 'two reportings'. Frequently modified by a type or field (investigative reporting, political reporting, war reporting) or by a medium (television reporting, online reporting).

Common Mistakes

I read a reporting about the election.
I read a report about the election.
'reporting' is the general activity; a single article or document is called a 'report'.
She works in reporting for the local paper.' (technically correct but unnatural)
She works as a reporter for the local paper.
native speakers prefer 'reporter' when talking about the person's job title.

Word family

  • report
    verbB1
  • report
    nounB1
  • reporter
    nounA2
  • reportedly
    adverbB2
  • unreported
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Journalism is the broadest term, covering all aspects of gathering, writing, and distributing news — it includes reporting but also editing, photography, and commentary. News coverage focuses on the scope and extent of reporting on a specific topic or event (e.g. 'the election received extensive news coverage'). Reportage is a more formal or literary style of reporting, often used for long-form, in-depth features. Use 'reporting' when you specifically mean the act of finding out facts and presenting them as news: 'Her reporting on the scandal took six months.' Use 'journalism' when talking about the profession or industry as a whole, and 'news coverage' when emphasizing how much or how widely something was reported.

journalismnews coveragereportage

Common collocations

Nouns

  • news
  • television
  • newspaper
  • radio
  • online

Phrases

  • investigative reporting
  • political reporting
  • war reporting
  • live reporting
  • news reporting

Prepositions

  • on
  • about
  • from

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Derived from the verb 'report', which entered English from Old French 'reporter' (to tell, relate), itself from Latin 'reportare' (to bring back, carry back), formed from 're-' (back) + 'portare' (to carry). The noun 'reporting' as a distinct activity — the work of gathering and presenting news — emerged in the early 19th century alongside the rapid growth of the newspaper industry.