Opinion journalism

Opinion journalism is a genre of journalism in which the journalist gives their own commentary, analysis or interpretation of an issue or attempts to persuade the reader of a certain viewpoint. The opinions expressed may be, depending on the type of opinion journalism, either the journalist's personal views or the stance of the publication for which they are writing. The most common types of opinion journalism are editorials, op-eds, columns and news analyses.

Opinion became common in journalism in the late 1400s with the advent of the printing press and the end of feudalism. Fact was inseparable from opinion in journalism until the 19th century, after the telegraph was invented and newspapers began to hire long-distance reporters; in the United States, objectivity turned into a standard, so opinion pieces started being placed in a designated section to distinguish them from fact-based news. Countries outside of the United States continued to incorporate commentary and opinion into their reportage. After television became the primary means of reportage in the mid-twentieth century, American news gradually returned to being opinionated. Online journalism appeared after the internet was invented in the 1990s; many online news outlets have done away with the distinction between fact and opinion.

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