World news is a term used for the news that focuses on events that take place outside of a country’s borders. It includes reports of global and international politics, wars and other political developments, natural disasters, sports events, international organizations, social, economic and cultural issues, environmental concerns and scientific developments.
World news has many different subfields, but primarily it is the type of news that comes from foreign correspondents working for news agencies or from special envoys sent abroad to report on a particular subject. It is a branch of journalism that has become more and more important as technology and distance communication have made information about events overseas easier to obtain and disseminate.
A full-time foreign correspondent is a journalist who is assigned to cover events that take place in a particular part of the world and who regularly files stories to a news editor. They may be stationed in a foreign city or they may spend much of their time on the road, interviewing officials, community leaders and members of the public.
There are also some reporters who specialize in covering the world of business and industry, as well as those who do investigative reporting. Some of these are freelancers and others are employees of major newspapers and other media outlets.
Another subfield is war reporting, especially war coverage in countries that are belligerent. This is a particularly sensitive topic for the United States, where it can be difficult to distinguish the difference between national and world news, which are often blurred by the presence of both American and foreign forces in a given conflict.