What is explainer journalism? | News | FIPP.com

if news content focuses on the ‘Who, What, When, and Where,’ explainer journalism looks to inform the reader of the ‘How and Why’... give the reader background information about a story to ensure that they are able to properly understand events as they unfold...

Explainer journalism enables the media provider to at least show some intelligence and insight ... additional traffic from Google News which tends to find space on its opening pages for explainer style content alongside the basic news stories....

It doesn't have to be just words. Data can also be illustrated in infographics, while videos of talking heads summarising tricky concepts can be shot quickly and easily.

we’re over-weight in publishing what you could call news and significantly under-weight in publishing other types of content that have longer-term value. That’s what this explainer journalism trend really represents. It’s the tip of an iceberg of web-format content that thrives in the digital environment.’