A news update is a short article about an event that has occurred in the past or is happening at the moment. The purpose of a news update is to give readers a current account of something that they should be aware of, and that will likely affect them in some way. News updates are often a follow-up to an original story that may have been published in the past, but it’s important to treat them as separate stories with their own intro paragraph and additional background information.
When writing a news update, it’s important to stay on top of current events and jump on opportunities for new angles. For example, if you’re reporting on an ongoing controversy on a reality TV show, try to tie it to a recent death or a holiday anniversary that will provide a fresh news peg.