Reportage

In journalism, reportage (from the Latin reportare = to report, to report) refers to various forms of presentation in which the author reports not from behind a desk but from direct observation. In print media, the term generally refers to a dramaturgically prepared (see also reportage photography) background report that illustrates a factual situation by means of concrete examples, people or their fates. Whereas news and report keep their distance, reportage gets up close and personal and also gives space to observations and further sensory perceptions of its protagonists. In broadcasting jargon, reportage is already considered to be a form of background reporting.

In broadcasting jargon, even simple reporting from the scene of an event is considered reportage. Thus, sports journalists who comment live from the stadium on soccer matches often operate as soccer reporters.

The reporter is allowed – in contrast to the writer of news or reports – to supplement facts with his own impressions, which he has gathered – often while being present at the scene of the event. Ideally, he narrates without judging or commenting, not even by omission. The narrator limits himself to a narrative function, speaks predominantly in the present tense, and thus ensures that the recipient (reader, listener, or TV viewer) can easily put himself in the situation.

Example: “A house was on fire.” The report describes in detail what it looks like inside and tries to make the recipient experience “cinema in his or her head”. It describes the “scorched, black stair railings that it is hard to tell are made of wood.”

A reportage can be linked with interviews and commentaries. It can consist of texts, photographs (photo reportage) or a combination of both. The latter is the most common form.

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