Chapter 1
Introduction

As a dominant form of mass communication，news is not only the major source for us to know the world，but also a powerful means to shape our values，beliefs，and behaviors. It possesses the power to impact governments，social institutions，and individuals alike. Due to its crucial relevance in human life and an abundance of data sources available，scholars from various disciplines，such as linguistics，semiotics，critical discourse analysis，sociology，psychology，journalism，and mass media studies，have dedicated their attention to studying news discourse comprehensively. The research scope of news discourse has expanded beyond the analysis of linguistic features to encompass a wider array of aspects including news framing，newsworthiness，journalism ethics，political communication，cultural values，social functions，and psychological influences，thereby contributing to a multidimensional understanding of news media. Furthermore，these extensive studies highlight the importance of approaching news discourse from interdisciplinary perspectives in order to obtain a thorough knowledge of it as a persuasive discourse.

News discourse is an inherently rhetorical form of communication，with its primary objective being the persuasion of the audiences and the transmission of ideological messages. However，previous studies on news discourse have frequently disregarded its inherent rhetorical nature，focusing instead on other aspects. By adopting a rhetorical approach in studying news discourse，one can gain valuable insights into how news content is crafted，structured，and disseminated with the intention of influencing its intended recipients. Additionally，given rhetoric's interdisciplinary nature and rich history as a theoretical framework across various disciplines，employing a rhetorical lens can also offer valuable perspectives for researchers in other fields such as journalism and media studies. This book aims to address this gap and contribute to the existing literature by proposing a new lens for evaluating news discourse through the application of rhetorical criticism.