Why and How to Read Newspapers for CSS and PMS Exams | What to Read in the Newspaper| Important

Want to score higher in CSS or PMS exams? Start with the right habit—reading newspapers the smart way!
In this video, we’ll explore how and why reading newspapers is essential for current affairs, essay writing, and interview preparation in CSS and PMS exams. You'll learn:

Which newspapers to read

How to extract relevant information

How to take notes effectively

Time-saving tips to stay consistent

Whether you're just starting your preparation or looking to refine your strategy, this guide will boost your chances of success.
WHY READ NEWSPAPER?

Newspaper reading is the ‘heart and soul’ of CSS preparation. Reading good newspapers is considered an indispensable tool to prepare for the CSS examination. The importance of newspaper can’t be more emphasized as it helps in both compulsory and optional subjects. The quality material that a person can get from newspaper has no parallel and this valuable information can easily be reproduced in Essay, Pakistan Affairs, Current Affairs, Islamiat, International Affairs, Political Science or any other paper. The statistics, quotes, opinions, facts and figures quoted in the newspaper are the latest ones and reading them saves a lot of time as you can easily note them down while reading paper instead of searching them on Google separately. Reading newspaper will help you to develop your opinion. It will bring continuity and understanding in your thoughts. It will assist you in developing canvas of thoughts – thought process development. Your vocabulary will be improved by reading newspaper. Apart from that, it is also an excellent habit that will go a long way in making you a well-informed, socially aware and sensitive human being.

Difference Between Reading Newspaper for CSS and Casual Reading:

You must have read the newspaper occasionally or must be reading a newspaper on daily basis. But how is newspaper reading for CSS exam different from casual newspaper reading?
While reading the newspaper for the casual purpose we don’t have any defined objective other than gaining knowledge of the previous day’s news and the important socioeconomic developments that affect our daily lives. Additionally, newspapers serve as an entertainment source.
But while reading the newspaper for the CSS exam, we have certain pre-defined objectives to achieve:
1) Gain knowledge of the important current affairs
2) Develop insights into the current social, political and economic issues
3) Keep a record of the relevant facts and figures
It is with these objectives in mind you should approach newspaper reading for the CSS
exam.

What TO READ IN A NEWSPAPER?

Now moving on to the “WHAT” part. For beginners, DAWN newspaper is recommended because of its unbiased opinions. The portions that you need to read include:

Front and Back page to know about the current national events.
You need to quickly run through these. You can read news in detail for important one, and just go through heading for non-important one. For example, news related to national, international and business and economy should be given priority here. News like “Supreme Court forms JIT to probe Rs 35 billion mega corruption case” can be skipped because the process to find out corruption has not concluded yet.
In national news, always focus on the implications of an event. For instance, if there is a massive railway mishap, focus on why it happened and how the country is lacking in a comprehensive disaster management plan. You don’t have to remember the precise number of deaths. The same goes for natural calamities. In this case, also read about the geography behind the calamities.
Editorials and Opinions to develop your own opinions regarding all national and international events..
Read editorials and opinions carefully and keenly. They have a great importance in building your thinking and perceptions. These are important for widening your knowledge base, improving language skills, understanding key issues, etc. This section is very useful for English Essay, Current Affairs, Pakistan Affairs and Islamiat.
When you first start to read the editorial it will not make much sense to you, but this is OK. Over a few days of reading you will be able to catch the conversation and from then on editorial reading will be a pleasurable activity for you.
You can even take an article from the op-eds and make its précis daily, this activity will help you in both Current Affairs and English as it will improve your written expression.
The Friday Article in Dawn newspaper helps a lot in Islamiat paper as it helps in formulating a reasonable opinion on pertinent religious issues.

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