Process Types

material processes  convey how one participant affected another eg. 'kidnapping' and 'mistreating'.

mental processes convey the mood eg; ‘delighted’ and ‘celebrated’.

verbal processes relay information from speakers eg. 'said' and 'speculated'

The audience can usually be determined by the material processes as ‘molesting’ and ‘kidnap’ which are aimed at adult readers are changed to ‘mistreating’ in articles aimed at younger readers.

Many mental processes  provide a human angle on the piece and appeal to the reader’s emotions.

Verbal processes are reliant on witness statements. Halliday’s research that shows that ‘say’ is the most common verbal process in the news register.