Technical Writing and 5Ws' and one H

Can the legendary 5 Ws' and one H, widely used in journalism, applicable to technical writing as well? I had this doubt after I viewed a presentation titled, How to Write.

Let us look what 5 W's and One in journalism. It means:
Who?
What?
When?
Where?
Why?
How?

Does who, when, and where matter for a scenario where a user is operating a software? I have my doubts. Anyway, this is an interesting point and I will keep it in my mind whether 5Ws' and One H can indeed be a guideline for technical writing.

In journalis, the inverted pyramid style evolved due to space constraints in a newspaper. For a newspaper, space is a very important thing, because ads occupy some amount of space in a newspaper page. Moreover, the technique was also useful to readers who want to get all the necessary information by reading the first paragraph or lead. It is difficult to apply the same in the strictest sense to a user manual. While space is finite in a newspaper, it is not so for a user manual. Page design also does not limit how much and what you can put in a user manual page.

Journalism is called the first draft of history. A user manual is not a first draft of history. The content in a technical document is always restricted by the product it documents, and it is always meant for specific or multiple audiences. Unlike journalism, where the topics are varied, a user manual is somewhat restricted in what it can document.

The level of precision required in a technical document is very high, compared to newspapers. Newspapers deal with facts, that can turn wrong later, because News is supplied by human sources with a specific personal intent. Such news can be true or it can turn out to be false later. SMEs in a software company do not have a personal choice in providing information. What they provide or what the technical writers learn should be precise information.

In most companies, technical documents get written based on approved structure and style. The writing is always restricted by a style guide that effectively prescribes the Do's and Dont's. In journalism, there is considerable freedom to write in a style that suits the writer. In fact, media houses do have a style guide, but features provide the journalist to adopt a free style in their writings.

Lastly, technical docs are meant for users to complete a particular task. They are not meant to entertain anybody. Moreover, the news published is governed by values such as proximity and significance.

The challenge in technical writing is to convert complex technical concepts to simple information readable by any kind of user. This is a unique challenge that requires considerable self-study, analysis, and judgement. Writing a front-page story is not that similar to writing complete procedures that can reduce support calls.