Convert query ToListAsync in separate method, not ActionResult - entity-framework-6

Question

I am trying to 'convert' a query to List while using async to retrieve the values to a list and return the NewsListViewModel to my controller as a success or failure like so:
var model = await db.News.Where(n => n.newsPublished == false
&& n.newsTitle.Contains(query)
|| n.newsDescription.Contains(query)).
OrderBy(n => n.newsCreatedDate).Select(n => new List<NewsListViewModel>
{
NewsCreatorFName = n.Profile.profileFirstName,
NewsCreatorLName = n.Profile.profileLastName,
NewsID = n.newsID,
NewsCreatorID = n.userID,
NewsTitle = n.newsTitle,
CreatedDate = n.newsCreatedDate
})
.ToListAsync();
or like this:
public static async Task<List<NewsListViewModel>> GetAllNotPublished(string query)
{
if (query != "" && query != null)
{
var model = (from n in db.News
where n.newsPublished == false && n.newsTitle.Contains(query)
|| n.newsDescription.Contains(query)
orderby n.newsCreatedDate
select new NewsListViewModel
{
NewsCreatorFName = n.Profile.profileFirstName,
NewsCreatorLName = n.Profile.profileLastName,
NewsID = n.newsID,
NewsCreatorID = n.userID,
NewsTitle = n.newsTitle,
CreatedDate = n.newsCreatedDate
});
return await model.ToListAsync();
}
else
{
var model = (from n in db.News
where n.newsPublished == false
orderby n.newsCreatedDate
select new NewsListViewModel
{
NewsCreatorFName = n.Profile.profileFirstName,
NewsCreatorLName = n.Profile.profileLastName,
NewsID = n.newsID,
NewsCreatorID = n.userID,
NewsTitle = n.newsTitle,
CreatedDate = n.newsCreatedDate
});
return await model.ToListAsync();
}
}
I am probably going about this bass akwards and WAAAAY wrong but I have been battling with this for hours now trying to figure it out and can't find any examples that look similar.
One thing is that I can return either one just fine if it is in the ActionResult which is strange to me. This below works just fine, but I don't want it in the ActionResult. I would like to have the list retrieval portion in a separate method.
Thanks in advance for any help.
public async Task<ActionResult> PublishList(string query)
{
if (query != "" && query != null)
{
var model = (from n in db.News
where n.newsPublished == false && n.newsTitle.Contains(query)
|| n.newsDescription.Contains(query)
orderby n.newsCreatedDate
select new NewsListViewModel
{
NewsCreatorFName = n.Profile.profileFirstName,
NewsCreatorLName = n.Profile.profileLastName,
NewsID = n.newsID,
NewsCreatorID = n.userID,
NewsTitle = n.newsTitle,
CreatedDate = n.newsCreatedDate
});
return View(await model.ToListAsync());
}
else
{
var model = (from n in db.News
where n.newsPublished == false
orderby n.newsCreatedDate
select new NewsListViewModel
{
NewsCreatorFName = n.Profile.profileFirstName,
NewsCreatorLName = n.Profile.profileLastName,
NewsID = n.newsID,
NewsCreatorID = n.userID,
NewsTitle = n.newsTitle,
CreatedDate = n.newsCreatedDate
});
return View(await model.ToListAsync());
}
}