The two papers in question here are the International Herald Tribune (IHT), which is the 'global version of The New York Times', and The Times of London. This is an attempt to compare and contrast these two international papers as opposed to my previous postings on this issue which have just compared and contrasted Irish national newspapers with each other or with a foreign paper.
The date in question is Tuesday 28 April and the IHT leads with three stories on the front page with two 'home' (USA) stories about the man of the moment President Barack Obama and also about another story consistently making the headlines: swine flu. The BP1 story balances the news with a foreign story about the conflict in Sri Lanka.
In stark contrast, The Times leads with the one major story and an encompassing picture of riot police in Mexico city responding to riots about the swine flu that has gripped the city and caused 149 deaths so far and hospitalised 2,000. Very minor single-sentence and small-pictured sections below the fold are given to other stories, which are explored in more detail inside the paper. It is important to remember that I am looking at the tabloid version of The Times.
Interestingly the font in the two papers is quite different but the journalistic style remains very similar... the main difference being the amount of text contained within the front page itself: The Times simply refers readers to pages within the paper where the stories are explored in more detail. The newslist for the IHT is located below the fold as opposed to The Times usual location of right of the page.
Tellingly the IHT runs an ad, albeit a small one, at the bottom right of the front page. Perhaps it is because of lack of room but The Times lacks any such advertisement on its front page, showing the need of advertising revenue even for a paper the stature of The New York Times.
Journal 17: The Feature Piece Exclusive
The Irish Independent's 'Review' section of the paper is a very opinionated section of the paper involving short and long interviews of celebrities in Ireland and light-hearted feature pieces on figures such as Brian Clough. It also includes investigative pieces such as the one in this paper which reports on middle America heading to the soup kitchens due to the economic crisis.
What this posting is particularly interested in is the exclusive on page 5 by Gemma O'Doherty on Gerry Ryan's thoughts about taking a pay cut - the much-discussed pay cut in the halls of RTÉ which has caused national disgust within the Irish people.
This feature piece includes a non-direct style of interview, where the writer asks questions in a feature style piece which the interviewee answers - while the writer also gives a history and reaction to his comments.
The piece also includes reaction from the man who stood in for Ryan while he was on holiday, who comments that he was 'disgusted by RTÉ's top stars'. This piece features on the same page as the faux-interview, and is written in first-person style as a snapshot reaction to the opposing piece.
The pictures on the page show other RTÉ stars who have taken a pay cut also, serving as a reminder of the story that dominated the papers just days ago.
The rest of the 'Review' contains... well... reviews of books, films, tv and art in general, including a 'Final Word' section, which on this day is basically a review and opinion on son of two journalists Jake Myers' life, which doubles as a view on children in general.
What this posting is particularly interested in is the exclusive on page 5 by Gemma O'Doherty on Gerry Ryan's thoughts about taking a pay cut - the much-discussed pay cut in the halls of RTÉ which has caused national disgust within the Irish people.
This feature piece includes a non-direct style of interview, where the writer asks questions in a feature style piece which the interviewee answers - while the writer also gives a history and reaction to his comments.
The piece also includes reaction from the man who stood in for Ryan while he was on holiday, who comments that he was 'disgusted by RTÉ's top stars'. This piece features on the same page as the faux-interview, and is written in first-person style as a snapshot reaction to the opposing piece.
The pictures on the page show other RTÉ stars who have taken a pay cut also, serving as a reminder of the story that dominated the papers just days ago.
The rest of the 'Review' contains... well... reviews of books, films, tv and art in general, including a 'Final Word' section, which on this day is basically a review and opinion on son of two journalists Jake Myers' life, which doubles as a view on children in general.
Journal 16: A Different Paper
It is Tuesday 7 April, and today's post concerns the British paper The Guardian - traditionally a different paper to The Times and one of interest as it serves as a mirror to our own Irish Times in that it remains staunchly a broadsheet paper in its treatment of news values.
The front page remains a haven of detail in The Guardian - planty of information is given about the story of the day, which happens to be the earthquake which recently hit Italy. This story is printed with a traditional headline and above the fold in the style that broadsheets have been publishing for many years and is very reminiscent of The Irish Times' style of presentation, in that the masthead includes generally two stories of interest and the front page usually has no more than two or three separate stories. Interestingly, The Guardian does not make use of a newslist at the side of the page.
The BP1 story for The Guardian is what could possibly be termed a 'public interest' story - the smoothie manufacturer 'Innocent' is determined as losing its innocence as it has sold a stake in its company to global 'evil' soft drink manufacturer Coca-Cola.
The colour piece includes details on the company and its method of operations and is a very light story which in theory could be balance for the picture of horrific scenes in the Italian earthquake above the fold. Even so, this is a little unusual for a broadsheet.
It seems British papers are much further apart in their own ways than their Irish counterparts are to each other - perhaps because we have less papers we lack in diversity?
The front page remains a haven of detail in The Guardian - planty of information is given about the story of the day, which happens to be the earthquake which recently hit Italy. This story is printed with a traditional headline and above the fold in the style that broadsheets have been publishing for many years and is very reminiscent of The Irish Times' style of presentation, in that the masthead includes generally two stories of interest and the front page usually has no more than two or three separate stories. Interestingly, The Guardian does not make use of a newslist at the side of the page.
The BP1 story for The Guardian is what could possibly be termed a 'public interest' story - the smoothie manufacturer 'Innocent' is determined as losing its innocence as it has sold a stake in its company to global 'evil' soft drink manufacturer Coca-Cola.
The colour piece includes details on the company and its method of operations and is a very light story which in theory could be balance for the picture of horrific scenes in the Italian earthquake above the fold. Even so, this is a little unusual for a broadsheet.
It seems British papers are much further apart in their own ways than their Irish counterparts are to each other - perhaps because we have less papers we lack in diversity?
Journal 15: Broadsheet/Tabloid Sports Coverage
Concentrating on the weekend of March 22/23, when the Irish rugby team did the (almost) unthinkable and secured a Grand Slam victory for the first time in many years, I was interested in seeing how a traditionally football-oriented tabloid paper kept up in its coverage against the more traditionally rugby-bound columns of the national broadsheets.
In typical tabloid fashion, the Sunday Star lead their celebration section with "Slambod Millionaires!", simultaneously including both Brian O'Driscoll (BOD) and the Oscar-Winning (and therefore relevant to champions) film Slumdog Millionaire, as well as alluding to the paucity of Irish rugby's trophy cabinet down the years and their sudden rise which is mirrored by a young Indian slum boy in the film. Quite brilliant really.
In terms of content, the Star pales in comparison to The Irish Times' impressive coverage. A good six pages of large broadsheet paper are dedicated to the celebration and analysis of the victory with a multitude of columnists, while the Star pays its dues but concentrates on the images of the final victory, almost in order to tell the story with pictures.
The Irish Times Sports Section simply prints a massive picture of O'Gara wheeling away in celebration after his drop-goal which ensured the win in Cardiff, with the simple line "Ireland deliver on a Grand scale". Reaction is almost over-covered, with players, coaching staff, fans and columnists' own opinions all included as well as more analysis of the game and the tournament as a whole. I found the coverage in The Irish Times much more satisfactory to read than the Star's, as it was more in depth and had greater feeling.
In typical tabloid fashion, the Sunday Star lead their celebration section with "Slambod Millionaires!", simultaneously including both Brian O'Driscoll (BOD) and the Oscar-Winning (and therefore relevant to champions) film Slumdog Millionaire, as well as alluding to the paucity of Irish rugby's trophy cabinet down the years and their sudden rise which is mirrored by a young Indian slum boy in the film. Quite brilliant really.
In terms of content, the Star pales in comparison to The Irish Times' impressive coverage. A good six pages of large broadsheet paper are dedicated to the celebration and analysis of the victory with a multitude of columnists, while the Star pays its dues but concentrates on the images of the final victory, almost in order to tell the story with pictures.
The Irish Times Sports Section simply prints a massive picture of O'Gara wheeling away in celebration after his drop-goal which ensured the win in Cardiff, with the simple line "Ireland deliver on a Grand scale". Reaction is almost over-covered, with players, coaching staff, fans and columnists' own opinions all included as well as more analysis of the game and the tournament as a whole. I found the coverage in The Irish Times much more satisfactory to read than the Star's, as it was more in depth and had greater feeling.
Journal 14: Advertising Effectiveness?
For Saturday 14 March, I have chosen a sample paper in the Irish Independent to look at how advertising affects how the paper lays out stories and also judge if these adverts have any affect on the reader now that they are more prominent due to falling revenues on the part of the print media.
Noticeably, the advertising begins to have an effect on page 6 of the paper, with an advert taking up proportionally half of the page and the two stories having to be written around it. This possibly affects the size of the pictures included in one story about Google Maps, as the advert is so big the story is squashed in the top of the page.
Underneath this is an education story about a union strike threatening Junior and Leaving Cert exams, which perhaps is restricted in the space it needs to explain the story because of the advertisement on page 6. However a glaring restrictment is page 7 in its entirety: for that is a full page colour advert for B&Q Ireland not remotely related to any news story within the previous or following pages. Another example of this is on page 9 as I turn the page, and an ad for the lottery takes up a good 80% of the page... which includes a lot of white space that could be used for more news stories.
The question I want to ask the most is almost self-explanatory when viewing pages 10 and 11 - two full pages of black and white advertisements for electronics and furniture that I personally think every reader in the country must skip once they spy that these two pages include no stories.
I must ask: do these ads have any effect at all, for the money the advertisers are paying out to launch a two page spread in a national newspaper... as opposed to a large single page ad that is at least within the peripheral vision of someone reading the news pieces. Is it worth actually including those two pages when readers will jsut skip over the pages (unless they see something they like).
Of course this is irrelevant for the newspaper owners - the amount of revenue they must be taking in from advertisers willing to fund a two page spread must be quite big indeed.
Noticeably, the advertising begins to have an effect on page 6 of the paper, with an advert taking up proportionally half of the page and the two stories having to be written around it. This possibly affects the size of the pictures included in one story about Google Maps, as the advert is so big the story is squashed in the top of the page.
Underneath this is an education story about a union strike threatening Junior and Leaving Cert exams, which perhaps is restricted in the space it needs to explain the story because of the advertisement on page 6. However a glaring restrictment is page 7 in its entirety: for that is a full page colour advert for B&Q Ireland not remotely related to any news story within the previous or following pages. Another example of this is on page 9 as I turn the page, and an ad for the lottery takes up a good 80% of the page... which includes a lot of white space that could be used for more news stories.
The question I want to ask the most is almost self-explanatory when viewing pages 10 and 11 - two full pages of black and white advertisements for electronics and furniture that I personally think every reader in the country must skip once they spy that these two pages include no stories.
I must ask: do these ads have any effect at all, for the money the advertisers are paying out to launch a two page spread in a national newspaper... as opposed to a large single page ad that is at least within the peripheral vision of someone reading the news pieces. Is it worth actually including those two pages when readers will jsut skip over the pages (unless they see something they like).
Of course this is irrelevant for the newspaper owners - the amount of revenue they must be taking in from advertisers willing to fund a two page spread must be quite big indeed.
Journal 13: The Foreign Newspaper
Wednesday 11 March, and this post focuses on the British paper The Times and how we can compare this paper to our own national newspapers.
At first glance the tabloid version of The Times seems remarkably similar to the Irish Independent's take on a tabloidised broadsheet, in that the emphasis is on colour and pictures with easy capabiltiy to open the paper on a crowded bus or train, for example.
It would seem that the headlines are in not quite as big a font as the Irish Indo's... this would allow for more stories and even more detail to make it onto the front page of the paper.
Much like The Irish Times, a newslist has been retained at the right of the page (as opposed to the left of The Irish Times front page) to allow readers to quickly turn to a story of their interest. The Irish Indo does not retain this feature, instead relying on the masthead to convey preliminary interest in what would be regarded as the 'hot topic' stories of the day.
What The Times also retains over its Irish counterpart in the Indo is that page 2 is devoted to 'leading articles', i.e what the editor has decided are the leading focal points for the day's news - with a short editorial piece on each story. The Irish Independent pushes its main stories onto both page 2 and 3 allowing (normally) for a full spread once you open the paper.
Personally I am undecided on my preference for either approach - however aesthetically the colour in the Indo catches my eye and entices me to read the page 2 story without skipping over, as many readers would do to an editorial section in The Times, for example.
Largely both papers are similar in style and approach - interestingly, The Irish Times has still not deigned to take a tabloidised approach just yet... in time I presume they will have to.
At first glance the tabloid version of The Times seems remarkably similar to the Irish Independent's take on a tabloidised broadsheet, in that the emphasis is on colour and pictures with easy capabiltiy to open the paper on a crowded bus or train, for example.
It would seem that the headlines are in not quite as big a font as the Irish Indo's... this would allow for more stories and even more detail to make it onto the front page of the paper.
Much like The Irish Times, a newslist has been retained at the right of the page (as opposed to the left of The Irish Times front page) to allow readers to quickly turn to a story of their interest. The Irish Indo does not retain this feature, instead relying on the masthead to convey preliminary interest in what would be regarded as the 'hot topic' stories of the day.
What The Times also retains over its Irish counterpart in the Indo is that page 2 is devoted to 'leading articles', i.e what the editor has decided are the leading focal points for the day's news - with a short editorial piece on each story. The Irish Independent pushes its main stories onto both page 2 and 3 allowing (normally) for a full spread once you open the paper.
Personally I am undecided on my preference for either approach - however aesthetically the colour in the Indo catches my eye and entices me to read the page 2 story without skipping over, as many readers would do to an editorial section in The Times, for example.
Largely both papers are similar in style and approach - interestingly, The Irish Times has still not deigned to take a tabloidised approach just yet... in time I presume they will have to.
Journal 12: The Columnist
This particular post will concentrate on the columnist Ian O'Doherty (specifically his column of Tuesday 24 February), who writes a regular weekday column for the Irish Independent satirisng popular and celebrity culture in (what many would deem) an offensive way... However I find it hilarious!
O'Doherty's stories usually focus on bizarre stories from around the world, such as today's which includes thirty workers at BT in Britain being suspended after an Irish joke did the rounds at their company and they were accused of being culturally insensitive and offensive, but this is just (as O'Doherty states) "the usual rubbish cooked up by the Equality Industry."
Another story included is that of a Satanist in America disowned by the Church of Satan over drug use, which O'Doherty describes simply with "Wow - you know you've hit rock bottom when even the Church of Satan wants nothing to do with you."
O'Doherty's style is satirical and seems to offend and distribute judgment irrespective of gender or religion or conventional categorisation in general - he discriminates indiscriminately, to put it simply.
He also occasionally recommends certain things to his readers, such as picking up a copy of "Dexys Midnight Runners' classic Don't Stand Me Down", while naming it as "the greatest Irish album of all time."
His style includes exaggeration such as conceding the parents who launched a complaint about a one-armed girl on television "have a point - maybe if we started to round up these people, we could prevent them from offending our aesthetic sensibilities. And after them, we could go after the blind and the deaf. And then gingers. And then people from Cork and then... oooh, the possibilities are endless."
Looking forward to reading more of this genius!
O'Doherty's stories usually focus on bizarre stories from around the world, such as today's which includes thirty workers at BT in Britain being suspended after an Irish joke did the rounds at their company and they were accused of being culturally insensitive and offensive, but this is just (as O'Doherty states) "the usual rubbish cooked up by the Equality Industry."
Another story included is that of a Satanist in America disowned by the Church of Satan over drug use, which O'Doherty describes simply with "Wow - you know you've hit rock bottom when even the Church of Satan wants nothing to do with you."
O'Doherty's style is satirical and seems to offend and distribute judgment irrespective of gender or religion or conventional categorisation in general - he discriminates indiscriminately, to put it simply.
He also occasionally recommends certain things to his readers, such as picking up a copy of "Dexys Midnight Runners' classic Don't Stand Me Down", while naming it as "the greatest Irish album of all time."
His style includes exaggeration such as conceding the parents who launched a complaint about a one-armed girl on television "have a point - maybe if we started to round up these people, we could prevent them from offending our aesthetic sensibilities. And after them, we could go after the blind and the deaf. And then gingers. And then people from Cork and then... oooh, the possibilities are endless."
Looking forward to reading more of this genius!
Journal 11: The Back Page/Sports Section
This post concerns the sports page of the Irish Independent on Thursday 5 February and how the paper treated the sports stories of the day.
The main picture taking up the majority of the back page is one of Padraig Harrington, as the news of a minor procedure he had to have taken due to sun spots received while playing golf filtered through to the media. The Indo has unusually gone for a tabloid-like heading "Harrington in stitches", obviously connoting some humorous undertones to the story... of which there are none, really. In fact it is surprising that the lead story was not the 1-0 loss of Liverpool to city rivals Everton, considering the amount of support Liverpool receives in this country, and the magnitude of that story over a technically superficial one such as Harrington needing stitches (forgive the pun)... although that story is mentioned in the back page masthead.
Before I mention the other story, it would be prudent to point out that the Irish Independent has discontinued the policy of using the back page for sport as traditional tabloids do; instead including a section within the body of the paper and devoting the back page to a sort of human affairs roundup. It should be interesting to see if this actually makes an impact on readers... Personally I preferred the back pages being dedicated to sport.
The story at the BP1 part of the back pages is a "Blow for Cork as Croke Park wash hands of row", which concerns the ongoing row in the Cork hurling dispute and Croke Park officials' part in the furore. Both stories are written simply with good introductory single sentences and sticking to a single sentence per paragraph rule throughout the brief. The idea I presume is to invite the reader to buy the paper and read more in-depth articles inside, as the stories on the back page are not too detailed at all. A simple strategy that works as effectively as simple sentences work at getting information across.
The main picture taking up the majority of the back page is one of Padraig Harrington, as the news of a minor procedure he had to have taken due to sun spots received while playing golf filtered through to the media. The Indo has unusually gone for a tabloid-like heading "Harrington in stitches", obviously connoting some humorous undertones to the story... of which there are none, really. In fact it is surprising that the lead story was not the 1-0 loss of Liverpool to city rivals Everton, considering the amount of support Liverpool receives in this country, and the magnitude of that story over a technically superficial one such as Harrington needing stitches (forgive the pun)... although that story is mentioned in the back page masthead.
Before I mention the other story, it would be prudent to point out that the Irish Independent has discontinued the policy of using the back page for sport as traditional tabloids do; instead including a section within the body of the paper and devoting the back page to a sort of human affairs roundup. It should be interesting to see if this actually makes an impact on readers... Personally I preferred the back pages being dedicated to sport.
The story at the BP1 part of the back pages is a "Blow for Cork as Croke Park wash hands of row", which concerns the ongoing row in the Cork hurling dispute and Croke Park officials' part in the furore. Both stories are written simply with good introductory single sentences and sticking to a single sentence per paragraph rule throughout the brief. The idea I presume is to invite the reader to buy the paper and read more in-depth articles inside, as the stories on the back page are not too detailed at all. A simple strategy that works as effectively as simple sentences work at getting information across.
Journal 10: Analyse A Photograph
This time around it's analysing the use of a photograph in a national newspaper.
The picture in question is from the Irish Daily Star on Sunday from the 1st of February 2009.
It's a front page photograph at the bottom of page 1 (BP1) showing child rapist Michael O'Donnell sneaking out of jail at 6.30am after serving less than 4 years for numerous offences.
The paper claims it is an 'exclusive' picture, and it's certainly a good one, with O'Donnell looking particularly shady as he checks the area to see who's around.
The headline accompanying the picture is concise and conjures up the image of a sexual predator - "Out on the prowl" read the massive letters.
This picture works particularly well because it catches the criminal at a perfect time - sneaking out and afraid of the outside world, just as readers would want to view him, so the readership feels vindicated in their image of this child rapist, and the image also serves to enrage them further as the criminal is almost seen to be escaping from jail.
The paper also uses this story to provide more news on controversy over rape sentencing in Ireland - it is a good use of a picture which very few other papers, if any, could have gotten.
The picture in question is from the Irish Daily Star on Sunday from the 1st of February 2009.
It's a front page photograph at the bottom of page 1 (BP1) showing child rapist Michael O'Donnell sneaking out of jail at 6.30am after serving less than 4 years for numerous offences.
The paper claims it is an 'exclusive' picture, and it's certainly a good one, with O'Donnell looking particularly shady as he checks the area to see who's around.
The headline accompanying the picture is concise and conjures up the image of a sexual predator - "Out on the prowl" read the massive letters.
This picture works particularly well because it catches the criminal at a perfect time - sneaking out and afraid of the outside world, just as readers would want to view him, so the readership feels vindicated in their image of this child rapist, and the image also serves to enrage them further as the criminal is almost seen to be escaping from jail.
The paper also uses this story to provide more news on controversy over rape sentencing in Ireland - it is a good use of a picture which very few other papers, if any, could have gotten.
Journal 9: An Objectionable Article
I tried to find an article that I would find objectionable to write about for my journal, and I found one - almost too easily.
The article in question is Kevin Myers' piece in the Irish Independent on Thursday 10th July 2008, with the automatically incendiary title "Africa is giving nothing to anyone - apart from AIDS".
This article is quite clearly out of order, and not just for the obvious reasons, such as his indifference to the pictures of starving children after his conscience has apparently "toured this territory on foot and financially". No, it is also his explicit statement that Africa is an "entire continent of sexually hyperactive indigents", having also disregarded in his title that Africa has no culture or input into the world in any fashion other than the spreading of sexually transmitted diseases.
Without tying anything down, this is probably incitement to hatred, it probably breaches several codes of conduct and most likely is horribly, horribly racist.
He attempts to paint Africa with the brush of "idiotic wars" when all over the world this has always been the case - people have been killing each other with almost no need for an reason such as race or religion for millennia. Not only that, the superpowers of the last century provided the weapons for these "Kalashnikov-toting... layabouts" that Myers so wretchedly derides. Apparently nobody is allowed to try and correct their mistakes anymore.
He recognises that there is "every reason not to write a column like this", yet he goes ahead - it is really something to view such lazy journalism from such an accomplished writer. So we shouldn't feed children because they will become sexual infidels and child soldiers? I'd like to see him deny a child in need. Does he fear they will bite the hand that feeds? Emigrate to Ireland? Clearly we shouldn't support the eradication of a disease (malaria) which has killed a sickening number of human beings throughout time and is easily spread in a continent like Africa.
What he could have said was that the politics of African nations need to be organised to help each other through their food, land, disease and war crises that constantly afflict the troubled continent. What he could have said was that Africa has given us a unique and wonderful contribution to world music, cinema, sport and food. I am not an expert but there are many other facets of Africa which delight people the world over... let us not forget that many problems there are due to the colonial powers also - diamond mining is one example.
I find it as easy to pick out objectionable points in this article as Myers must have found it to write the thing in the first place. Even more indignantly, he insults the reader - I don't find myself morally superior, I don't sneer, I do not feel self-righteous... It just so happens that I felt so ridiculously irritated by this article as he does by pictures of wide-eyed children staring at a camera in starving Africa that I had to write about it.
Definitely expect to be panned when you write a story so lacking in scruples. If it's your job to write columns as if you have a license to incense, then by all means... shoot... just expect to have no respect afterwards.
The article in question is Kevin Myers' piece in the Irish Independent on Thursday 10th July 2008, with the automatically incendiary title "Africa is giving nothing to anyone - apart from AIDS".
This article is quite clearly out of order, and not just for the obvious reasons, such as his indifference to the pictures of starving children after his conscience has apparently "toured this territory on foot and financially". No, it is also his explicit statement that Africa is an "entire continent of sexually hyperactive indigents", having also disregarded in his title that Africa has no culture or input into the world in any fashion other than the spreading of sexually transmitted diseases.
Without tying anything down, this is probably incitement to hatred, it probably breaches several codes of conduct and most likely is horribly, horribly racist.
He attempts to paint Africa with the brush of "idiotic wars" when all over the world this has always been the case - people have been killing each other with almost no need for an reason such as race or religion for millennia. Not only that, the superpowers of the last century provided the weapons for these "Kalashnikov-toting... layabouts" that Myers so wretchedly derides. Apparently nobody is allowed to try and correct their mistakes anymore.
He recognises that there is "every reason not to write a column like this", yet he goes ahead - it is really something to view such lazy journalism from such an accomplished writer. So we shouldn't feed children because they will become sexual infidels and child soldiers? I'd like to see him deny a child in need. Does he fear they will bite the hand that feeds? Emigrate to Ireland? Clearly we shouldn't support the eradication of a disease (malaria) which has killed a sickening number of human beings throughout time and is easily spread in a continent like Africa.
What he could have said was that the politics of African nations need to be organised to help each other through their food, land, disease and war crises that constantly afflict the troubled continent. What he could have said was that Africa has given us a unique and wonderful contribution to world music, cinema, sport and food. I am not an expert but there are many other facets of Africa which delight people the world over... let us not forget that many problems there are due to the colonial powers also - diamond mining is one example.
I find it as easy to pick out objectionable points in this article as Myers must have found it to write the thing in the first place. Even more indignantly, he insults the reader - I don't find myself morally superior, I don't sneer, I do not feel self-righteous... It just so happens that I felt so ridiculously irritated by this article as he does by pictures of wide-eyed children staring at a camera in starving Africa that I had to write about it.
Definitely expect to be panned when you write a story so lacking in scruples. If it's your job to write columns as if you have a license to incense, then by all means... shoot... just expect to have no respect afterwards.
Journal 8: Court Report Analysis
An 'in brief' court report of the day's judgements is the subject of this article
The day in question is Thursday 11th December 2008, and the paper is The Irish Times.
First there is a report on a man being jailed for a sexual assault on a seven-year-old girl. Unusually the paper does not name the man as they are wont to do when the perpetrator has been convicted - a usual way of 'naming and shaming' the assaulter. I think this is perhaps because the man worked at the girl's parents' Co. Wicklow farm and the girl could be named by association. Simple facts are given, including jail time, ages and location of conviction.
In another case, three members of the same family are convicted of gun offences and are named by the paper, with addresses given. The victim of some crossfire was a six-year-old girl who cannot be named as she is a minor. The article gives a brief description of the incident in question, including its location, and the plea which the convicted entered to the court.
A third case gives much detail about David Lamb who was given a suspended sentence for making hoax calls about bombs in Bewleys Hotel, Dublin airport. This article includes a quote from the man and statements from the arresting garda, Sinéad Greene. The article rounds off its information with addresses, dates, names and the previous history of the convicted.
The day in question is Thursday 11th December 2008, and the paper is The Irish Times.
First there is a report on a man being jailed for a sexual assault on a seven-year-old girl. Unusually the paper does not name the man as they are wont to do when the perpetrator has been convicted - a usual way of 'naming and shaming' the assaulter. I think this is perhaps because the man worked at the girl's parents' Co. Wicklow farm and the girl could be named by association. Simple facts are given, including jail time, ages and location of conviction.
In another case, three members of the same family are convicted of gun offences and are named by the paper, with addresses given. The victim of some crossfire was a six-year-old girl who cannot be named as she is a minor. The article gives a brief description of the incident in question, including its location, and the plea which the convicted entered to the court.
A third case gives much detail about David Lamb who was given a suspended sentence for making hoax calls about bombs in Bewleys Hotel, Dublin airport. This article includes a quote from the man and statements from the arresting garda, Sinéad Greene. The article rounds off its information with addresses, dates, names and the previous history of the convicted.
Journal 7: More Comparing and Contrasting
This week if I get everything done it'll be about numerous subjects. This one's about comparing and contrasting different newspaper styles.
This week I'm going to compare and contrast The Irish Times and the HeraldAM in their coverage of the renewed Lisbon Treaty referendum.
The Irish Times has a detached, professional style which it is well know for in their coverage of major events. They always go with the obvious headlines, such as here with "EU set to offer Ireland guarantees on Lisbon". It is a very matter-of-fact style with an emphasis on facts and informative writing.
In contrast, the HeraldAM leads with "It came from Brussels" and "Lisbon II" making light of the fact that this will be the second time the country has voted for the same treaty.
In another contrast with The Irish Times, the HeraldAM relegates the story to the fourth page. Comparing the two papers, the HeraldAM seemed a little more quotation-based and also Ireland based, with The Irish Times giving a broader European view of the subject.
However both papers are filled with facts about the announcement. The Irish Times ends with a long quote by an oft-quoted source in the piece, Minister Michéal Martin. The HeraldAM ends with the assurances that were made, but both papers are broadly comparable to each other in terms of the style in which the information has been delivered - short, simple and clear, with all quotes attributed and roughly the same length.
This week I'm going to compare and contrast The Irish Times and the HeraldAM in their coverage of the renewed Lisbon Treaty referendum.
The Irish Times has a detached, professional style which it is well know for in their coverage of major events. They always go with the obvious headlines, such as here with "EU set to offer Ireland guarantees on Lisbon". It is a very matter-of-fact style with an emphasis on facts and informative writing.
In contrast, the HeraldAM leads with "It came from Brussels" and "Lisbon II" making light of the fact that this will be the second time the country has voted for the same treaty.
In another contrast with The Irish Times, the HeraldAM relegates the story to the fourth page. Comparing the two papers, the HeraldAM seemed a little more quotation-based and also Ireland based, with The Irish Times giving a broader European view of the subject.
However both papers are filled with facts about the announcement. The Irish Times ends with a long quote by an oft-quoted source in the piece, Minister Michéal Martin. The HeraldAM ends with the assurances that were made, but both papers are broadly comparable to each other in terms of the style in which the information has been delivered - short, simple and clear, with all quotes attributed and roughly the same length.
Journal 6: U.S Election Race etc.
Monday 3rd November 2008:
I have decided to take a look at both a tabloid and broadsheet paper to see reaction from the weekend and a look to the future concerning the next president of the United States. The Irish Times and the Irish Daily Star are analysed today.
The Irish Times
Above the fold are two main stories: The U.S race for election and a revelation that we are being charged 20% more for fuel than in the E.U. This seems like another commentary on the 'rip-off' Ireland that we live in today. The front page photo shows a celebratory Lewis Hamilton hugging his family following his crowning as Formula One world champion in a dramatic finale in the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Apart from these stories there is a quasi-headline in the margin which reads "Kenny expects to be taoiseach soon" which for a reason best known to the editor has not made the front page proper, being relegated as it is to page 5. Certainly each headline, including the BP1 story on a Christmas light tree being built to in a "bid to spark city centre shopping", are all economy related, so perhaps the headlines in The Irish Times are currently being economy-driven also.
Turning to the presidential election, Senator Barack Obama is the man making headlines across the worlds as polls are consistently showing that he has a lead over rival John McCain - with a new poll saying that this is as wide as a nine-point lead. This doesn't mean that he has become complacent, however, as he is hitting the so-called 'red' states in an effort to gain their vote tomorrow. John McCain still believes he can win it, saying "I can sense the enthusiasm in these last few days. We're going to win this race."
It seems to me that Obama is going to win the election. It may be close in some areas, but as Ann Marie Hourihane comments on the front page of this newspaper, "Obama has become an almost religious figure - so totemic, so extraordinary, so attractive - that he hardly seems like a politician at all." I don't believe McCain is at all right for the presidency, and I also believe that it has come down to America voting for the world, voting for someone who will become one of the most powerful (if not THE most powerful) person on earth. So hopefully they'll make a good choice...
The Irish Daily Star
The Star's front page shows two court-related stories. The leftmost is about the sentencing of Sharon 'Lying Eyes' Collins, a woman convicted of conspiring to kill her wealthy partner and his two sons (by hiring a hitman from Las Vegas...?). She is due to be sentenced today and the story carries on on page ten.
The main headline reads 'Parents visit killer son in jail', relating to the imprisonment of Finn Colclough for the murder of a fellow teenager, Sean Nolan. The story continues on page four. The Star has not dealt with any political matters on the front page, concerning itself mainly with stories from home. The rest of the front page is dedicated to references to the back sport pages (e.g 'Win a trip to see Celtic v Man Utd') and Lewis Hamilton's victory.
There is not much to comment about on this page, the best stories today are being left to the sport pages.
I have decided to take a look at both a tabloid and broadsheet paper to see reaction from the weekend and a look to the future concerning the next president of the United States. The Irish Times and the Irish Daily Star are analysed today.
The Irish Times
Above the fold are two main stories: The U.S race for election and a revelation that we are being charged 20% more for fuel than in the E.U. This seems like another commentary on the 'rip-off' Ireland that we live in today. The front page photo shows a celebratory Lewis Hamilton hugging his family following his crowning as Formula One world champion in a dramatic finale in the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Apart from these stories there is a quasi-headline in the margin which reads "Kenny expects to be taoiseach soon" which for a reason best known to the editor has not made the front page proper, being relegated as it is to page 5. Certainly each headline, including the BP1 story on a Christmas light tree being built to in a "bid to spark city centre shopping", are all economy related, so perhaps the headlines in The Irish Times are currently being economy-driven also.
Turning to the presidential election, Senator Barack Obama is the man making headlines across the worlds as polls are consistently showing that he has a lead over rival John McCain - with a new poll saying that this is as wide as a nine-point lead. This doesn't mean that he has become complacent, however, as he is hitting the so-called 'red' states in an effort to gain their vote tomorrow. John McCain still believes he can win it, saying "I can sense the enthusiasm in these last few days. We're going to win this race."
It seems to me that Obama is going to win the election. It may be close in some areas, but as Ann Marie Hourihane comments on the front page of this newspaper, "Obama has become an almost religious figure - so totemic, so extraordinary, so attractive - that he hardly seems like a politician at all." I don't believe McCain is at all right for the presidency, and I also believe that it has come down to America voting for the world, voting for someone who will become one of the most powerful (if not THE most powerful) person on earth. So hopefully they'll make a good choice...
The Irish Daily Star
The Star's front page shows two court-related stories. The leftmost is about the sentencing of Sharon 'Lying Eyes' Collins, a woman convicted of conspiring to kill her wealthy partner and his two sons (by hiring a hitman from Las Vegas...?). She is due to be sentenced today and the story carries on on page ten.
The main headline reads 'Parents visit killer son in jail', relating to the imprisonment of Finn Colclough for the murder of a fellow teenager, Sean Nolan. The story continues on page four. The Star has not dealt with any political matters on the front page, concerning itself mainly with stories from home. The rest of the front page is dedicated to references to the back sport pages (e.g 'Win a trip to see Celtic v Man Utd') and Lewis Hamilton's victory.
There is not much to comment about on this page, the best stories today are being left to the sport pages.
Journal 5: The Budget
I've decided today to compare and contrast how the budget was reported last week (in the Herald AM) and the front page of today's Irish Independent, to show how the fallout of the budget has been handled by the country's newspapers.
Last week on Wed 15th of October the Herald AM ran with the headline "What are you looking you so pleased about?", with an accompanying picture of Brian Lenihan holding the controversial budget and smiling. The front page also has bullet points outlining some of the main points outlined in the budget, e.g "Families face €2bn in new tax" and the most controversial point: "Over 70s lose medical cards". This is the main story as obviously the economic crisis is the most important event at the moment and the budget has been brought forward by a number of weeks for just this reason. The Herald as a newspaper is clearly displeased with the measures laid out in the budget and so the paper has printed a headline deriding the Minister for Finance's content appearance.
Nearly a week later, and the country is in chaos. The Irish Independent today prints a picture of Finian McGrath, a Fianna Fáil backbencher who has decided to resign over the continuing 'medical cards fiasco' which is eroding Brian Cowen's Dáil majority, and a larger photo of Gardaí arresting a student in UCD protesting Brian Lenihan's arrival at the college over the €600 increase in college registration fees - a move which I discern as a smokescreen for the arrival of actual college fees. The headline reads "Independents on brink of abandoning Cowen" with a sub-heading that says "Others likely to follow", indicating the possibility of further bad news for the Taoiseach. On both of these papers there are no BP1s, which has been largely the case for the past week as this Budget has created a fallout which is consuming the country with outrage, anger , resignations, protests, denials, and generally a crazy political debate amongst anyone who has an opinion in this country (and a lot of us do).
Apart from the papers I heard a very impassioned and moving speech from the actress Brenda Fricker on Newstalk 106, outlining her outrage at the government over the over-70s medical cards decision... She pretty much summed up the feelings of hundreds of thousands - everything from bewilderment to incredulity to outrage, anger and disgust.
More on everything in the week to come.
Last week on Wed 15th of October the Herald AM ran with the headline "What are you looking you so pleased about?", with an accompanying picture of Brian Lenihan holding the controversial budget and smiling. The front page also has bullet points outlining some of the main points outlined in the budget, e.g "Families face €2bn in new tax" and the most controversial point: "Over 70s lose medical cards". This is the main story as obviously the economic crisis is the most important event at the moment and the budget has been brought forward by a number of weeks for just this reason. The Herald as a newspaper is clearly displeased with the measures laid out in the budget and so the paper has printed a headline deriding the Minister for Finance's content appearance.
Nearly a week later, and the country is in chaos. The Irish Independent today prints a picture of Finian McGrath, a Fianna Fáil backbencher who has decided to resign over the continuing 'medical cards fiasco' which is eroding Brian Cowen's Dáil majority, and a larger photo of Gardaí arresting a student in UCD protesting Brian Lenihan's arrival at the college over the €600 increase in college registration fees - a move which I discern as a smokescreen for the arrival of actual college fees. The headline reads "Independents on brink of abandoning Cowen" with a sub-heading that says "Others likely to follow", indicating the possibility of further bad news for the Taoiseach. On both of these papers there are no BP1s, which has been largely the case for the past week as this Budget has created a fallout which is consuming the country with outrage, anger , resignations, protests, denials, and generally a crazy political debate amongst anyone who has an opinion in this country (and a lot of us do).
Apart from the papers I heard a very impassioned and moving speech from the actress Brenda Fricker on Newstalk 106, outlining her outrage at the government over the over-70s medical cards decision... She pretty much summed up the feelings of hundreds of thousands - everything from bewilderment to incredulity to outrage, anger and disgust.
More on everything in the week to come.
Public Interest Side Note: Explorations in Journalism
Defined by some as:
1. The well-being of the general public; the commonwealth.
2. The attention of the people with respect to events.
3. Values generally thought to be shared by the public at large.
The concept of 'public interest' is closely related to Jean-Jacques Rousseau's central political concept of 'general will', which refers to the desire or interest of a people as a whole - General will is what the body politic (community of citizens) would unanimously do if they were selecting general laws and were choosing/voting with full information, good reasoning, unclouded judgment (bias and emotion can cloud judgment), public spirit, and attempting to discern the common good.
People have argued against this (using words such as 'metaphysical' and 'pluralist') but this is as close as I can get to a good definition!
1. The well-being of the general public; the commonwealth.
2. The attention of the people with respect to events.
3. Values generally thought to be shared by the public at large.
The concept of 'public interest' is closely related to Jean-Jacques Rousseau's central political concept of 'general will', which refers to the desire or interest of a people as a whole - General will is what the body politic (community of citizens) would unanimously do if they were selecting general laws and were choosing/voting with full information, good reasoning, unclouded judgment (bias and emotion can cloud judgment), public spirit, and attempting to discern the common good.
People have argued against this (using words such as 'metaphysical' and 'pluralist') but this is as close as I can get to a good definition!
Journal 4: Interviews
I've chosen to discuss Noel Gallagher's interview in the Irish Times' 'The Ticket' on Friday October 3rd 2008. I think 'The Ticket' has a particularly good record of interviews and I enjoyed reading this, particularly as Noel has recently been in the news after being attacked in Toronto.
The interview leads with the headline "I thought I'd been stabbed" which grabs attention straight away. I had imagined this would be a casual interview as the Gallaghers are not known for being polite and humble, and this is certainly the case. However the interview benefits from not being too serious and keeping a laid-back attitude at the beginning, before moving on to more serious matters.
Brian Boyd allows Noel to speak freely without, it seems, interrupting with too many questions or qualifiers - it seems the interview has been conducted almost like a casual conversation. By allowing him to talk, we find out much about Noel that persistent questioning may not have revealed - such as only being able to manage "three songs a year" and having "all the cocaine in the world".
I feel the interview is presented simplistically: with headers for each topic of conversation, such as 'On Songwriting' or 'On Irishness'. If we then read the paragraph or so that follows, we can see that the interview was handled very casually, with plenty of bad language and candid opinion (such as "I like Radiohead - until Thom Yorke starts singing.").
This interview works so well because there is no need to explain or qualify anything Noel says, except for opening with a quote that relates to his injury in Toronto. By allowing him to speak, Boyd runs the risk of going off on a tangent (undoubtedly he did) but he still gets the interview broken down into a few simple topics and lets Noel Gallagher say what he likes about that topic. It is a simple and interesting way of handling, writing and presenting an interview.
The interview leads with the headline "I thought I'd been stabbed" which grabs attention straight away. I had imagined this would be a casual interview as the Gallaghers are not known for being polite and humble, and this is certainly the case. However the interview benefits from not being too serious and keeping a laid-back attitude at the beginning, before moving on to more serious matters.
Brian Boyd allows Noel to speak freely without, it seems, interrupting with too many questions or qualifiers - it seems the interview has been conducted almost like a casual conversation. By allowing him to talk, we find out much about Noel that persistent questioning may not have revealed - such as only being able to manage "three songs a year" and having "all the cocaine in the world".
I feel the interview is presented simplistically: with headers for each topic of conversation, such as 'On Songwriting' or 'On Irishness'. If we then read the paragraph or so that follows, we can see that the interview was handled very casually, with plenty of bad language and candid opinion (such as "I like Radiohead - until Thom Yorke starts singing.").
This interview works so well because there is no need to explain or qualify anything Noel says, except for opening with a quote that relates to his injury in Toronto. By allowing him to speak, Boyd runs the risk of going off on a tangent (undoubtedly he did) but he still gets the interview broken down into a few simple topics and lets Noel Gallagher say what he likes about that topic. It is a simple and interesting way of handling, writing and presenting an interview.
Journal 3: The 5 W's (and H)
Thursday 6th October
The Irish Independent
The 5 W's (being Who, What, Where, When, and Why?) and H (How?) are the topic of discussion this week. The Indo today runs a story on Brian Lenihan not forcing "banks to pass on cut", referring to the European Central Banks's 0.5pc cut in interest rates to mortgage holders.
This is an immediate identification introduction, where the government and the European Central Bank (and later the Irish banks and the Financial Regulator) are immediately mentioned in the opening sentences of the article. There is only one quote used in the front page of the article. Each small paragraph is only made up of one sentence, making the article seem very precise.
Who: The second word in the first line, the government, is here clearly stated (in case you didn't know who Brian Lenihan was in the headline). "Irish banks" and "European Central Bank" are both mentioned in the first paragraph.
What: The story is mentioned straight away, in the headline: "Lenihan won't force banks to pass on cut" and in the first paragraph this is stated again but with more detail.
Where: This is an Irish story making the headlines of an Irish newspaper, concerning the Irish government, so the story is... Irish, probably Dublin-based, with a small sentence at the end of the first page article concerning US and European based banks.
When: This general news story about the economy is making front page news everywhere so any story will be as up-to-date as possible. It does refer to the €400bn bank bailout of last week, however.
Why: The economy has gone up in smoke, therefore this will be the main headline, for a few days to come at least! Also, everyone is looking to the government for answers.
How: The government in this instance is the instigator of this article, by not forcing the banks to pass on the cut in interest rates to their customers.
The main point of this article is clearly to inform the public (many of whom have mortgages) that this cut of interest rates may or may not be passed on to them, depending on the whim of their particular bank. It informs the public that the government will not take action on this, by quoting a 'spokesman': "At present, the department does not give instructions to the banks." It would seem to me that the Irish Independent is basing its story on a single quote from a spokesperson...
Journal 2: Broadsheets and Tabloids Part Deux
Tuesday September 30th 2008: Today I've chosen the Irish Times and The Irish Independent, to compare the nation's 2 biggest (in my opinion) broadsheets and see how they report current affairs.
Main Headline: 'Crisis deepens as US Congress rejects $700bn bailout deal' - a headline sure to send stocks plummeting if they haven't heard the news already. An Irish related sub-headline reads 'Government steps up plans to protect Irish banks' which perhaps softens the blow. The story deals first with the ISEQ dropping €6.5 bn off the value of shares and the reaction from the government and financial regulator, and proceeds to report about the American bailout deal. This is clearly the biggest story of the moment therefore it gets the main position above the fold, along with a side story labeled 'Cowen is confident economy can make strong recovery', which is self-explanatory.
The BP1 leads with an interesting story (perhaps to draw attention away from the economic crisis) about a Maoist government in Nepal that has named a girl aged 6 a living goddess. The first few sentences explain the situation, history and method of choosing this girl as a living goddess, including quotes from an official source in Kathmandu. This human interest story may attract religious readers as well those interested in Eastern affairs, with the Western economy going to pot...
The Irish Times
Masthead: A Health supplement to assist parents with teenagers, along with 2 related articles; first on a rugby player talking about men's health, then the education of rugby in Blackrock secondary school. Perhaps this is the Irish Times reminding us that 'health is better than wealth' as our recession progresses further?Main Headline: 'Crisis deepens as US Congress rejects $700bn bailout deal' - a headline sure to send stocks plummeting if they haven't heard the news already. An Irish related sub-headline reads 'Government steps up plans to protect Irish banks' which perhaps softens the blow. The story deals first with the ISEQ dropping €6.5 bn off the value of shares and the reaction from the government and financial regulator, and proceeds to report about the American bailout deal. This is clearly the biggest story of the moment therefore it gets the main position above the fold, along with a side story labeled 'Cowen is confident economy can make strong recovery', which is self-explanatory.
The BP1 leads with an interesting story (perhaps to draw attention away from the economic crisis) about a Maoist government in Nepal that has named a girl aged 6 a living goddess. The first few sentences explain the situation, history and method of choosing this girl as a living goddess, including quotes from an official source in Kathmandu. This human interest story may attract religious readers as well those interested in Eastern affairs, with the Western economy going to pot...
The Irish Independent
Masthead: 'Brains and Beauty' a celebrity related article, and a piece about Paul Newman, the actor who died recently. While differing from the Irish Times, the purpose is still to draw readers' interest, as only the financial papers and the financial section deal purely with the crisis; the Independent still wants to interest readers in other news.
Main Headline: 'Meltdown Monday' - an admirably succint way of revealing a doom-laden article, almost like a tabloid. The Independent has become more tabloid shaped to attracct readers, yet keeps the credentials of a broadsheet in the style it reports. The paper posts a page-by-page index of the crisis beside the main picture, with news, an editorial, analysis and opinion pages listed. This would make the paper seem more focused than the Irish Times. However the two papers deal with the story in a very similar fashion on the front page, in the same format as mentioned above. This is the only story adorning the front of the Indo, there is no BP1 - again making the paper seem more dedicated.
Journal 1: Broadsheets and Tabloids
This is my first posting for Journalism Yr 1 in DIT, where I'll be going through the front pages of different papers each week to see which stories are making headline news and why they're there.
The Evening Herald: 23rd September 2008
Masthead: Fashion and GAA. The Herald is a Dublin newspaper so it has a story about the Dublin GAA team in the masthead to grab attention, especially as the GAA final has just finished. Fashion is there, I imagine, to grab female readers' attention.
Main Headline: There is no BP1 (Bottom of Page 1) story on this day, just the headline:
"Apprentice TV Star 'Hit man in front of wife'", with a picture of the assailant. Violence is often an attention grabber, particularly on a slow news day, and the parties involved are on our TV screens almost nightly so the story is given more import.
A quick description of the story in large bold print is made under the headline clearly and informatively, while the main body of the text deals with the incident and quotes from parties involved. There is no fold so this story covers most of the front page.
The Evening Herald: 23rd September 2008
Masthead: Fashion and GAA. The Herald is a Dublin newspaper so it has a story about the Dublin GAA team in the masthead to grab attention, especially as the GAA final has just finished. Fashion is there, I imagine, to grab female readers' attention.
Main Headline: There is no BP1 (Bottom of Page 1) story on this day, just the headline:
"Apprentice TV Star 'Hit man in front of wife'", with a picture of the assailant. Violence is often an attention grabber, particularly on a slow news day, and the parties involved are on our TV screens almost nightly so the story is given more import.
A quick description of the story in large bold print is made under the headline clearly and informatively, while the main body of the text deals with the incident and quotes from parties involved. There is no fold so this story covers most of the front page.
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