This week's article is from the USA Today. Originally, I found this story from a related story on IGN.com.
The story is an interview with "legendary comic scribe" Grant Morrison. Morrison was the lead writer on a recent story arc from DC Comics, called Final Crisis, where it appeared as though Bruce Wayne, the original Batman, was killed by a megalomaniacal evil god, known as Darkseid. Morrison is also the writer for the Batman series. In the interview, the interviewer talks to Morrison about the recent developments in the Batman series and what the writer has in store for Batman in 2010.
The story-telling element of this article is pretty standard. It gives the most recent and relevant info at the top and then moves to set up the interview. What I found most interesting was how the interviewer setup his interview and what sorts of questions he asked. The interviewer had a great deal of knowledge on the subject at hand, and was able to have an engaging and ultimately interesting interview with Morrison. Structurally, the article is mostly Q&A, but based on the length of Morrison's responses it seems to make sense to set it up that way.
The IGN article was a little more interesting to me than just the straight-up Q&A article in the USA Today. The IGN article is a lot more casual in its writing style and is probably done that way based on the audience that they expect frequents the site. The author keys in on some of the interesting parts of the USA Today interview and adds in a bit of his analysis. Quite honestly, what drew me to this article, aside from the fact that it was about Batman, was the article's deck: "The original Dark Knight fights through time to regain the life that was taken from him." Even though I knew what the article would be about, having read these comic book series, I was immediately hook by the deck because of how fantastic the author made his article sound. That being said, the author does have some awkward sentences, which makes the article hard to read.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Blog Post #9 - The Escapist
This week's article is from The Escapist, an online video game newsite.
This article is about a very controversial topic in video games right now: nudity. The article also addresses the issues of piracy and reselling video games.
While this is an opinion piece, it has a pretty standard inverted pyramid structure. I think this article does a good job of writing for its audience. Specifically, it makes reference to the "Hot Coffee" issue which if you are unfamiliar with video games, has no real meaning for you. Also, the tone of the article is light and uses humour. It also uses a few cliches. Now, I know that as journalists we try to avoid using them, but I think in this piece, the cliches work.
I also thought the author's choice of words was interesting throughout the article. In talking about nudity in this article, specifically female nudity, he begins by using the word "breast" and "nipple" to talk about the nudity in the game. As the article progresses, he uses the phrases "double D dividends", "virtual boobs", "boobies" and "boobs". Finally, the author uses the word "tits" at the end of the article. I'm not entirely sure why the author does this, but I suspect it has to do with the nature of his audience. I think he begins with the anatomical words because they are in large part the least offensive words to use. The author then uses more slang-style words to refer to female body parts, and then finally uses a fairly vulgar one. I believe the author does this because, at the beginning of the article the author has already told gamers the important stuff, which is how they can get their nudity, so it is likely that they've stopped reading the article to go and get their digital boobs and will therefore not be offended by his vulgarity at the end of his article.
This article is about a very controversial topic in video games right now: nudity. The article also addresses the issues of piracy and reselling video games.
While this is an opinion piece, it has a pretty standard inverted pyramid structure. I think this article does a good job of writing for its audience. Specifically, it makes reference to the "Hot Coffee" issue which if you are unfamiliar with video games, has no real meaning for you. Also, the tone of the article is light and uses humour. It also uses a few cliches. Now, I know that as journalists we try to avoid using them, but I think in this piece, the cliches work.
I also thought the author's choice of words was interesting throughout the article. In talking about nudity in this article, specifically female nudity, he begins by using the word "breast" and "nipple" to talk about the nudity in the game. As the article progresses, he uses the phrases "double D dividends", "virtual boobs", "boobies" and "boobs". Finally, the author uses the word "tits" at the end of the article. I'm not entirely sure why the author does this, but I suspect it has to do with the nature of his audience. I think he begins with the anatomical words because they are in large part the least offensive words to use. The author then uses more slang-style words to refer to female body parts, and then finally uses a fairly vulgar one. I believe the author does this because, at the beginning of the article the author has already told gamers the important stuff, which is how they can get their nudity, so it is likely that they've stopped reading the article to go and get their digital boobs and will therefore not be offended by his vulgarity at the end of his article.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Blog Post #8 - The Globe and Mail
This weeks article is from the Globe and Mail.
I read this article in preparation for an assignment for another class. But, it is just so well written, I thought I'd share my thoughts on it here.
This is a feature story written by Stephanie Nolen. Her story is about the growing problem of poverty in India and the measures that the government is taking in order to address this growing problem. Specific to this problem of poverty, is the growing number of beggars in Old Delhi and how the government is dealing with them in advance of India hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2010.
Nolens use of description throughout the piece is simple and tightly written. Nolen gives the reader a real sense of the atmosphere and the environment and also creates a sense of movement in the story. Also, she paints (at least in my mind) a colonial picture, placing the reader in Old Delhi and using words like magistrate and mendicant (I looked it up just to make sure I understood it). I like the angle with which she approached this story. Instead of giving the reader a lot of facts, figures and statistics, she paints the problem from the point of view of the people who are tasked by the government to clean-up the problem. She gives this story a human element, not just by telling the story from the perspective of the police whose job it is to arrest beggars, but by telling the story of some of the beggars too. Ultimately, Nolen creates great pace through her story and provides the reader with a great sense of where she is and what she saw without involving herself directly in the story.
I read this article in preparation for an assignment for another class. But, it is just so well written, I thought I'd share my thoughts on it here.
This is a feature story written by Stephanie Nolen. Her story is about the growing problem of poverty in India and the measures that the government is taking in order to address this growing problem. Specific to this problem of poverty, is the growing number of beggars in Old Delhi and how the government is dealing with them in advance of India hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2010.
Nolens use of description throughout the piece is simple and tightly written. Nolen gives the reader a real sense of the atmosphere and the environment and also creates a sense of movement in the story. Also, she paints (at least in my mind) a colonial picture, placing the reader in Old Delhi and using words like magistrate and mendicant (I looked it up just to make sure I understood it). I like the angle with which she approached this story. Instead of giving the reader a lot of facts, figures and statistics, she paints the problem from the point of view of the people who are tasked by the government to clean-up the problem. She gives this story a human element, not just by telling the story from the perspective of the police whose job it is to arrest beggars, but by telling the story of some of the beggars too. Ultimately, Nolen creates great pace through her story and provides the reader with a great sense of where she is and what she saw without involving herself directly in the story.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Blog Post #7 - The National Post
This week's article was from the National Post.
This article is about the now infamous handball by French forward Thierry Henry, that lead the French national soccer team to victory over the Republic of Ireland.
Personally, I like the way this story is written. It does a good job presenting all of the necessary background for the story without in a very succinct way. Like all newspaper stories, it has the very familiar inverted pyramid structure. Also, I think with a story like this, it would be easy to add an personal opinion. Interestingly, instead of adding his own opinion, he uses sources from other papers and uses their opinions to write his story.
One other thing I liked about this story is how the story was linked to a video broadcast of this story from Global News. This convergence of media gave that story another dimension adding sound and video.
This article is about the now infamous handball by French forward Thierry Henry, that lead the French national soccer team to victory over the Republic of Ireland.
Personally, I like the way this story is written. It does a good job presenting all of the necessary background for the story without in a very succinct way. Like all newspaper stories, it has the very familiar inverted pyramid structure. Also, I think with a story like this, it would be easy to add an personal opinion. Interestingly, instead of adding his own opinion, he uses sources from other papers and uses their opinions to write his story.
One other thing I liked about this story is how the story was linked to a video broadcast of this story from Global News. This convergence of media gave that story another dimension adding sound and video.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Blog Post #6 - www.susanorlean.com
This week I read a feature article by Susan Orlean.
Orlean's article is about Robert Lang, a professional origami artist.
I really enjoy Orlean's writing style. She uses language so effectively, but at the same time her writing is simple, easy to follow and funny:
"People expecting him to be kooky -- or, at the very least, Japanese -- find his academic accomplishments and his white male Americanness puzzling.
"They were dense and crisp and precise but also full of character: his mouse conveys something fundamentally mouse-ish, his ant has an essential ant-ness."
I also like how descriptive her writing is:
"Lang is now forty-five. He is tall, with slim, fine-looking hands, a tidy Silicon Valley-style beard, and the clean, comfortable good looks of a park ranger.
"He started designing his own origami patterns when he was in his early teens. He diagrammed them in detail on letterhead from the Chrysler Corporation Airtemp Division, where his father was in sales."
"He was using large squares of tweedy-looking mauve Hanji paper from Korea, which is sturdy but still slightly translucent, like the flesh of a fish."
Orlean's article uses a couple of the structural techniques that we discussed in class. She seems to be using a 5 boxes structure: she begins with an anecdote, moves to the nut graf, continues with a very detailed and descriptive story, then provides the reader with some boring but interesting information, and then finally ends the story. Her ending concludes the story extremely well as it gives the reader the all important lesson learned.
One thing that I wonder about the article is how Orlean makes herself a part of the story and refers to herself in the article a few times:
"A few months ago, I went to a meeting of the Orange County offshoot of the West Coast Origami Guild, which is one of several groups near Los Angeles.
"Before we left, I couldn't help but ask him to do something pretty with his placemat."
Is this something that journalists are allow to do in feature pieces?
Orlean's article is about Robert Lang, a professional origami artist.
I really enjoy Orlean's writing style. She uses language so effectively, but at the same time her writing is simple, easy to follow and funny:
"People expecting him to be kooky -- or, at the very least, Japanese -- find his academic accomplishments and his white male Americanness puzzling.
"They were dense and crisp and precise but also full of character: his mouse conveys something fundamentally mouse-ish, his ant has an essential ant-ness."
I also like how descriptive her writing is:
"Lang is now forty-five. He is tall, with slim, fine-looking hands, a tidy Silicon Valley-style beard, and the clean, comfortable good looks of a park ranger.
"He started designing his own origami patterns when he was in his early teens. He diagrammed them in detail on letterhead from the Chrysler Corporation Airtemp Division, where his father was in sales."
"He was using large squares of tweedy-looking mauve Hanji paper from Korea, which is sturdy but still slightly translucent, like the flesh of a fish."
Orlean's article uses a couple of the structural techniques that we discussed in class. She seems to be using a 5 boxes structure: she begins with an anecdote, moves to the nut graf, continues with a very detailed and descriptive story, then provides the reader with some boring but interesting information, and then finally ends the story. Her ending concludes the story extremely well as it gives the reader the all important lesson learned.
One thing that I wonder about the article is how Orlean makes herself a part of the story and refers to herself in the article a few times:
"A few months ago, I went to a meeting of the Orange County offshoot of the West Coast Origami Guild, which is one of several groups near Los Angeles.
"Before we left, I couldn't help but ask him to do something pretty with his placemat."
Is this something that journalists are allow to do in feature pieces?
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Blog Post #5 - CBSNews.com
The article I read for this week is from CBSNews.com.
This article is about a bizarre and very public battle between two Chinese bureaucratic departments, the Ministry of Culture and the General Administration of Press and Publications. These two departments are fighting over who has the right to oversee the administration of the World of Warcraft, a popular online game.
The General Administration of Press and Publications, the bureau that licenses publishers, has shut down the game servers saying the game's Chinese operator failed to obtain required import approval and should stop signing up customers. The Ministry of Culture said that it is the regulator of online games and that the operator's paperwork is in order.
Because the gaming industries in China has a lot of potential for growth, whoever gets to oversee this game would then have claim to oversee the entire online gaming industry. This would mean a larger budget and more administrative power for that department and more importantly, control over the Internet.
The one thing I noticed in this article, was the stylistic differences between The Canadian Press style and The Associated Press style. These differences forced me to refer my CP Stylebook and Caps and Spelling book many times while reading the article and writing this post. While I may not have learned anything specific from the stylebook, continually having to check that my writing conforms to CP style, is helping me to learn how to use the stylebook better.
In my opinion, the story could be tightened up by eliminating the repetition of information that occurs at the top of the story and midway through the story. I also noticed that there were some instances where the writer had not sourced his information. This left me to wonder where he got his information. In general, I think this was a decent piece of writing though and I liked the way the writer used his quotes.
This article is about a bizarre and very public battle between two Chinese bureaucratic departments, the Ministry of Culture and the General Administration of Press and Publications. These two departments are fighting over who has the right to oversee the administration of the World of Warcraft, a popular online game.
The General Administration of Press and Publications, the bureau that licenses publishers, has shut down the game servers saying the game's Chinese operator failed to obtain required import approval and should stop signing up customers. The Ministry of Culture said that it is the regulator of online games and that the operator's paperwork is in order.
Because the gaming industries in China has a lot of potential for growth, whoever gets to oversee this game would then have claim to oversee the entire online gaming industry. This would mean a larger budget and more administrative power for that department and more importantly, control over the Internet.
The one thing I noticed in this article, was the stylistic differences between The Canadian Press style and The Associated Press style. These differences forced me to refer my CP Stylebook and Caps and Spelling book many times while reading the article and writing this post. While I may not have learned anything specific from the stylebook, continually having to check that my writing conforms to CP style, is helping me to learn how to use the stylebook better.
In my opinion, the story could be tightened up by eliminating the repetition of information that occurs at the top of the story and midway through the story. I also noticed that there were some instances where the writer had not sourced his information. This left me to wonder where he got his information. In general, I think this was a decent piece of writing though and I liked the way the writer used his quotes.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Blog Post #4 - The Daily Telegraph
The article I read for this week was from the Daily Telegraph. The version I read was reprinted in the Vancouver Sun.
This article is about the memoirs of the last SS adjutant to Adolf Hitler. Historians believe that publishing the memoirs of Fritz Darges will remove any doubt over Hitler's personal involvement in the Holocaust. The rest of the article recounts Darges' life and how he became the adjutant of Hitler.
The first thing I learned from this article was the meaning of the word adjutant.
This story showed me how to write a story with a controversial topic and keep it balanced. Furthermore, this article is objective. With a controversial topic such as the Holocaust, the writer might intentionally or unintentionally decide to editorialize in the article. Instead, the writer maintains objectivity throughout the article only reporting the facts.
Also, following our discussion from the last class where we discussed proper use of quotes, I think this article is a good example of how to effectively use quotes in a story. The quotes used by the writer help to further the story without needlessly repeating elements previously written in the story. The quotes also help to provide context for the story from a different point of view than most people might be familiar with.
This article is about the memoirs of the last SS adjutant to Adolf Hitler. Historians believe that publishing the memoirs of Fritz Darges will remove any doubt over Hitler's personal involvement in the Holocaust. The rest of the article recounts Darges' life and how he became the adjutant of Hitler.
The first thing I learned from this article was the meaning of the word adjutant.
This story showed me how to write a story with a controversial topic and keep it balanced. Furthermore, this article is objective. With a controversial topic such as the Holocaust, the writer might intentionally or unintentionally decide to editorialize in the article. Instead, the writer maintains objectivity throughout the article only reporting the facts.
Also, following our discussion from the last class where we discussed proper use of quotes, I think this article is a good example of how to effectively use quotes in a story. The quotes used by the writer help to further the story without needlessly repeating elements previously written in the story. The quotes also help to provide context for the story from a different point of view than most people might be familiar with.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Blog Post #3 - The Vancouver Sun
This week's article is from the Vancouver Sun. I found this article while researching a news story for another class.
The article is about the continuing paramedics strike and what affect the strike will have on the 2010 Winter Olympics. The union's position is that the government has yet to provide an emergency services plan for the Olympics. The B.C. Ambulance Service claims there is a plan in place and the reason the union has not been involved in forming the plan is because of the strike.
Also, the BCAS claims that Olympic test events are a part of the essential service order established by the Labour Relations Board when the strike first started in April. The union disputes the claim, stating that the Olympics were never part of the essential service order. Also, the union is upset because of the BCAS' tactic to, instead of consulting with the union, go directly to the LRB and get them to force the paramedics to work outside of their contract.
What I like about this article is the simplicity of the language the writer uses. The story has good tone and good pace. Also, the article is balanced and interesting. What I hope to take away from this article is the skill the writer uses to take a complex issue and present it so that it is easy follow.
The article is about the continuing paramedics strike and what affect the strike will have on the 2010 Winter Olympics. The union's position is that the government has yet to provide an emergency services plan for the Olympics. The B.C. Ambulance Service claims there is a plan in place and the reason the union has not been involved in forming the plan is because of the strike.
Also, the BCAS claims that Olympic test events are a part of the essential service order established by the Labour Relations Board when the strike first started in April. The union disputes the claim, stating that the Olympics were never part of the essential service order. Also, the union is upset because of the BCAS' tactic to, instead of consulting with the union, go directly to the LRB and get them to force the paramedics to work outside of their contract.
What I like about this article is the simplicity of the language the writer uses. The story has good tone and good pace. Also, the article is balanced and interesting. What I hope to take away from this article is the skill the writer uses to take a complex issue and present it so that it is easy follow.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Blog Post #2 - The Globe and Mail
The article I read this week was from the Globe and Mail.
The article is about the recent August election in Afghanistan and the possibility of a new election due to election fraud in the first. President Hamid Karzai and his main rival, Abdullah Abdullah, are not happy about the prospect of another election. There is talk the two men might form a coalition to avoid a second election, but neither side will confirm whether that would happen. The Election Complaint Commission has confirmed voter fraud and vote rigging. The fear is now that Karzai will not accept the results of the commission's findings.
Another problem is the logistical nightmare of setting up another election. Adding to the problem is the fear that voters who came out in the first election will stay away from the second election, as the Taliban had warned people not to vote and dealt violently with those who did.
The Globe and Mail, interviewed a lot of Afghans who, despite the threats of the Taliban, were keen to have another election if fraud was committed. Many said that security for voters was a big concern and that more international observers were needed to monitor the election. The article concludes that all presidential candidate were engaged in voter fraud and vote rigging to some extent and that Karzai is not personally responsible for rigging the election.
In the opening paragraph the reporter uses a dash. In my own writing, I don't know that I have ever used a dash, so I was not familiar with its use. I looked it up in The Canadian Press Stylebook to find out how to use it.
I noticed throughout the article that when making second references to people, the reporter used the title Mr. followed by the person's last name. I was taught when referring to a person a second time to refer to them by last name only. Also, the addition of the title was not used consistently through the article. I'm not sure why the title was being used and I could not find an explanation in The Canadian Press Stylebook.
The article is about the recent August election in Afghanistan and the possibility of a new election due to election fraud in the first. President Hamid Karzai and his main rival, Abdullah Abdullah, are not happy about the prospect of another election. There is talk the two men might form a coalition to avoid a second election, but neither side will confirm whether that would happen. The Election Complaint Commission has confirmed voter fraud and vote rigging. The fear is now that Karzai will not accept the results of the commission's findings.
Another problem is the logistical nightmare of setting up another election. Adding to the problem is the fear that voters who came out in the first election will stay away from the second election, as the Taliban had warned people not to vote and dealt violently with those who did.
The Globe and Mail, interviewed a lot of Afghans who, despite the threats of the Taliban, were keen to have another election if fraud was committed. Many said that security for voters was a big concern and that more international observers were needed to monitor the election. The article concludes that all presidential candidate were engaged in voter fraud and vote rigging to some extent and that Karzai is not personally responsible for rigging the election.
In the opening paragraph the reporter uses a dash. In my own writing, I don't know that I have ever used a dash, so I was not familiar with its use. I looked it up in The Canadian Press Stylebook to find out how to use it.
I noticed throughout the article that when making second references to people, the reporter used the title Mr. followed by the person's last name. I was taught when referring to a person a second time to refer to them by last name only. Also, the addition of the title was not used consistently through the article. I'm not sure why the title was being used and I could not find an explanation in The Canadian Press Stylebook.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Blog Post #1 - The Economist
The article I read for this week is an opinion piece from The Economist. The title of the article is: The People's Republic at 60: China's place in the world.
The author begins by commenting on the military parade at the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China juxtaposed against the "peaceful rise" to power that the Chinese government claims.
The article continues, explaining that China's position on the world stage has never been greater. However, Chinese officials "habitually complain that the world has not accepted China's emergence," and that Americans and others are trapped in a "cold-war mentality".
Following this, the author writes about China's foreign policy and how it acts on the world stage. The author gives examples of both positive and negative actions China takes in its foreign policy.
The author concludes that China's show of force during the anniversary parade was not for the world, but for it's own people. "With no popular mandate, the government's legitimacy relies on its record in making China richer and stronger."
While this article is an opinion piece, I felt that it had several problems that made, what I thought would be a solid piece of journalism, a mediocre one.
The first thing that struck me is how the author switches the tone throughout the article. The author starts out with a confrontational tone, "For a country that pride's itself on its 'peaceful rise', it was an odd way to celebrate a birthday...What message was it meant to convey to an awestruck world?" A few paragraphs later, the author writes "None of this is to deny that China is playing a constructive-and vital-role on a number of international fronts," changing the tone. Finally, the article ends with another tone, "For those worried about where China's rise might lead, that the government is so insecure is not a comforting thought." The article starts by condemning the Chinese government, switches to praising it and then finally ends by pitying it. I find the changes in tone makes the article hard to follow.
Another issue in the article is language use. While, I know it is an opinion piece, the word usage of the author seems pretentious in places. For example, "lament these ascendant peaceniks" or "And those prey to it will have been reassured". In another paragraph, the author writes "aimed at getting it to ditch its nukes". Again, this is an opinion piece, however, the language the author uses here seems too informal.
One more issue I have with this article is this sentence: "One is the knee-jerk resort to hysterical propaganda and reprisals when a foreign country displeases it by critising its appalling treatment of political dissidents, or accepts a visit from the Dalai Lama or other objects of the Communist Party's venom." I believe the issue in this sentence is that the series presented is not in a parallel grammatical form, making it hard to read. This sentence typifies the problems of the article and makes it a less than effective piece of journalism.
The author begins by commenting on the military parade at the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China juxtaposed against the "peaceful rise" to power that the Chinese government claims.
The article continues, explaining that China's position on the world stage has never been greater. However, Chinese officials "habitually complain that the world has not accepted China's emergence," and that Americans and others are trapped in a "cold-war mentality".
Following this, the author writes about China's foreign policy and how it acts on the world stage. The author gives examples of both positive and negative actions China takes in its foreign policy.
The author concludes that China's show of force during the anniversary parade was not for the world, but for it's own people. "With no popular mandate, the government's legitimacy relies on its record in making China richer and stronger."
While this article is an opinion piece, I felt that it had several problems that made, what I thought would be a solid piece of journalism, a mediocre one.
The first thing that struck me is how the author switches the tone throughout the article. The author starts out with a confrontational tone, "For a country that pride's itself on its 'peaceful rise', it was an odd way to celebrate a birthday...What message was it meant to convey to an awestruck world?" A few paragraphs later, the author writes "None of this is to deny that China is playing a constructive-and vital-role on a number of international fronts," changing the tone. Finally, the article ends with another tone, "For those worried about where China's rise might lead, that the government is so insecure is not a comforting thought." The article starts by condemning the Chinese government, switches to praising it and then finally ends by pitying it. I find the changes in tone makes the article hard to follow.
Another issue in the article is language use. While, I know it is an opinion piece, the word usage of the author seems pretentious in places. For example, "lament these ascendant peaceniks" or "And those prey to it will have been reassured". In another paragraph, the author writes "aimed at getting it to ditch its nukes". Again, this is an opinion piece, however, the language the author uses here seems too informal.
One more issue I have with this article is this sentence: "One is the knee-jerk resort to hysterical propaganda and reprisals when a foreign country displeases it by critising its appalling treatment of political dissidents, or accepts a visit from the Dalai Lama or other objects of the Communist Party's venom." I believe the issue in this sentence is that the series presented is not in a parallel grammatical form, making it hard to read. This sentence typifies the problems of the article and makes it a less than effective piece of journalism.
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