- Briefs due!
- Check in with your team captain. How are graphics coming along? Articles? Where do you need help?
- Registration drive reminder:
- Thursday: Abbie, Eliza, & Sam
- Friday: Jordan, Holland & Andrew
- Election Day reminder:
- D: Bryn (help from Mary)
G: Dan (some help from Pam's class)
Break: Holland, Sam & Claire
E: Andrew & Jordan
Lunch: Sara, Abbie & Philip
F: Alberto? (help from Pam) - Some in-class reading: please read the following three articles.
- News piece: Swing Nation
- Feature piece: The Honor System
- Review piece: The $2.5 Car
No rush. I just want you to read. After you've read all three, please add a comment to this post that addresses the following questions:
- In what way is the lead engaging and accurate?
- How are these three pieces stylistically different?
- How would you distinguish between a news piece, a feature piece, and a review? Come up with your own definition for each.
- What kind of sources are used in each piece? How do the different sources add/detract from the piece?
- Formulate three questions for each article that you think the writer might have asked when interviewing people.
13 comments:
1. -Gives place, person and thing, and is interesting
-Gives person, date and thing, and is interesting
-Gives thing, very interesting, slightly confusing-just enough to make you want to read more to figure it out
2. Features is more like a story, News is more like something you would expect to read in a newspaper, Review is like a blog
3. See above
4. The actual sources-the voters, the magician who the story is about, the person who is driving the car, and people who know and have opinions about them, not just someone who knows them
-How do you think each party’s medicare plans would help or hurt you?
-Which party would you vote for based on their medial plan alone?
-What are your biggest concerns about medicare in the future?
-When did you first start doing magic?
-Why do you love magic so much?
-What is your favorite magic trick?
To self:
-What is most incredible about this car?
-How does it feel to drive it?
To Mr. Koenigsegg:
-Why do you do this if it does not give you the profit you hoped for?
1. In what way is the lead engaging and accurate?
A) The lead is engaging because it involves a man in a situation contrary to many other people, making the reader curious. It is accurate because given the story; Yordon does not seem to be worried.
B) The lead is engaging because it equates stealing magic to a commonplace crime, pulling the reader in. It is accurate because people steal other peoples’ ideas and tricks in the “magic” world.
C) The lead is engaging because it uses words such as “urge to pee” which makes the reader relate to the author. It is accurate because it describes the author’s experiences.
In what way is the lead engaging and accurate?
The lead in Swing Nation is, in my point of view, not engaging but accurate. Their is not a hook to bring you into the issue, but it does state a fact. The lead in the feature story is somewhat engaging because it paints a heroic story: a crime and the super hero who is going to do something about it. It is also very accurate because thats what the whole story is about. The review is very engaging and accurate, it captivated my attention immediately with the description of its capacities.
How are these three pieces stylistically different?
The News piece was shorter, with more quotes, and got down to the fact fairly quickly. The Feature piece was a lot longer, with more background, and introductions, while definitely taking a bias side. The review piece is completely bias, and serves to sell what the author is writing about, without using formal language.
How would you distinguish between a news piece, a feature piece, and a review? Come up with your own definition for each.
News: An article addressing a trending issue, without a bias. A news piece created to inform people about what is happening in the world.
Feature: This is an article that can take some bias but its point is to entertain and captivate the attention of a reader more than anything.
Review: An article used to voice the writers opinion on an event, thing, or place. A completely bias, informal piece used either promote or demote an event, place or thing.
What kind of sources are used in each piece? How do the different sources add/detract from the piece?
The News piece uses information and sources from all over the place. For example they got first hand accounts from elderly voters in Florida, but also used Kaiser Insurance group to bring in some stats about the effects of the new healthcare bill. They also used polls and various stats to bring light to what was going on. All the variation of sources were very helpful in bringing their point across. For the Feature piece, the sources used were magicians, and the plaintiff, they were one-sided in terms of sources used. This detracted a little from it because the reader was never given the other point of view. The Review used a lot of their personal opinion mixed in with quotes supporting his claim. The sources detract from the piece because it is one-sided, and their is no competition, it is like a large, long advertisement.
Formulate three questions for each article that you think the writer might have asked when interviewing people.
Swing Nation: 1. How well do you think President Obama has handled the economy
2. Do you think that the Ryan/Romney medicare system is better than Obamas current plan?
3. How much is medicare affecting your vote in the Presidential Election?
The Honor Code: 1. What is your opinion on the stealing of Magic?
2. Have you ever had any of your magic tricks stolen?
3. Do you think their is a way of stoping the theft of Magic trick evens though, in order to bring the thief to justice you have to expose the trick in public?
2.5 Million Dollar Car: 1. How has the automobile industry changed, and how have you had to adapt to the changes?
2. What is most incredible about this car?
3. What makes this car better than every other one?
1.
Says what the article is about plain and simple. Very descriptive and precise, gives the reader an image of what happened and what they are about to read. Also, follows up with an interesting, yet short quote. Puts the reader right in the middle of the scene, like they are actually driving the car. Uses fun adjectives to describe a fast-moving vehicle.
2.
The review doesn’t have a lot of quotes, it is just the opinion of the writer. Explains every aspect of the car like the way it feels, how it feels to drive it, sounds and looks. Has lots of specifics. There are a lot of scientificy things that the average person wouldn’t get unless they were a car efficiannato. Lots of similes. Says “you.” Magician Article has longer paragraphs. Talks more about the person, not the props unlike the car one. Long quote and shorter quotes pop up in pattern. The Magical one is not as ‘in your face’ as the car article. It tells the story but without imposing its own view on magic, it simply tells Teller’s point of view or the point of view of his audiences. Swing Nation more of a news piece- tells all the facts with quotes that pertain to our current lives. Tells it like it is- more ‘straight up’ and less adjectives. Swing Nation has much smaller paragraphs and more of them. Each one gives specific facts and quotes. The review is just the writer’s opinion, the feature just quotes the person the article is about, and the news quotes a wide variety of people that the subject effects.
3.
News Piece: An article that avoids bias, has a large range of sources and has a subject that directly correlates to the present-day happenings nationally or internationally.
Review Piece: An article that states an opinion about something, either good or bad and describes all aspects of why that opinion could be valid.
Feature: An article whose subject may not be directly related to anything going on in the world currently, but has a clear focus and is different and unique. Does not have the opinion of the writer in it, but may not have as much of a variety of sources as a news piece.
4.
The news piece uses sources from everyone that may be involved in the matter, gets lots of quotes and uses facts to back them up. Adds the truth and credibility. Also, shows the reader all the sides of the story and how that piece might relate to them.
The review piece does not quote anyone but the writer himself but intersperses lots of relevant facts to the car and how they made it. This works for a review because the reader is reading the article to see what someone else thinks, so opinion here is necessary.
The feature uses sources from the audience, maybe the writer was in the audience himself. The writer interview people in the magic scene like other magicians, Teller and a magic trick builder. This all makes sense and helps the piece because the reader gets a good picture of all aspects of the topic, magic, and the background info that one wouldn’t usually know.
5.
News:
What is your opinion on each presidential candidate’s plan for medicare?
Who are you leaning towards voting for? Why? Why not vote for the other candidate?
How do you think Florida is going to affect the outcome of the presidential election?
Feature:
How did you first get into Magic?
What is the most difficult trick you have done/mastered?
What is the most fascinating aspect of being a magician to you?
Review:
How was this car’s concept originally thought of?
What are the specs for this car? The weight? 0-60 in how many seconds?
Can I take a test drive?
Question 1
“ Swing Nation” - the lead immidiately tells us what we’re going to be reading about: Medicare for seniors. It gives relevant statistics about the senior population in important swing states like Florida, and the percentage of seniors supporting each candidate.
“The Honor System” - lead introduces the main subject of the piece, Teller, and makes the reader want to read more with a quote describing his “visceral reaction” to a youtube video. The reader wants to know why he had such a reaction to it.
“The $2.5 million Koenigsegg Agera R” - lead brings reader in with a crazy statistic of the car’s speed and a humorous yet descriptive account of driving the car
Question 2
Each article has a different tone and uses different literary/journalistic tools. “Swing Nation” takes a more official account, using many percentages to help the reader understand the points about the future of Medicare and those who support each candidate. “The Honor System” partly reads like a narrative of Teller’s life, and gives insight to his views on magic and the world. Obviously, no statistics here. The review of the Koenigsegg gives the impression of a car geek in heaven, with humorous yet informative descriptions and hard to follow yet detailed information about the cars inner workings.
Question 3
News piece - more current event oriented, includes multiple interviews from multiple parties and viewpoints of an issue or event
Feature piece - more narrative oriented, includes one or two interviews including the subject, less official/formal than a news piece
Review - gives a full report on an item and the writers opinion on it, may include interviews from the maker and consumers of the item
Question 4
“Swing Nation” - interviews from seniors on Medicare; this is very effective because it targets a group of people very much dependent on Medicare
“The Honor System” - quotes from Teller are used throughout - this is effective because it is a good way of “showing, not telling” Teller’s traits to the reader
The review - uses quotes from Koenigsegg himself on his company and the car itself. Gives reader inside look on the inner workings of the company.
Question 5
“Swing Nation” - What is your opinion on Obama’s/Romney’s approach to healthcare? What is your opinion on healthcare as it is? How do you think healthcare will change under each candidate?
“The Honor System” - What got you started as a magician? What is your philosophy on magic? What is your favorite trick?
Car Review - Describe some of the inner workings of the car - what makes it so great? Describe your company as a whole. What direction do you see your company taking within the next couple of years?
CLAIRE KIRKPATRICK:
1) In what way is the lead engaging and accurate?
Seniors Article: straightforward and informative, has who, what, why, and where.
Car article: Has impressive, intriguing facts that will capture the attention of it’s desired audience.
Magician article: A bit vague but still intriguing, has who and what.
2) How are these three pieces stylistically different?
The Seniors article is a news piece, the car article is an opinion/feature, and the magician is a profile/ feature piece.
3) How would you distinguish between a news piece, a feature piece, and a review? Come up with your own definition for each.
The quality of a news piece is based off the quotes and it’s relevance, and often unbiased. An opinion piece depends on how well the author articulates their point, and a feature piece normally tells some sort of story.
4) What kind of sources are used in each piece? How do the different sources add/detract from the piece?
The sources are essential to the Seniors article and opinion piece. However, in the magician feature piece, the research is somewhat irrelevant because it doesn’t really connect to the point of the article; telling the story of Teller.
5) Formulate three questions for each article that you think the writer might have asked when interviewing people.
To what degree does Medicare impact your vote?
How do you profit from making these luxury cars?
What is involved in the process of mastering a certain trick?
Bryn McLaughlin
2. How are these three pieces stylistically different?
A) Interviews people concerning different voter issues, is a news piece
B) Discusses magic and leads with a magic excerpt, is a feature
C) Is a review piece on a car, is a review
3. How would you distinguish between a news piece, a feature piece, and a review? Come up with your own definition for each.
A) A news piece: Discusses issues prevalent to life right now
B) A feature piece: Describes a person or product
C) Review: evaluates a product
4. What kinds of sources are used in each piece? How do the different sources add/detract from the piece?
A) People, mostly elders. Would be nice to discuss a younger viewpoint as well
B) Only one magician, should discuss more
C) A scientist is mostly quoted, maybe could ask potential buyers
5. Formulate three questions for each article that you think the writer might have asked when interviewing people.
A) What politician do you support?
B) What or who inspired you to be a magician?
C) How many mph does this car reach?
Sam Russell
1.)The leads of all the pieces make the reader want to read more by not presenting a complete story. The one possible exception is the Swing Nation piece, which presents an overall theme but does not go into any detail.
2.) Swing Nation is simply a straight news piece focusing on the opinions of the people interviewed. The reporter does not do all of the storytelling.In The Honor System, the writer does the storytelling and periodically inserts quotes from Teller into the piece. This is because the story is a feature instead of news. The 2.5$ car is more engaging in a way because the author describes the car and the feeling of driving it in great detail, giving the reader a mental image and at the same time sucking them into the story.It is a unique style for a review of something.
3.) News: Focuses on the facts and the interviews, lets others tell the story
Review: More room for description than any other kind of piece. Opinion-oriented.
Feature: Writer tells the story.Interviews are less prominent. Less focus on facts and more focus on storytelling.
4.) The voters interviewed in the Swing Nation piece are essential. They compose most of the article, and it is written in a way that it flows very nicely. The quotes from Teller do not make up the feature piece, but it would seem a bit odd to write the piece without quotes from the man that it is about. However, it could be done. The same is true for the review piece, because quotes from Mr. Koenigsegg are not essential but they do help.
5.) Swing Nation:
What do you think of each candidate's plan?
How do you think that it will affect you personally?
What would you like to see happen with Medicare?
The Honor System:
Why did you never invoke copyright laws?
What do you think of crime and magic today?
What makes a trick excellent?
The 2.5$ Car:
Where do you plan to take your business and what are your goals?
What are your thoughts on car design?
What is the process that you go through to design a car?
Bryn McLaughlin
2. How are these three pieces stylistically different?
A) Interviews people concerning different voter issues, is a news piece
B) Discusses magic and leads with a magic excerpt, is a feature
C) Is a review piece on a car, is a review
3. How would you distinguish between a news piece, a feature piece, and a review? Come up with your own definition for each.
A) A news piece: Discusses issues prevalent to life right now
B) A feature piece: Describes a person or product
C) Review: evaluates a product
4. What kinds of sources are used in each piece? How do the different sources add/detract from the piece?
A) People, mostly elders. Would be nice to discuss a younger viewpoint as well
B) Only one magician, should discuss more
C) A scientist is mostly quoted, maybe could ask potential buyers
5. Formulate three questions for each article that you think the writer might have asked when interviewing people.
A) What politician do you support?
B) What or who inspired you to be a magician?
C) How many mph does this car reach?
1. How are the leads engaging/accurate?
a. The lead is engaging because it takes a subject that is normally incredibly important but isn’t at all for the demographic in the article - this catches the reader’s attention.
b. This lead is a sort of cliffhanger. It ends with Teller mentioning a “visceral reaction,” and the reader wants to know what it is and why he has it.
c. The traits of the car are impressive, but I think the tone is a little bit too silly, which is off-putting.
2. How are these stylistically different?
a. The first piece is very much a summary of certain current events. It has a factual, neutral tone.
b. This is more of a scattered narrative. It is mostly factual content, but it also contains some of the author’s opinions.
c. It’s a review: entirely the author’s opinion.
3. The three categories, news, features, and reviews, mostly seem to fall on a spectrum of opinion in order of least to most.
a. News: a piece on current events that remains neutral and tries to obtain recent and noteworthy information
b. Features: larger piece focusing on a single topic that might include some of the author’s opinions
c. Reviews: entirely based on the author’s experience with a certain product or production
4. What sources are used?
a. Interviews with seniors, campaign ads, Kaiser Family Foundation
i. These all add to the effectiveness: everything shows the competition of the candidates over Medicare and seniors. I especially like how the nonpartisan foundation releases a study that the Republicans flat out deny.
b. Mostly relates Teller’s experience, but also includes input from another Magician whose tricks are also plagiarized, and from people who watched Teller’s trick in the article
i. I can’t necessarily think of any other sources to add, and I don’t think that anything in here necessarily dilutes the message
c. It’s all about the car – some quotations from the manufacturer, but the article is mostly the author’s experience
i. Consequently, the readers’ experience depends on if he/she enjoys the author’s style
5. Interview
a. 1st
i. Do you agree with the proposed Republican Medicare reforms?
ii. Why do you plan on voting for a certain party, or why would you still be undecided?
iii. Is Medicare a major factor in your voting decision?
b. 2nd
i. How has this problem of stealing magic changed over the years? Where do you see it happening?
ii. Could you explain your interest in magic?
iii. What was the reaction to this trick?
c. 3rd
i. Where is your niche in the market?
ii. What is the financial situation of your company?
iii. Can you summarize what it is like to develop these supercars?
1. For Swing Nation, the lede starts with the introduction of the place, topic (Medicare) and a case study that exemplifies an interesting opinion on the matter. The lede is only two sentences long, but it is concise and thought provoking; it makes me want to read on.
For “The Honor System”, the lede is much longer and engaging than the news article. It gives the time and topic, but it does so in a more creative manner than the news piece. It shows rather than tells.
The review of the 2.5 million dollar car started with a pitch. It uses an impressive statistic of the car as a hook to engage the reader, and then continues by attempting to give the reader an experience or taste of the car.
2. Each article differs in many ways.
The news article is much more factually based. This affects the style of the article by filling it with quotes. When I was reading the article, I felt as though it got choppy because of this.
The feature was much more passionate stylistically. It felt as though I was reading something that was more thought out. Since the article was a feature, the writer was allowed to put his own emotion into the article. I think this added a really nice aspect that I enjoyed while I was reading the article
The review piece read much more like an advertisement. At times, the article seemed as though the writer was trying to promote the cars rather than review it critically.
3.
News Piece
An article of or regarding current events. A piece of writing that’s express purpose is to deliver facts and opinions of people involved in current events. A news piece does NOT integrate the opinion of the writer.
Feature Piece
An article written to highlight an attribute of something, or to tell a story. May include quotes, but the meat of the article is primarily from the point of view of the writer.
Review
An article either promoting or demoting a product, movie, restaurant, store etc... It involves the express opinion of the writer.
4.
The news piece involves quotes from many different sources. The purpose of this is to get as many opinions as possible, in order to provide the reader a diverse opinion.
The feature piece’s quotes are all aimed at supporting a main argument or opinion. Therefore, the quotes all share opinions or viewpoints.
The review piece most likely gets most of its specs from manufacturers. The opinions are all from the writer, so there is no diversity in opinion, which in my opinion, detracts from the value of the review.
5.
News:
1. Who are you planning to vote for and why?
2. Who did you vote for in 2008? What were your reasons, and have these opinions changed since then?
3. Do you think Obamacare is a good plan?
Feature:
1. How did you get interested in magic?
2. Have you ever had any of your tricks stolen from you?
3. Who do you admire most? Why?
Review:
1. What car do you drive?
2. If money wasn’t an issue, what would be your dream car
3. What got you interested in cars?
In what way is the lead engaging and accurate?
“Swing Nation” - Use of “whatever the fate...” really draws a reader in. Using name of subject personalizes article, makes readers want to know the rest of the story.
“The Honor System” - the lead, being the start to a exact and fascinating story, really draws the reader to continue reading.
The $2.5 million Car - Starting with a fact and what the writer felt while reviewing makes the reader interested in what the article is about.
How are these three pieces stylistically different? / 3. How would you distinguish between a news piece, a feature piece, and a review? Come up with your own definition for each.
The news piece, “Swing Nation,” the writer’s job is to only put the facts to paper, the purpose is to just inform the public. The feature piece purpose is to also inform, but mainly to entertain the readers. The writing in the review is more relaxed and informal, more like the writer was having a conversation with the reader.
What kind of sources are used in each piece? How do the different sources add/detract from the piece?
The news piece uses opinions and experiences of people and facts to inform the article, the feature uses only interviews to provide the information, and the review relies on the writer’s experiences and the facts of the what the writer is reviewing. The news piece being mainly unobjective about the topic makes it not as interesting to read. The two other pieces, being that they are mainly the opinions of individual people and may or may not represent the opinions of other people, but this doesn't really matter.
Formulate three questions for each article that you think the writer might have asked when interviewing people.
“Swing Nation”
1. What is the main issue you are worried about during this election?
2. how important is medicare to you?
3. Who do you think you will vote for and why?
“The Honor System”
1. What drew you to become a magician?
2. What is your best or fav. trick to preform?
3. how has this issue (the “stealing” of the trick) affected you?
The $2.5m car -
1. what made you want make this car?
2. When did you start making cars?
3. How many cars are you making/ who is buying these?
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