News Reporting & Writing Students: For this journal, pick one story that has been covered in multiple media outlets, and check/compare factual assertions, context, and overall quality of coverage between two separate sources. Write two entries about these sources, with at least one paragraph of summary and at least one paragraph of response in each entry, and finish the assignment with at least one full paragraph of overall concluding thoughts. Demonstrate course concepts and journalism knowledge from class throughout.
DUE for posting by class time, WEEK NINE, Day One (10/18).
Posted by Benjamin at October 15, 2010 03:21 PMShawn Kokoszka
October 18, 2010
Media Journal #2
Revision
In regards to the rescue of the Chilean miners, I read two pieces of print journalism, one from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and one from the Chicago Tribune, each from Sunday, October 17, 2010.
CHILE’S IMAGE BOLSTERED
By Peter Prengaman
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Oct 17, 2010
Summary:
Prengaman’s account of the miner’s rescue begins with the last miner being pulled from the mine as onlooker Chilean President Sebastian Pinera made the sign of the cross. Focusing on the impact the ordeal has had on Chile and it’s leader, it is an in-depth account of a president who’s approval rating wavered below 50% before the mine exploded and raised to near 80% after the recue.
The story details the President’s fulfillment of his campaign promise to run the country like a business. By demanding the best equipment and scientific knowledge from around the globe, Pinera refused to micro-manage and kept the world abreast of any and all developments.
The story ends with plans for Pinera to now meet with Queen Elizabeth and embark on a global tour due to his new global celebrity.
Reaction:
The article was a different angle about the miners that I had yet to hear about. It was also a welcomed one, since I thoroughly was disgusted with stories popping up about the one miner who returned to his mistress not his wife. That’s news?
I thought Prengaman did a nice job of reporting the effect on the country and Chile’s president instead of going for the more told story of the rescue.
He used the inverted pyramid, but I thought the article lacked two sides to the story. On one hand, you have his Interior minister singing his praises, but I would have liked to have read quotes from the citizens, or better yet the miners. For now, readers are left with a glorified account of a world leader. I guess time will test his abilities.
BOOK DEAL? MINERS LIPS ARE SEALED
By Terry Wade and Juana Casas
Chicago Tribune Oct 17, 2010
Summary:
In contrast to the Journal Sentinel piece, Wade and Casas focused their report on the miners accounts, or more accurately non-accounts, of the their 69 day underground ordeal. By interviewing three miners, they report how the miners kept detailed records of daily activities in the mine, knowing that one day they would be rescued and could capitalize on the tragedy.
Making a pact amongst them, all 33 miners agreed not to give individual specific details to any media outlet.
The story concludes also with details for a world tour, but this time for, as the reporters put it, “the real hero” the metal escape capsule the miners were recued in.
Reaction:
Personally, I’m intrigued by this story simply because I’m amazed by the foresight of the miners. I thought the report was thorough and supportive of the headline. I enjoyed reading three quotes from three different miners and felt the reporters were able to support the lede.
They also used the inverted pyramid with the last three paragraphs going off topic by turning the focus to the escape capsule. I felt that was awkward and came out of left field. Is it possible that they just needed to fill space?
Conclusions/Observations
In conclusion, I felt the reporters did a good job in their reporting of two different angles from one major story. I feel the Tribune piece had more sources to back up the story, whereas the Journal Sentinel article reported something new for readers. In each respect, they used basic journalism styles. Ironically, they both had quotes, granted on two completely different details regarding the story, from the Chilean Interior Minister. I guess he was the only official available for comment.
Media Journal #2
Entry 1 : Alaskan Journalist says he was handcuffed by Senate Candidate’s Guards”
By The Associated Press
Summary : Tony Hopfinger, editor of an online Alaskan news site said he was handcuffed and detained by private security guards working for Republican Senate candidate Joe Miller at a town hall meeting Sunday night. He told KTUU-TV that security pushed him as he tried to question Miller. When he pushed back, the guards detained him, accusing him of trespassing at the public event in Anchorage. The Dispatch is among other media outlets suing for access to Miller’s personal record from his time as a Governmental attorney.
Response : The article was short and to the point. The writers executed the inverted pyramid perfectly. Although I would have wanted to read more about what went on at the town hall meeting, if perhaps there may have been a catalyst for the detainment. Also, I would have liked to hear more of what Hopfinger had to say, as the article only paraphrased, he told the Anchorage Daily News that after Miller walked away, he was surrounded by Miller supporters and security guards and felt threatened.
Entry 2 : Anchorage Daily News joins lawsuit seeking Miller’s employment records
By Staff Reports / Newsroom@newsminer.com
Summary : The Anchorage Daily News is now expected to join a lawsuit, along with several other media outlets, seeking public records related to Republican U.S. Senate candidate Joe Miller. “The Fairbanks Daily Newsminer and Alaska Dispatch website had previously sued the Fairbanks North Star Borough on Monday, asking the Borough to release records related to his employment history as a part time Borough attorney.” The Borough is asking that all of the actions be consolidated into one single lawsuit.
Response : I thought this article too was quite short, though it did shed some light on how The Left is handling this new Republican Candidate. Writers from newsminer.com didn’t really make any use of the Inverted pyramid in this article, it seemed more like they just needed something to print. Also, the brief article ends with a quote from Chris Zimmerman, the Fairbanks attorney representing the Daily News, that claims how all the media outlets suing for Millers record just want and informed electorate. Weather or not that is true, it feels like it shouldn’t be there.
Conclusion : I think perhaps these two articles are the least bias’ I have ever read, to the point where they suffer in length from it. The second article by Newsminer had one or two sentences that felt like they didn’t fit, or didn’t need to be there, other than that, both press’ only wrote what was absolutely necessary to understand the events at the Town Hall in Anchorage. The first article made much better use of the inverted pyramid, as the second article read more like an essay, throwing in a quote that felt misplaced. I would say I greatly enjoy articles that have more length and detail, in fact I’m usually quite turned off by short articles, however these were informed enough to hold my attention, and quite strictly limited themselves to ‘Just the Facts”. I think for that reason, its difficult for me to judge at length their wealth. I would say that though both of these articles were not jazzy or cleverly written like my favorite journalists write, (ie. Christopher Hitchens, Timothy Rutten) the writers at AP and also Newsminer are quite capable of adhering to the strictest professional Journalism.
Posted by: James Kanter at October 18, 2010 05:40 PMSoma Akainyah
Media Journal 2
Source 1
by Elliot McLaughlin
Oct 18
summary:
On august 5 2010, a collapse in the San Jose mine in Northern Chile left 33 miners trapped 2640 feet underground. The article I chose to summarize was written by Elliot McLauglin for CNN on October 15. It summarizes and highlights the events that transpired during the 69 days that Chilean miners were trapped underground. He describes how they survived, what they ate, how they were rescued, and even adds quotes from some of the miners. For a week the miners were forced to live off of 2 days worth of food. Every 48 hours each miner was given a cracker with canned fish on top with a scarce side of milk and peaches until finally a drill broke through the ceiling. Rescuers sent items including food, water, oxygen clothing medicine flashlights etc. Although the miners were trapped for another 52 days, their hope accompanied by modern technology helped them survive and luckily all 33 of them were rescued.
Response:
McLaughlin separates the article by dates, and describes what happened on those dates. This makes it seem more like you are reading someone’s journal entries than a news article. Consequently, the article takes the reader on an engaging journey through the lives of the miners during the time they spent trapped underground. Similar to a journal I found myself wanting to keep reading to see what happens next. McLaughlin shows his skills in information gathering by including a substantial amount of pertinent information pertaining to the miners and their day-to-day encounters. It is evident that the type of information he provides was obtained by doing extensive research. Overall, I enjoyed this article.
Source 2
Chicago Tribune Article
by Chris Kraul and Fabiola Gutierrez
Oct 15
Summary:
The second article I chose to summarize was written by Chris Kraul and Fabiola Gutierrez for the Chicago tribune on Oct 16. The article discusses the recent emergence of psychological trauma in some of the miners. Although the bulk of the men were released from the hospital on Friday, many of them seemed “disoriented” and had a hard time getting acclimated to life above ground. Since they have been rescued, the men have received public esteem, media questioning and an overwhelming amount of job offers and gifts from the public. Although the miners were given counseling while they were trapped and received positive evaluations, all the public attention has made it somewhat difficult for them to rest and cope with the events.
Response:
Although I found the topic of this article to be interesting, I found the content to be somewhat mediocre. The article contained many quotes that were neither interesting, nor said by any notable people. Therefore, I found them to be unnecessary and easily paraphrased. One of the trapped miners was quoted to have said “we had a really bad time.” I thought this was obvious and the author could have used a more interesting or unique quote. The information that was gathered seemed very unorganized. The article lacked flow and it was similar to reading a series of facts and quotes as opposed to one article. The facts that the article contained were interesting nonetheless. Overall I was interested but not impressed.
Conclusion:
(course concepts and journalism knowledge)
The second article didn’t seem very thorough. Compared to the first article, the information was scattered and unorganized. I think the authors should have gone more in depth and been more detailed about the disoriented miners. It seemed as though the author of the first article did extensive research while the authors of the second article had a lot of basic information.
Media Journal 2
First Source: ABC 7 News, “Hotel Strike”, Reporter Evelyn Holmes
Summary: Picket lines at the Chicago Hilton Hotel started. A spokesperson for Hilton Hotel said it will operate as usually. Workers say that Hilton owes them and they try to lock them up in a bad contract. Workers contracts expired a year ago. The union is trying to get their wages to increase 7 percent. The hotel received one hundred- eighty million in bailout. Some hotel guests found the picketing disrupting, but they reply that it is necessary to get the workers back. The strike will go on Sunday and Monday, 3. Hilton reps made this statement: “union tactic such as work stoppage and demonstration will do nothing to bring us closer to a new contract. Hilton Employees currently are paid competitive wages and enjoy many generous benefits.”
Reaction: The story answers the W’s and has a basic structure. The lede is readable. It has details and reactions from both sides. It states the problem and solutions. It also has quotes. The inverted pyramid is there. It contains the “so what” that emphasis of the purpose of the incident.
Second Source: CLTV News, “Hilton Workers”, Newscaster Judy Wang
Summary: Hilton workers picket four Chicago area hotels. It started 4 in the morning and will last three days. Housekeepers, cooks, and bellboys service staff are apart of the strike. Workers claim the hotel is squeezing workers out in payment and cutting jobs. The strike didn’t affect business. The Hilton received a bailout that was one hundred-eighty million. A Hilton rep urges the union to return to bargaining table until there is agreement.
Reaction: It has supporting details. It covers the inverted pyramid and has a basic structure that most news stories have. It has some quotes. It didn’t capture the essence of the workers and the hotel. It covers the range of what is consider newsworthy story. The lede is understandable.
Concluding Remarks: Both networks had a lede that capture the theme of the story. ABC 7 News had more supporting details and lead quotes. CLTV News had details, but it wasn’t that much sufficient. Both stories answer some W’s, but didn’t capture the essence of the story. The lede and the “nut graf” are there. ABC had views from hotel guest and workers that picket and that’s what can drive the story. CLTV News didn’t have a length story as ABC. In the end, both stories explain the purpose of it all.
Media Journal #2
John Fox
Source 1- themoneytimes.com “online”
By- Deepika Garg
Date- October 17, 2010
Summary: The Federal Government and its agencies will continue to enforce the laws against the drug marijuana. Even after voters decide on Nov. 2nd to approve Proposition 19, which seeks to legalize the drug for recreational purposes. The government will “vigorously enforce” federal laws against pot said U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder. The article continues with saying that marijuana crimes is a “core priority” of the Department of Justice and it would not change even if Proposition 19 passes.
Response: The article begins with a traditional news style lede. It is very straight forward but yet only briefly informative. Its starts off with stating the who, what, where and when, but it doesn't really say the why and how. It doesn't give the readers the “frame” of the story in the lede. The body of the article provides a good back round and history of the topic at hand. It uses quotes from relevant sources through out the entire article. It also explains the impact that Proposition 19 will have on people all over the country, especially in California if passed on Nov. 2nd. The ending paragraph includes the least significant information.
Source 2- The New York Times “paper”
By- Adam Nagourney
Date- October 17, 2010
Summary: The article begins with saying that the Department of Justice intends to prosecute marijuana laws in California aggressively even if after the ballot to legalize the drug passes on Nov. 2nd. It then goes on to say that Eric H. Holder who is the U.S. Attorney General made an announcement by writing a letter to several former Drug Enforcement Agency chiefs containing his office's stance on the issue. These letters were then made public on Friday, Oct. 15th, 2010. The article then continues with talk about how Washington has generally looked the other way while 14 other states, including California made the use of medical marijuana legal with a doctors prescription. The article ends with a quote from Joycelyn Elders, the former Surgeon General who is against the U.S. Department of Justices statements.
Response: I felt that this article was very well written. It followed a traditional news story style writing exactly. The lede paragraph was structured exactly in the traditional news style. Its included the who, what, where, when, why and how of the topic. It also framed the topic well for the rest of the article. The body or support paragraphs were in descending order of importance. They also included relevant physical details of the subject and narrated relevant sequences of the events, through out the entire article. The importance of the story was well written to be very clear for the reader. Finally, the end paragraph was the least significant as far as importance of information goes.
Concluding Remarks: I felt that both articles were well written in the traditional news style form. They both used the different elements that make up this style. The article from themoneytimes.com was a bit less informative than the New York Times article. They both had clear body paragraphs that were in descending order of importance. This made for a very easy and informative read. The New York times article was a lot longer in length than the other article, but yet both were interesting in their own ways. Themoneytimes.com article was shorter but got straight to the point and didn't include useless quotes. The quotes that were used were relevant and made me feel very informed. The New York Times article was longer in length but also included quotes from a few sources that felt pointless to the topic. They both were very well written and I had fun reading them.
Posted by: John Fox at October 18, 2010 08:00 AMMedia Journal #2:
Entry #1: Video from the Fox News’ website, posted on Oct. 14, 2010, about a broadcast from Fox News’ “Glenn Beck” TV show.
Summary: This past Thursday, Fox News’ political commentator and television host Bill O’Reilly was a guest on ABC’s “The View.” He was there to talk about politics and his new book, but at some point, the topic of discussion ended up being the Islamic center that is set to be built soon in New York, in an area close to ground zero. O’Reilly said that building that center at that particular area was inappropriate and when asked why he was saying that, he stated that “Muslims killed us on 9/11.” This specific comment upset Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar, two of the show’s hosts, who stood up and walked off the set outraged. In this short video from Fox News, O’Reilly appears at Glenn Beck’s TV show to talk about this recent incident.
Response: The first thing I noticed from this video was the vocabulary choice for its headline and sub-headline. “Who’s Afraid of Bill O’Reilly?” – “‘View’ co-hosts bolt from set during New York mosque debate” already sets the tone of the conversation that will take place. Using a different headline, substituting “bolt” for a more neutral verb, and being more accurate by changing the word “mosque” to “Islamic center,” for example, would give a fairer and more balanced idea of what really happened.
Another thing I noticed from the video was that while Glenn Beck made passive-aggressive and sarcastic comments about “The View” co-hosts, O’Reilly was more respectful toward them. For example, after re-watching what happened at the TV show, Beck says that “it was a better show after they left, but maybe that’s just me. Barbara Walters [one of the other hosts] seems to be the only adult, at least on that side of the couch [Goldberg was sitting next to her].”
Moreover, by the end of the video, he refers to the incident and states that “it’s amazing…you learn so much about the left and their willingness to have a conversation and tolerate other people’s opinions…” I thought it was very funny that he said something like that, since apparently, Beck cannot see that a statement like this suits him (and members of the right) more than anyone else. Needless to say Beck’s comments were biased.
Entry #2: Video from CNN’s website, posted on Oct. 15, 2010, about a broadcast from HLN’s “The Joy Behar Show.”
Summary: In this video, we have a brief broadcast from “The Joy Behar Show,” where Joy Behar talks about the reasons why she left the set after Bill O’Reilly’s comment. Jesse Ventura, former Minnesota Governor, is also present and shares his opinion on the whole incident.
Response: One of the things I did not understand about the video was why Jesse Ventura was there. I cannot help but wonder if he has been there as the guest throughout the whole show or if he just joined Behar to discuss this particular topic (and if this were the case, I would really like to know why). But regardless of the case, I think he does offer an interesting point of view. Behar explains that she walked out of the set during “The View” because she considered O’Reilly’s comment hate speech, and I agree that what he said borderlines this classification. However, Ventura says that regardless being considered hate speech for some, O’Reilly’s comment and polls’ results (which he cites on “The View”) should not matter because the Constitution gives the right to whoever is going to build the Islamic center to do so and that should be the end of the conversation.
By the end of the video, he also gives his honest (and not so positive) opinion about O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, and Sean Hannity, but his comments are very direct – differently from Beck’s comments in the first video included here.
Finally, I think overall, Behar tried to reach the bottom of the problem behind what happened at “The View” – not so much the fact that she and Whoopi Goldberg left the set, but the reason why they did so.
Conclusion: Right after Behar and Goldberg walked off the set, Barbara Walters said that at the same time that walking out of the discussion is not the right thing to do, O’Reilly should not say that the whole (Muslims in general) is responsible for the actions of a few (Muslim extremists). I totally agree with Walters.
Furthermore, I think that after the incident, Behar talking about it with someone more in the liberal side like her, and O’Reilly talking about it with someone more in the conservative side like him, does not make up for the fact that when both of them were together and had the chance to express their opinions – regardless of how different they were – they could not do so. Instead, the discussion just became a competition for who could talk louder and who could be heard while two or three people talked at the same time.
This is definitely not a good example about how journalism should be. Journalists have to be open for different points of view and should discuss them properly, one opinion at a time. Therefore, I would not say that one of the videos I picked was better than the other, but I would say that Behar’s broadcasting gained some points since she at least tried to take the situation to another level. Keeping in mind that “Islamophobia” has been a relevant topic for some, I can see that by discussing O’Reilly’s comment, she might have tried to implicitly relate both things and make the whole situation relevant for the right reasons.
Source #1: After a Final Push, a Repeat Winner in Chicago, New York Times online, by Jere Longman, Oct.10
Summary:
Kenya’s Sammy Wanjiru has won this year’s Chicago Marathon and sports writer, Jere Longman, has covered the story for the New York Times. In a news article published on nyt.com, Longman brings us the story of the repeat winner in the men’s race. In fact, according to the article, Wanjiru was not even a likely winner given the conditions of his health this past summer. However, through determination and stamina, Wanjiru beat his opponents, in the 26.2-mile race, to number one in just under 2 hours 6 minutes and 30 seconds.
Response
Longman’s Lede paragraph does not cut through the heart of the story readers want to know. Rather, the writer, in paragraph one, clearly introduces the subject thus answering the “who,” question. Until the second paragraph, the article does not answer what, where, and when questions. Since, Wanjiru comes from outside the United States, many regular Times readers will not be familiar with the champion and so the writer is justified to share the athlete’s background information even when it takes the entire first paragraph. Informing the readers the winner’s recent past fitness history, in part, helps answer the “so what,” question. Because Longman makes his audience feel that an athlete who had been through streaks of illness which would‘ve made it harder for him to win is justified to win.
Source #2: Wanjiru battles, beats Kebede, Chicago Tribune web by Tribune staff reporter Philip Hersh Oct. 10
Summary
The annual Bank of America Chicago Marathon, which attracted more than 40,000 runners from around the world, was held last Sunday at Grant Park, south of downtown Chicago. Tribune staff reporter Philip Hersh who covered the story for the Chicago paper brings to readers the story of men’s race winner Samuel Wanjiru of Kenya. For the last one mile of the track, the race came down to a battle between two East African neighbors. Coming from behind Kenya’s first place Wanjiru raced against Ethiopia’s Second place Tsegaye Kebede beating him to number one in a fraction of a minute. Although the defending champ Wanjiru said he enjoyed the race, others however complained of the high temperatures and steep incline over Roosevelt street bridge. As 2009/2010 champion, Wanjiru who is likely to run another marathon in four weeks in New York, has collected over half a million U.S dollars.
Response
In just one sentence Lede, Chicago Tribune staff writer Philip Hersh summarized how Wanjiru won last week’s Chicago Marathon. It’s not until the second paragraph that Hersh lets readers know who, when, where and what of the story. Hersh used quotes from both the first place and the runners-up athletes to inform the readers about the challenges and the joys of the race. He placed less important information such as Wanjiru’s age, past victories and how he will use the prize money, at last paragraphs.
In conclusion, the reporters of these two articles didn’t use inverted pyramid and thus did not answer questions readers would want to know straight away in the Lede paragraph. This could be that they wanted create suspense and make readers follow what’s about to come next. Chicago Tribune’s Hersh had a tighter Lede than New York’s Longman. One other observation is that Longman used winner’s informal name Sammy while Tribune’s Hersh used the more formal name Samuel. The Tribune’s article had more quotes, was more descriptive, in-depth and analytical of the event and athletes while the New Times focused more narrowly on the reigning champion and had more coherent sentence structures. Both articles reported with numbers, were informative, and bias-free.
Media Journal, 10/15
“IRS: Strip club owner didn’t show us everything”
“Libertyville resident Michael Wellek accused of skimming millions”
Ray Gibson, Andrew Grimm; Chicago Tribune
Summary:
Michael Wellek was charged with criminal tax offenses Thursday after the IRS seized $12 million from his strip-club warehouse seven years ago. Wellek had not filed a personal income tax return from 1989 to 1999; investigations began in the year 2000. Wellek, 63, owns three strip clubs in different Chicago suburbs. In 2003 the IRS discovered and confiscated $12 million cash in bags at an Elk Grove Village warehouse. The bags were marked by date and by club. The next year Wellek filed a federal lawsuit in an effort to regain the money, claiming that he owed less in back taxes, but was unsuccessful. The ruling was that at least $11 million was “appropriate under the circumstance.” Wellek had lied to federal agents, underreported gross income of his clubs, and in 2004 was fined $1.2 million for fraud (his challenge is currently pending). His lawyer, Terry Ekl, anticipates a guilty plea by Wellek. The investigation has brought on charges against 15 others who had worked for Wellek, also reluctant to report their earnings. If convicted, Wellek faces a potential six years in prison.
Reaction:
The article is both informative and easy to follow. The basic facts having to do with the lede are given in the first couple of paragraphs; the article follows the basic inverted pyramid structure. There are lots of numbers and dates for the reader to keep track of, but they do help illustrate Wellek’s fraudulence. It’s interesting to me that several other people were discovered and charged with not reporting income during this investigation. That information could have gone higher up in the article, in my opinion (it wraps it up), however it does make the most structural sense to talk solely about Wellek up until that point. This version of the story read as news to me; I found it not to be biased or opinionated. I would trust the Gibson and Grimm to report on another topic neutrally.
Media Journal 10/15
“$12 million cash stash”
“Strip-club owner charged with ducking millions in taxes”
Natasha Korecki, Chicago Sun-Times
Summary:
Michael Wellek, 63, was federally charged on Thursday for withholding millions in back taxes while hoarding more than enough cash. Wellek owns three profitable strip clubs in Chicago suburbs and has for years allegedly tried to keep the IRS “from collecting its share.” He has long contested the seizure in 2003 of $12 million cash which he held in a warehouse, on the grounds that he owed less to the government. The warehouse had a specific cash room found by investigators that housed “piles and piles of bags and boxes” filled with cash brought in by the three clubs. Wellek has also been accused of failing to file tax returns from 1989 to 1999, and continuing to avoid and lie to IRS agents as they pursued the case. Wellek’s lawyer Terry Ekl anticipates a guilty plea on his part, which would yield up to three years in prison for each of the two charges. Comments on Yelp.com, a website dedicated to reviewing businesses, hint at its most prominent aspects being cash-related (free food, cheap drinks, and attentive personal time with the dancers).
Reaction:
This article took on a more colloquial tone, which I found easier to read. Quite a few quotes were inserted throughout by various sources. Quotes support credibility, and they definitely keep my interest. I like that it mentioned Yelp.com, a website I’m familiar with, as I felt I could relate more closely to the subject matter. Facts were presented clearly, but I did get a sense of bias while reading them. The language Korecki chose to describe Wellek had a negative slant, thereby making it difficult for me to take the article seriously. Not that I didn’t believe the facts of the story, but it’s not easy to make up one’s own mind about a topic when presented in an opinionated manner. The bias was not blatantly obvious, but it was there.
Conclusion:
Overall, I found the article in the Sun-Times the most entertaining and relatable. The use of quotes and examples I recognized made it easier for me to follow and kept my interest. It did, however, fail to come off as straight news. I found the article in the Tribune to be a great example of news reporting. It didn’t sway a certain way in terms of representing Wellek, and I learned the facts that mattered in a concise manner. The Tribune article also paraphrased something that the Sun-Times article put as a direct quote (Wellek’s attorney’s thoughts). I probably would have paraphrased it as well; there’s nothing outstanding about the way he said “I anticipate he will plead guilty to the charges.” The Sun-Times article had no mention of charges against other people coming from Wellek’s case, which I thought was valuable information presented in the Tribune. Both articles named Wellek in the second paragraph, as his name is not publicly known and therefore would have no place in the lede. If I had to guess, I’d assume Gibson and Grimm to be more seasoned reporters than Korecki.
First Source:THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14,2010. By Matt Moffett, Anthony Esposito and Carolina Pica.
Chile's Rescue Formula: '75% Science, 25% Miracle'
Summary: A Phoenix rescue capsule on Wednesday midnight lifted the 33 Chilean miners to the surface of the earth, and back to their families after 70 days of been buried underground due to the cave-in. The incident occurred Aug. 5. The rescue was based on two notions 75% Science and 25% Miracle. The Chilean President Sabastian Pinera welcomed the miners.
Reaction: It was a News Narrative report by Moffett, Esposito and Pica. The lede of the story was a summary lede, which summarized the events. Quotes from the rescue team, miners and several expertise from diverse field relating to the rescue made the report authoritative. The sequence of event was based on the inverted pyramid style of writing, and chronology formats with emphasis on news aspect.
Second Source: The New York Times. THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2010.
Defying Dire Predictions, Trapped Miners Emerge Looking Fit
Medical Care, Good Diet and Even Some Running
By DONALD G.McNEIL Jr.
Summary:The Chilean Trapped miners rescued on Wednesday, were fit and energetic as they appeared to surface of the earth with great joy, and were welcome by their families and cheering crowd. Far from expected time and predictions, came their rescue. Factors like excellent medical care, good diet, exercise and clean environment led to their healthy state for survival.
Reaction: The report by McNEIL, focuses on how the miners were able to survive during the period they were trapped. The lede was an expository lede.The story was chronology-like and had a narrative suspense with foreshadowing.
Conclusion: Both publications reported with different news story structure. The Wall Street Journal was detailed, and a timely report. The New York Times had a good description of the physical relevant details, and flashback to some sources that had previously contributed to the rescue. Comparing factual assertion; both reported Aug. 5 as the day the miner were trapped. Apart from this, all other facts do not correspond. Examples are as follows: New York Times reported 69 days trapped, while Wall Street Journal reported 70 days. New York Times reported Mario Supulveda age 39, Wall Street Journal reported 40years. They also reported on different sources(miners). However, both were great journalism, but I preferred Wall Street Journal report on the Story of the Miner's rescue to The New York Times, because The Wall Street Journal had enough details.