For this article I watched the WAGM News Source 8 newscast for February 4. News Source 8 is the news program for Aroostook County. While watching the news program I focused on the differences between the televised news material, and the written editorials we have been covering in class.
The style for television journalism is very similar to that of writing a lead. The sentence structures are simple, and do not contain many adjectives or adverbs. The reporters are relaying the important information to the viewer in the most direct manor, letting the images fill in the details. Simple sentence structures may also keep the reporter and the audience from being confused. There is no going back for either party. Newscasts also tend to use active voice like news articles. This draws the viewers attention to the subject of the sentences, and makes the sentence more comprehensible. Leads cannot simply be made into newscasts.
While leads and newscasts have a lot in common there are some major differences between the two mediums that should be addressed. Newscasts do not site as many sources as news articles. This maybe due to time constraints or a lack of interest by the audience, people tend to believe what they hear. I also noticed newscasts tend to focus more on the humanistic side of the event. There were lots of interviews and personal opinions expressed during the news program while newspaper articles tend to focus more on the information. The section on the University of Fort Kent was mostly interviews with important figures in the development and use of the building. This helps with the story's credibility by showing the feelings of those involved.
While watching I noticed multiple tense changes, and improper grammar. This would be unacceptable in a written news article, but it is overlooked on television. Errors and a less formal style may make the reporters and news anchors more human to the viewer. The news anchors also chatted back and forth during the less formal parts of the news program such as the weather and sports.
The two mediums television and newspapers have a lot in common in their presentations, because they both focus on making information easily understood. However, I feel the television news is a more forgiving media to present on.
You can watch WAGM New Source 8 here:
http://www.wagmtv.com/newssource8/Newscast.aspx
Make sure to remember that newspaper articles do not always report breaking, factual news. Also, newspaper articles aren't equivalent to "editorials." Features, columns, editorials, etc may all be written quite differently and more flexibly than breaking news stories (direct vs. delayed leads may be just one difference). When you say you will compare editorials with newscasts (writing), some of the flexibility of writing may be similarities rather than differences between the two types of writing!
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