See the power of elements

Source:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/03/2916814.htm

Topic:
Tornado smashes NSW north coast

Author:
ABC News


This story briefly reported that a tornado hit the north coast of New South Wales at Lennox Head, and the rest part is based on various quotes and images. Statistics and details were provided by policeman and emergency unit. Some witnesses talked about their experiences in the horror weather.

Seven pictures, one video clip and a map were also provided, which described the big tornado. In disaster news, the best way to describe is to let the images speak. These images had more visual impact on readers when it showed a house was smashed to pieces, just “like a bomb”.


(Picture form ABC news)

Metal, wood, water, fire and earth are the five basic elements in ancient Chinese philosophy. They compose everything, and destroy everything. They cause most natural disasters, except tornado.

In terms of online news, what is the most important element to attract readers? The answers are two: more images and readers themselves.

What makes readers so important? The interactivity of online news.

I really appreciate the “contribute” function of ABC News, which encourages readers to upload their own media, including images, video and audio. There is a hyperlink following this story: “Did you see what happened? Send us your photographs/video”.

The Internet era is upon us, the online news times is coming and the traditional top-down relationship between writers and viewers begins to fracture. Not just journalists, but everyone can be a contributor to online news, namely, readers have been a part of online news.

This story is a good example, some quotes and images from readers make this story.

Interested in tornado? Click here to watch a video from Channel Ten news, made by big media institution. You may see some interesting differences between these two clips.

Interview gives readers the direct story

Source:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103790515

Topic:
Grieving Chinese Family Quells Memories to Heal

Author:
Melissa Block

The terrible earthquake happened in the Sichuan province of China in 2008 shocked the world. As an international journalist, Melissa Block has reported this disaster at that time. This article is one of her follow-up articles.

In the earthquake, a young couple lost their two-year old son and their parents.Melissa Block has interviewed Wang Dan, the couple’s brother. This article reports how their family goes through the next year. The whole article is based on interview, including seven questions and answers. Melissa Block firstly asks Wang about what the couple did in last year. Then, the author emphasizes the emotion of the couple after the loss of their closest relatives.

When comparing with Melissa Block’s other articles, which reports the unfortunate family last year, she no longer writes the story from her point of view. Instead, she uses interview to let the person who is involved into this disaster to talk his own story. Without her own description and judgment, her just let the victims talk so the readers can touch their feelings directly.

As a journalist, the way to tell the story is very important. This report is a good example. The journalist chooses the best way to describe this sad family’s story by giving the vision of one of the involvers. It is like photography. A good photo is a photo can talk by itself. A good journalist aims to tell the readers all the facts. Although Melissa Block doesn’t have many words in this article, we can see her wisdom by how she chooses and organizes the questions. Interview gives readers the direct story .