The Guardian is the only one of the two that tells us of that a man was shot in the leg, this is surprising, as usually broad sheets do not go onto a personal level about world events for the reason above. They may do this to give the reader an idea of the enormity of the event. The Guardian also tells us of the supporters who did not carry tickets. This may give the more upper class educated broad sheet reader to ‘look down their noses’ on the ‘common’ thugs who went not for the football, but for the fighting.
The language used in the two articles varies. When describing ‘Gary’ the thug, the Mirror uses the words Brummie and hulking. This language is colloquial and chatty, which helps the tabloid reader to relate to the story, and gives them something to picture in their minds. The word hulking also gives a dramatic effect, and makes him sound frightening and threatening. The guardian also uses the phrase ‘riot cops’. This language has the same colloquial effect as the above, and also gives the impression that the events are pert of some kind of elaborate film. This would excite the reader, and give him or her the impression of huge street rioting.
The Guardian uses more formal and ‘complex’ language. An example of this is when the article is talking of the man who was shot in the leg, it says that the patient ‘discharged’ himself. This word gives a feeling of a secret and rushed event, and makes the fact that the patient left the hospital sound more sinister and serious. The same article also uses the phrase preventative custody. The fact that the writer does not just use the word custody shows that he is aiming for the audience with more education and therefore more knowledge of legal terms.
The sentence “The fat, ugly face of English football” appears at the head of the Mirror article. It is describing a picture of one of the thugs. The descriptive words add extra impact to the picture, building up the reader’s hatred of this man. The Mirror readers may like to build up an emotion on one particular character at the start of the article, to encourage them to read on to find their fate or the damage that they have done. All of the words in this exert are quite short and simple, each being one or two syllables long, making it more easy going for the less educated tabloid readers. The alliteration (highlighted) also makes this section easy to read, as it flows more easily,
The sentence “Four hundred English supporters were held in preventative custody at a nearby military barracks, while another 200 were held because they did not have match tickets” is taken from the Guardian article. This has a lot less to say about it, as more educated broad sheet readers only want the facts, with “no frills”, as they can build up pictures of the events in their heads without being given descriptive language. Longer, more complex words are also used, with many containing 3 syllables, as the more educated readers can cope with them.
On the whole, the Guardian article is aimed at the more educated reader, containing more facts, and longer words. The Guardian tends to just state the facts, and as it does not contain personal level descriptions etc, can fit more facts in. The Mirror readers may lose concentration in a broad sheet more complex article, so more ‘padding’ (e.g. descriptions of offenders) are used. Shorter words are also used as Mirror readers are usually less educated than those of the Guardian.
