To compare the way three news publications, The Times, The Mirror and Newsweek, an American weekly magazine, reported the same incident, “A Disaster in the Alps”
To compare the way three news publications, The Times, The Mirror and Newsweek, an American weekly magazine, reported the same incident, "A Disaster in the Alps"
For this essay, I have been asked to compare three different news reports of the same incident - 'Disaster in the Alps'.
On the 3rd of February 1998, a US fighter plane severed the cable of a ski lift in the Italian Alps. A cable car with 20 occupants inside fell to the ground and all were killed. The incident was widely reported in the British and American press, but the three publications I am looking at are; The Mirror, The Times and Newsweek.
The Mirror is a tabloid paper. It uses pacy, dramatic language, bold type and pull quotes to report on the incident.
The Times is a broadsheet paper. It is known as the establishment newspaper, has a reputation for investigative journalism and uses calm language to report the incident.
Newsweek is an American weekly publication. It is in high competition with another American weekly, 'Time', for the highest sales. It downplays the incident as a form of 'anti-Americanism'.
Each publication therefore describes the incident in a different way. The Mirror provides facts on the number of people killed and how far they fell. It includes opinions on the height that the plane was flying and interviews people from every angle of the incident - holidaymakers, police, fire and US officials. It provides reactions only from the Italian authorities and members of the public, not the American authorities.
The Times describes the incident with the same facts as The Mirror, i.e. 20 dead and a 300ft fall. It gives opinions from witnesses who say that the plane was 'flying very, very low.' It includes interviews with witnesses, police and a rescue worker. It has reactions from both the American and Italian authorities and members of the public.
Newsweek describes the incident very differently. It does tell us how many people died and the height of the cable, but this is disguised in the article. It also provides the fact that it took two days to extract and identify the bodies, which detracts from the fact of how there came to be bodies in the first place. It does not interview people who were at the scene but Italian military staff and the American ambassador. It gives us reactions from both authorities and members of the public.
For this essay, I have been asked to compare three different news reports of the same incident - 'Disaster in the Alps'.
On the 3rd of February 1998, a US fighter plane severed the cable of a ski lift in the Italian Alps. A cable car with 20 occupants inside fell to the ground and all were killed. The incident was widely reported in the British and American press, but the three publications I am looking at are; The Mirror, The Times and Newsweek.
The Mirror is a tabloid paper. It uses pacy, dramatic language, bold type and pull quotes to report on the incident.
The Times is a broadsheet paper. It is known as the establishment newspaper, has a reputation for investigative journalism and uses calm language to report the incident.
Newsweek is an American weekly publication. It is in high competition with another American weekly, 'Time', for the highest sales. It downplays the incident as a form of 'anti-Americanism'.
Each publication therefore describes the incident in a different way. The Mirror provides facts on the number of people killed and how far they fell. It includes opinions on the height that the plane was flying and interviews people from every angle of the incident - holidaymakers, police, fire and US officials. It provides reactions only from the Italian authorities and members of the public, not the American authorities.
The Times describes the incident with the same facts as The Mirror, i.e. 20 dead and a 300ft fall. It gives opinions from witnesses who say that the plane was 'flying very, very low.' It includes interviews with witnesses, police and a rescue worker. It has reactions from both the American and Italian authorities and members of the public.
Newsweek describes the incident very differently. It does tell us how many people died and the height of the cable, but this is disguised in the article. It also provides the fact that it took two days to extract and identify the bodies, which detracts from the fact of how there came to be bodies in the first place. It does not interview people who were at the scene but Italian military staff and the American ambassador. It gives us reactions from both authorities and members of the public.
