Comparing a Tabloid Newspaper with a Broadsheet Newspaper.
Comparing a Tabloid Newspaper with a Broadsheet Newspaper.
In this essay I am going compare a tabloid with a broadsheet Newspaper. I have chosen The Sun and The Times to compare as I think these are probably the most widely read in each category. I will look at the Layout and Presentation, Colour and Style of both the Newspapers and I will talk about the effect it has upon its readers.
Firstly I am going to look at the Appearance of both the Newspapers. In a Tabloid colour is very significant as it is eye catching and will attract buyers. Broadsheets however have an old contemporary look with minimal colour; this will enhance security in its readers. If The Times decided to change the appearance of the newspaper and used colourful bold writing, then the reader would lose the tradition and be put off by the new appearance.
The Mastheads of Newspapers are also very important in grabbing the attention of the reader. The Sun, like most Tabloids uses white writing with red surround as red is a bright bold colour and you are more likely too see it the corner of your eye. The Times uses no colour and has black old English style writing which will become a tradition for the readers and will give them a calm, relaxed feel as they read the Newspaper This is because the choice of fonts is relaxing to the eye. Between the two words 'The' and 'Times' there is a rather unusual drawing of a Lion and a Unicorn sitting either side of a shield, which contains four British symbols. Beneath the two drawings is a wavy banner with the words 'Dieu et mon droit' within it, this is French for 'God and My Right' This gives the paper an important and upper class look to it and makes you think that only Established British families would read such a Newspaper as it would reinforce their position in society.
The Times circulation figure is 726,349 and The Sun's is 3,557,336, which clearly shows that The Sun is a much more widely read Newspaper to The Times. I think this is because people choose the Sun to catch up on either the latest gossip or to enhance their knowledge on an important event or incident whereas I believe that people buy the Times to sit down and spend a few hours to read about the numerous stories that the Times covers. The average read age for The Times is eighteen which means that the times is written in ...
This is a preview of the whole essay
The Times circulation figure is 726,349 and The Sun's is 3,557,336, which clearly shows that The Sun is a much more widely read Newspaper to The Times. I think this is because people choose the Sun to catch up on either the latest gossip or to enhance their knowledge on an important event or incident whereas I believe that people buy the Times to sit down and spend a few hours to read about the numerous stories that the Times covers. The average read age for The Times is eighteen which means that the times is written in a manner that an eighteen year old should be able to comprehend. The Sun, however, has an average read age of six which means that the Newspaper should be easily read by a six year old and this also illustrates that it should appeal to the more younger reader than The Times.
The population of this country is divided into groups, A, B,C1,C2,D and E. Newspapers are targeted for a certain grade. The Times is suitable for grades A - C. The Sun however is suitable for grades C - E, which indicates that The Times is designed for the more Established family in our society today.
I am now going to study the headlines and stories of each of the Newspapers. I feel that The Sun deals with more minor stories and like most tabloids exaggerate them to ensure readers. Tabloids always look for News-values, stories for which there is a public demand. The Times deals only with stories, which are known to be true, and if the story is a rumour it will clearly state that in the article. The same article which The Sun might have as a Headline, in The Times might only be a small piece of text in the inside pages or sometimes they might not even cover the story at all.
The Sun is a much smaller paper than the Times and the Headlines takes up the majority of the front page, whereas The Times Headline takes either only a small part at the top of the Newspaper or a quarter of the left hand side of the Newspaper.
Like the Masthead The Times uses a Times New Roman font, which is another feature that ensures the readers security. The Sun also like 'its' Masthead uses very large, colourful and bold fonts, this design is typical in most Tabloid Newspapers as it grasps the attention of its readers.
A typical headline for The Sun would be something to do with a famous pop star or sportsman's personal life for example David and Victoria Beckham are very often in most of the well known Tabloids. The Times typical headline would be something that only a traditional familys would probably find interesting for example, stories about the government or phone networks.
Both Newspapers tend to be ethnocentric, meaning a story in Brazil or Africa would not be as important as the same story in Great Britain or somewhere nearer to home.
The language in The Times is very formal and The Sun's language is considerably less formal than the Times. The social class of the reader establishes this. The language also is dependent on the average read age of both the Newspapers.
The layout for both The Sun and The Times is different in many ways. A typical layout for The Times would have the masthead at the top of the page with the date just underneath. The price is located at the right hand side of the masthead. The plugs or ears, are below the date and take up 1/6 of a page, these are usually blue. The main headline although on some issues is at the top beneath the plugs; on the issue I studied it was at the top left of the newspaper with the by-line and part of the article's text underneath. On the right of the headline is a colour photograph from a different article than the main headline. At the right of that, is another less important Headline and article which takes up about 1/8 of the page. Situated at the very bottom of the page is a space for companies to advertise.
The Sun's layout is very different The Times. The masthead is situated at the top left of the page with the plugs next to it. Underneath the masthead is the date and price of the newspaper. A large colour photograph is found beneath the plugs, it has the strap line directly below it. The main headline is beneath the strap-line. Another, smaller photograph is situated just under the main headline. On the left of the photograph is a small headline with its text. On the right of that is the text for the main headline.
Both of the Newspapers will most probably cover News, Sports news, the weekly weather and the Times only, prints death announcements.
To promote the Newspaper, The Times uses the occasional television advert and boasts its award for the 'newspaper of the year, at the top of ever issue. The Sun Promotes its paper by frequent advertising on the television and often uses nude models on page three to help.
This concludes my essay. I have looked many aspects of a Tabloid and of a Broadsheet. I have looked at the appearance, the mastheads, circulation figures, readers and there age, population categories, headlines and stories, the language used, the layout, and the promotion of both the Newspapers
I my opinion I would read The Times as it is a secure, relaxed paper and I would feel ensured that the news I am reading is genuine.