InkTank

Red Cross red-handed?

Japan's recovery has been all over international news since the chain of tragedies began on March 11, and people around the world have donated over $1 billion to the Japanese Red Cross relief fund. Japan has seen devastation from the direct effects of the earthquake and tsunami, as well as from the crippled Fukushima nuclear power plant that has sent radioactive levels in Japan skyrocketing.

For many, the only way they can help is by donating money. However, the LA Times reported the none of the $1 billion raised has reached victims, which has prompted Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano to "urge Sunday that the process be accelerated." 

This headline and lede must have raised a few eyebrows, though many who took the time to read the article were most likely peeved that the information in the lede was not mentioned again until the end of the story. 

Another day for innacurate pope coverage

Once again, a well-meaning reporter failed to do some basic research on religion--specifically, Catholicism--and the article suffered as a result. Even from the title of the Huffington Post article "John Paul II's Living Will," it is a sign that author Jon M. Sweeney did not do his research properly.

Pope John Paul II did not have a living will. But more on that later on. 

The troubles in this article begin with its lede:

"It is amazing how quickly the beloved Pope John Paul II seems to have faded from public memory. Six years after his death (on April 2, 2005), it is difficult to find many people talking about his life and legacy anymore."

Since a lede is supposed to tell you something about the story,  it would make sense to think that this article would discuss the lack of recent coverage about the deceased pontiff. This does not connect with the title involving a living will.

The actual innacuracies of the story's coverage begin soon after:

" [John Paul II's] official beatification is coming next. It could happen any day now."

Embarrassingly for the article's author, it was back in January that the Vatican released the date of John Paul II's beatification--which will include him being referred to as "Blessed John Paul II"--will be May 1, 2011.

After blundering in that regard, the article tries to explain how Pope John Paul II's cause for canonization is happening. Interestingly enough, it manages to stay just short of definite error when outlining the circumstances.

"Saintly miracles almost always come about as a result of prayers made to the candidate after his or her death. If a healing or some other special result happens, it is said that the candidate has interceded to God in heaven for the favorable response."

Perhaps the author did not phrase this in the most elegant way, in contrast to the National Catholic Register's excellent story on the matter. But he is not technically incorrect: he says that Catholics pray for intercession of the deceased person, as opposed to praying to him directly.

Woop, Woop, Bachmann! (Keeping Opinions in the OPINION section)

Many articles popped up in the mainstream press, Thursday, March 24, about the possibility of  Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) throwing her hat into the next presidential election. Most know by now that Bachmann will likely start a "presidential exploratory committee" soon. As I read several publications online, I noticed that many took different angles on this story. For example, the headline for one particular story that ran on the Politico's website read: "Michele Bachmann bid could shake up GOP field."

The headline caught my attention because it was not a hard news headline like other stories I'd read on this topic. I began to read through the article and something hit me after the first two paragraphs.

I stopped and promptly began searching to make sure I wasn't reading a blog or an opinionated piece but many paragraphs certainly read that way. I checked and, unless I made a mistake or had trouble figuring out Politico's website, this story was listed under the "CONGRESS" section and the link to the story even says "news stories" in it. To my knowledge, this was not a blog or an opinionated piece, but a news story.

However, one particular paragraph had me thinking 'Okay, surely a source will be attributed at the end of this soon.' It didn't happen.

"What separates her from the pack is that, with the possible exception of Palin, she can speak to conservative activists like no other candidate. She knows how to grab their attention on cable TV, talk radio and the internet — and it’s not Paul Ryan-esque budget graph wonkery," wrote the Politico. 

Murder mystery wrapping up?

Washington D.C. news has been closely following the investigation of a Bethesda yoga shop murder that occurred on March 12. The attack surprised and terrified many in the area because Bethesda "has long been considered one of the safest spots in the region," according to the Washington Post. 

On Friday, March 18, authorities charged victim-turned-suspect, Brittany Norwood, with the murder of her coworker, Jayna Murray. Initially, Norwood told authorities that two masked men had raped and beat her, but her story has since proven faulty.   

The Washington Post had the most fluid, thorough report on the Montgomery County Police's recent findings in their article posted at 11:37 on Friday, March 18. Both the Washington Times and the Washington Examiner posted articles earlier that evening, though their writing was not as fluid or thorough. 

The Post's lead was very intriguing and informational, while the Times and Examiner leads were strictly informational leads. 

The woman portrayed as the brave survivor of a brutal attack at a Bethesda yoga store has now been charged with killing her coworker.

Describing Norwood as "portrayed as the brave survivor of a brutal attack" is far more compelling than simply saying she was Murray's coworker and supposed victim. 

The strong lead was followed by concise background information, providing readers with a clear understanding of a week's amount of development in the story in a few sentences. 

D.C. teacher evaluations: not so simple

Washington D.C.'s public school system is finally getting a jolt to improve its infamous ratings, according to The Washington Post's recent story.

In a compelling yet sensitive article, writer Stephanie McCrummen paints the picture of Clay Harris, an elementary school math teacher, and Eric Bethel, a master educator whose job it is to decide on the quality of Harris's teaching.

 
The 2009 launching of former D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee's effort to rescue the District's failing education system sparked controversey, discussion and complaints. This story's snapshot in the day of a master educator and his encounters with a school teacher is both poingnant and thought-provoking.

The article, which centers around a scene in which Bethel observes Harris teaching his class, is also peppered with information about the D.C. school system's sorry state, such as last year's firing of 75 teachers from the District.

The article's choice of colorful descriptions that show, not just tell--such as the "icy afternoon," and "crisp in gray slacks and shiny loafers,"--indicates just how important it was that this not become an ordinary report of D.C.'s school system scenario.

NY discusses its Payment Plans

New York Times covered the announcement of its new payment plan in a March 20 article, Times’s Online Pay Model Was Years in the Making by Jeremy W. Peters. 

The article discusses The New York Times plan to charge readers for its material. The charges will begin March 28 and their payments will depend on the type(s) of technology readers want their daily addition on. The New York Times admits that it is something that has been a work in progress, and the biggest struggle was whether or not it would work. The biggest question the Times would have to face, "would readers be willing to pay to read its journalism online?"

The Times article explains the debate among readers, executives, editors and reporters. The Times approaches the article from not only a readers standpoint, but also those inside the business. Peters gets multiple views and explains the conflict of those who are willing to pay and those resenting the payment model. 

"The same debate raged inside The Times, with executives and senior editors sometimes heatedly taking sides. In the middle was Arthur Sulzberger Jr., chairman of the company, who grew to embrace the idea of a pay model. But he was opposed by several senior executives, especially those who had worked to build NYTimes.com into the most visited newspaper site in the world," according to the article posted in The Times.  

How Do You Spell That Again? A-N-O-N-Y-M-O-U-S

It is old news by now to say that the U.S. has moved toward more military action in Libya. Friday, March 18, The Washington Examiner reported that President Obama demanded a "cease-fire" be "implemented immediately."

Many major newspaper's websites I visited Saturday still had stories related to this topic up on the top of their home pages, including interesting coverage in a Washington Post article on this issue. What caught my attention specifically was the lead paragraph.

"After two weeks of playing down the prospect of military intervention in Libya, the Obama administration is on the brink of inserting itself into a third war in a Muslim nation — something the president, who has spent the first half of his term mending America’s relationship with Islam, had hoped to avoid," wrote The Washington Post.

Leads are something stressed and often brought up in class at the Washington Journalism Center (WJC). After reading this lead many times I didn't know what to think about it. Certainly, it leaves much to question and made me want to continue reading to find out why the Obama administration "is on the brink of inserting itself into a third war."

However, after continuing through the article I found myself frustrated. A point often stressed in class is to get the most important quote early in the story to have a strong source that says exactly what is going on. That wasn't the case with this particular article. The first quote in the story did not come until the sixth paragraph, and even that quote seemed to be vague.

Cain's comments on the chopping block

 

Herman Cain, the first Republican to declare his candidacy in the 2012 presidential race, made some strong statements Tuesday at The Heritage Foundation's weekly Bloggers Briefing. The most noted statement in the media was a fervent phrase regarding Planned Parenthood. "It's not Planned Parenthood. It's Planned Genocide," Cain said.

Cain's indictment upon the controversial health care provider was illuminated in the media, particularly by a CNN reporter attending the briefing. The comments were not condoned. They were put on the chopping block.

Sidenote: Cain is likely what drew the reporter to the event. I attend the briefing every week and have never seen him before.

The lede in Shannon Travis' Political Ticker post is what first hints at the article's subjectiveness. It says:

Using unusually harsh words, a potential presidential candidate echoed some previous comments: claiming that Planned Parenthood's original mission was to "help kill black babies before they came into the world."

"Compassion" in Action

San Francisco is known for many things, great weather, gay pride, and the Golden Gate bridge--just to name a few. But thanks to an article on March 19 by Gabrielle Saveri, the city may also be put in the spotlight for its' new ordinance that makes it illegal to sit or lie on sidewalks from 7am-11pm.

Apparently, San Francisco, a city that has according to the article, "prided itself on helping homeless people," isn't being so nice anymore.

Overall, the Reuters' report does a decent job, getting quotes from a variety of sources including a police spokesman, the guy who initiated the ordinance, a homeless person and an advocate for the homeless. But where I feel the coverage of the 500 word report falls short a little is in the quality of quotes. Here is the part of article which deals with how the police are handling the ordinance.

And police say enforcement is still driven by compassion.

E-books in libraries

How do I, a journalism student, critique a mainstream news article? I'm just a student. I read mainstream journalism to learn from the experts. I was sure my critique would be something along the lines of, this story is great! It's covered so well.

But then I read an article on The New York Times website. I had a handout sitting on my desk that Terry Mattingly, director of the Washington Journalism Center, gave to us, his students. It's a list of 1o easy mistakes to avoid. And sure enough the lead was not up to par. 

In the article I learned some book publishers are enforcing expiration dates for their e-books at libraries, but I don't learn this until the third graph. The lead grabbed my attention, but it doesn't tell me anything about the article. You be the judge. Here's the lead:

Imagine the perfect library book. Its pages don’t tear. Its spine is unbreakable. It can be checked out from home. And it can never get lost.