As the election draws ever closer the question raised is how the voting system will affect the results. Last election’s butterfly ballot fiasco was a source of controversy, and I’m sure some people wonder how things might have been different if the ballots had been clear. The problem that both the print version of USA Today, and the Halloween online issue of the New York Times both point out that extra steps need to be taken to reduce the error in this hotly contested and historic election.
Both articles mention that the voting system is flawed Richard Wolf from
USA Today in its inception didn’t cover topics in a substantial way. They were dubbed the “McPaper” according to Perez-Pena because of their brief coverage style. It was commonplace that a picture would dominate the front page as opposed to the Times which is principally a textual newspaper. The real differences in the papers I believe are the way articles are written. The USA Today borrowed from television ideas and applied them to their newspaper said Allen Neuharth, creator of USA Today. They created a small town paper feel by referring to Americans as “we” or “us” according to Perez -Pena.
Neuharth explained that the light coverage of the issues has a legitimate reason. He said in Perez-Pena’s article that he doesn’t expect that most readers are reading on a daily basis. Therefore, he has a limited amount of time to get their attention and also to get his point across. This also relates back to the younger audience he is dealing with. There is so much competing for people’s attention, so not too many people in the younger generations really would sit down and read and entire New York Times length article. This is why USA Today is a must have during any boring lecture class.
According to a paper written by Lisa George, where she was examining how the availability of the New York Times affects the readership of local papers, George says that readers of the New York Times tend to be more educated. This is an important factor when looking at how information is presented. There difference between the Times and USA Today tends to be strikingly clear from first glance. The Times is very text heavy. I think I remember discussing this in a Mass Communication class I took a few semesters ago. The New York Times is a very well respected publication with a rich history. The writers are undoubtedly at the top of their careers or are quickly becoming well respected as their articles are published by the Times.
I think that the Times’ format at presentation of their information is also a reflection of where the writers have come from. I do not know for a fact, but I can make an educated guess that the writers frequently come from the most prestigious universities locally and abroad.
When looking at an article that also covers how the flawed voting system will be handled in the upcoming election one of the differences I immediately see is that they go very in depth as to what the problems are and then go on to speak about how they are being addressed by each party. I think this is because, the medium this article is published in allows for longer articles. Also, since the Times expects a more discerning reader they assume that their curiosity will lead them to have more questions that need to be answered by the article. This most likely wouldn’t be the case with USA Today who presents for the less educated.
Citations
George, L. (2005, May 17). The New York Times and the market for local newspapers. Department of Economics, Retrieved October 31, 2008, from http://bpp.wharton.upenn.edu/waldfogj/pdfs/nyt_aer.pdf
Perez-Pena, R. (2007, Spetember 17). At 25, 'Mcpaper' is all grown up. New York Times, Retrieved October 31, 2008, from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/17/business/media/17gannett.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Urbina,
Wolf, R. Legal volunteers ensure a fair election. (2008,October 31).
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