Analysing a Newspaper Story

Tabloid & Broadsheet

The most striking difference between tabloid and broadsheet newspapers is their
language. Below are two checklists of tabloid and broadsheet language.
Please note that these are not totally comprehensive and you must add to
them as you go along.
Tabloid
Informal
Use of puns
Use of alliteration
Exaggeration for effect
Slang
Colloquial language chatt!"
Informal names used
Short# snapp! sentences
$eightened language o%er the top"
Brand names
&d'ecti%es often carr! sexual
o%ertones
& focus upon appearance
(requent use of elision e.g. won)t#
don)t. This is another informal
technique
Broadsheet
*ore formal
*etaphors rather than puns
+hetorical questions
*ore complex sentences look for sentences separated b! lots of commas#
semi,colons etc."
-uns sometimes used# although more subtle
Statistics
.escriptions of people tends to relate to personalit! or position in societ!
-olitician)s comments often included# with a commentar! b! the 'ournalist
How is a Newspaper Article Structured?
&ll newspaper articles follow a particular framework or structure.
+ichard /illiams# +o!ton 0 Crompton School# 1221
Headline
&ll stories ha%e a headline# which gi%es the reader an idea of what the article is
about. Tabloid headlines often use puns or other techniques# such as alliteration#
to capti%ate their audience.
!ntroduction
&s the first paragraph in an article# the introduction is %er! important. Its contents
tell the reader in more detail what the article is about. +esearch into how people
reader newspapers shows that most people read the headline first# followed b! the
first paragraph of the stor!. If the introduction is not interesting then most people
will to continue reading the article. The first paragraph is often known as a stand"
#irst# printed in a bold font.
$laboration
The next few paragraphs tell the reader more about the stor! that is outlined in the
introduction. The! inform readers about the following ke! words3
%hat
%hen
%here
%ho
%hy.
&uotes
&lmost all news stories ha%e comments from those in%ol%ed or from voyeurs
onlookers". Their function is to make the article more ob'ecti%e b! keeping a
balanced %iewpoint. &lternati%el!# the! can make the article more sub'ecti%e b!
sensationalising the reaction of the public and can indicate bias.
Pro'ection
*an! stories tell the reader what might happen next in relation to the e%ent or
people in the report. This might include a comment from a police officer# an *-# a
famil! member or a general prediction of consequences or outcomes.
Bias
Something to keep in mind when reading newspaper articles is bias. Usuall!# the
%iews of newspapers are predetermined b! their political ideology i.e. which
political part! the! support. The Daily Mail# for example# is %er! biased towards the
Conser%ati%e -art! or right wing# whereas The Guardian is more socialist in
outlook# or le#t wing.
$owe%er# bias does not ha%e to be political. 4ournalists can be biased towards
certain t!pes of people# places and organisations. *an! 'ournalists ha%e been
accused of bias for not representing a balanced %iewpoint in a report.
+ichard /illiams# +o!ton 0 Crompton School# 1221
This is a framework for anal!sing the language of newspapers. +emember to
include e%idence to support the comments that !ou make.
(anguage )ontent Style *alues and
attitudes
Photographs
/hat examples of
language stand out.
Use the checklist to
help.
/hat is included or
missed out of the stor!5
Can !ou explain this5
Is the article chatt! or
formal5 Serious or
funn!5 $ow long are the
sentences5
Is there an! bias5
/hat are the 6news
%alues)5
/hich shots ha%e been
chosen and wh!5 $ow
ha%e the! been edited5
+ichard /illiams# +o!ton 0 Crompton School# 1221