Anderson's Answers

For the story about the history of Cycles in major league baseball the writer needed to use computer assistance. They used the computer to look up information on large number and statistical databases that hold millions of dates and scores from over a hundred years. It would takes years to sort through these files if they were filed in paper form. Instead they are stored on computers and the writers can assist their articles by going through them. The writer just needed to know how to correctly search the information. They also need to know what sites to use and which ones are trustworthy. It would not be good to use a site that stores the information randomly and also that stores information that might not be correct.

Posted by ande7914 at 11:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The story about the life and times of a Minneapolis bus stop involves all the ethnic, cultural, and racial diversity one could possibly fit into a story. The reporter for the story not only moves beyond the stereotyping, but becomes part of the story. The story is really told in the dialect and language that occurs between the various bus patrons. This story doesn't feature the data that most stories do, but it isn't really needed. The reporter uses the quotes she hears and the situation she observes between races and cultures. These interactions are what make the story. They help the reader begin to understand about the people they share the bus with, and how they really aren't so different. Thats what I took away from the story.

Posted by ande7914 at 11:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The reporter used numbers for multiple reasons in this story. The numbers were used for records, statistics, minutes, and standings. The numbers are not overwhelming at all in this story, they are used often but at the right times. The reporter did use math and crunch the numbers to help tell the story. They helped figure out playoff chances and mathematically what needed to happen. The sources of the numbers were from the team statistics and also from NHL statistics. The numbers are listed but not completely in all cases.
http://www.startribune.com/sports/wild/42505502.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUycaEacyU

Posted by ande7914 at 10:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The sources used in the obit I found included family, friends, co-workers, and also his doctors/nurses. It does not have what I would call a standard obit lead. In fact reading the story at first you would have no idea it was an obit. I think the lead works perfectly for how the reporter finishes the obit however. The obit is more about letting everyone know who this person was, rather than explain he died and when the services are. It is different from a resume because of the language that is used, and how things are portrayed. It isn't written for an employer, it is written to examine or explain what happened in this mans life, and what he lived for. I would think of a resume of more of a list, where things are presented methodically, which isn't the case in the obit.

Posted by ande7914 at 10:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I found a news report that advances the new Minnesota Twins season and their tickets starting to go on sale. The advance was online on the Twins official website and had multiple sources. Some of the sources were the Twins, MLB, Pepsi, and Centerplate. The angle that the advance takes is to advertise free giveaways to get people to attend the first day that tickets go on sale for the 2009 Twins season. They use the giveaways to generate excitement and hopefully draw fans to the event. The reporter makes it sound like it is a tailgate party, and that it will be a fun time. If doesn't at all sound like people will come and stand in line while they wait to get tickets. It sounds like an exciting fun event full of giveaways that people will want to attend.

Posted by ande7914 at 11:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I found a news release that was about the release of Apple's new iPhone 3g. I then found an article that someone wrote about the release of the iPhone and that press release. There were a few differences in the two items. Apple's news release had some detailed descriptions of the iPhone, including specifications, and some technical jargon. The news story put those specifications into simpler terms. The news story also did some comparisons to other cell phones out in the market, something that was not in Apple's news release. The story talked about technology in general, and hinted at some places it may be going in the future. Apple's news release was mainly abuot the iPhone, and did not look much into the future, it simply focused on the launch of the new product. The reporter chose to bring in a look to the future of cell phones and also the future of Apple. They also gave all the specifications and applications in a simpler way, so that more consumers and readers could understand the message.

Posted by ande7914 at 10:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The two leads are different in that the second day lead has more detail than the first day lead. In the main news story some of the information from the first day is summarized a lot more to make room for the more detailed information that surfaces in the day story. The second story gives updates on the victims conditions and also the information that has been given out by the police. It also has a few more quote sources that are worked into the story. The second-day story is not a response to a competing news organization, it is a follow up to a story by this organization that appeared earlier on. They build on their own information, and in this case do not directly site any outside competing sources.

Posted by ande7914 at 11:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the Marshawn Lynch story the reporter first explains what Lynch was arrested for. He then summarizes what the police report and police told him. He keeps that part short, only a few sentences.
After that he gives some information from Lynch's lawyer, followed by the time of booking and of bail posting. He then gives a quote from the NFL, followed by a summary of a recent gun incident in the NFL, followed by a quote from Lynch's team the Buffalo Bills.
Finally he goes to Lynch's past history with the law, including details of a hit and run Lynch was involved in last summer. He also mentions another incident when Lynch was in college, where he was involved as a victim of a drive by shooting.
The last piece of information is Lynch's stats from the previous NFL season.
I think he ordered it like this because Lynch has been in the news before and has an image that relates him to trouble. People first want to know about his latest crime, followed by a reminder of his previous crimes. Mixing in some reactions from the NFL is good because people will want to know what disciplinary actions the NFL will take in this case. I think this was an effective way to present the information.
He could have done it differently and presented all of Lynch's crimes at the beginning and focused the story more about Lynch having problems with crime. However this way focuses the story on the current news, which is a good thing. Had the reporter taken the other approach it would have taken away from the current news.

Posted by ande7914 at 11:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the story about the 150 stranded fishermen on the broken ice floe there were
Listed sources were CNN, Sheriff Bob Bratton, the National Weather Service, the United States Coast Guard, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Toledo Blade, Gary and David Vaughn, and Chief Petty Officer Robert Lanier.
The sources are all scattered throughout the story and mentioned when they are used. Some of the information is from the people but other information is from organizations like CNN and the National Weather Service. The way this attribution is set up it is very clear and effective. He basically goes through the story in order and just uses the attributions when they are talked about. Most are not referenced again and so there isn't much confusion in dealing with thinking back to who people or organizations were. All in all the attribution for this story is clean and clear.

Posted by ande7914 at 11:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Leads work to get the reader's attention. Leads are responsible for sucking the reader in and ultimately for making them read the rest of the article. The lead usually has all the elements of the story. It tells the who, what, where, when, and why. What the lead does not do however is reveal details about the story. The specifics come after the lead for most articles. There are some exceptions of course, sometimes the writer may want to leave some of the elements for later on in the story. When this is the case the lead can leave the reader hanging, so they must read to know what happened. For the most part the leads are general, not telling names or specific locations. This can change depending on the story. If the story deals with a famous person like the president or a famous location like the mall of america, it may be stated in the lead. Overall leads are there to tell the story in its most general form and to make the reader want to read the story to get the details.

Posted by ande7914 at 11:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)