Newsweek Blogger on Media 'Bias'

Good column (blog) on media bias from a Newsweek reporter/blogger, Andrew Romano, on "How the Media's Real 'Bias' Works in McCain's Favor"

The really damaging bias is narrative in nature--bias for tension, bias for conflict, bias for drama. Which is why when Schmidt and Co. release a misleading ad about Obama that's not actually airing on TV, the cable newsniks air it for them. Or why we jump to cover Schmidt's histrionic attack on the Times instead of focusing on McCain's economic speech in Scranton. Schmidt knows how the MSM works, and he's doing a brilliant job--far better than Team Obama--of capitalizing on its weaknesses.

This is all quite relevant, of course, to our discussions about issues in news coverage these days.

CNN.com

Jose Vela

Daniel Villareal
Justin Wegner
Jill Wilson

2.)

Oil prices skyrocket to a new high

We chose this first article because it was the first article to catch your eye on the website. They had a bold headline to feature it, as well as a picture. It was the only one with a picture when your first opened up the website. This article was mainly about the price of oil skyrocketing to a new record high.

Finnish gunman kills 10 at college

We chose this article because of it's placement on the website. It was placed under the world category as one of the two most important articles listed at the time. It also caught the reader's attention because we felt it like many would be concerned about where this killing took place. To us, it seems like an extremely important article about an international event.

Housing Costs Gobling Up Paychecks

This article also stood out to us because of where it was placed on the CNN website. It was the first article to be seen under the top news stories for the U.S. today, which infers that it is a very important story. I believe so many Americans can relate to this problem, or know someone relating to this problem, so that’s mainly why it is a top story. It was mainly about how people were given loans for houses they couldn’t afford, and now they are struggling to make payments on them.

3.)

CNN.com does have a major list or popular news. This list differs from the other list in that it includes various things from animals, politics, and day to day things. This list is updated every twenty minutes so it is late and changing.

4.)CNN.com presents a couple of ways to read the blogs on the site. One way is by going to a major news story, and you'll usually find the blog at the bottom, after the news story. The blogs serve as a supplement to the news stories. Here, you can go to the bottom of the story and find the blogs linked to it. You will also discover that it is not only political pundits or experts on the issue that contribute to the blogging, but there are ordinary citizens as well. CNN.com also lists all of their most popular blogs in a top ten list about 3/4 down the home page. There is a section simply titled "Blogs" and there biggest feature story is given a description. Under that you can click on "All CNN Blogs" where they have a top 10 list of the "Most Active Blogs". The blogs here are handled by CNN producers and reporters such as Erica Hill, an Anderson Cooper 360 Correspondent; Jeffrey Toobin, a CNN Senior Legal Analyst and columnist for The New Yorker; and Joe Klein, a CNN contributor and TIME columnist. The latter were contributing to the Anderson Cooper 360 blog alone, so you can imagine the plethora of types of columnists contribute to the rest of the blog's on this CNN top ten.

5. )
People can post comments about the blog storys. People can also post comments about story articles. You have to registar online with cnn.com

6.)The top right corner of the website there is a link to CNN videos. And for most of the things on CNN there is some video coverage of some sort. On the video site you can check out podcast, as well as radio.

Washingtonpost.com- Online Edition

Drew Parker
Leigh Rodrigue
Katie Savage
AJ Scherer


Feeling Good Redskin fans Focus on Dallas- This article was placed in the top left of the website catching the attention of the reader by being the first thing they see. It was accompanied by a picture of #89 for the Redskins, Santana Moss, running with the ball. The story was about Washington's recent win over Arizona and the boost in confidence and pride it gave the team and fans before the game against Dallas.

Markets Remain on Edge as Investors Seek Safety- This article, our second choice, was top center of the page and had the largest headline font. The article was about the uncertainty and losses recently effecting the stock market and talks of a bailout by the government. No picture accompanied this article.

Reality Scuttles Best Laid Plans- The third article was second down from the top in the center of the site directly below the Wall St. article. It's position was bumped up between the two different times we viewed the site which led us to believe it was a higher priority. The issue discussed in this article is how the agenda, at home and abroad, have changed drastically since the presidental campaign began. No picture accompanied this article.

The site offered most popular, viewed, and e-mailed articles and most popular photo galleries. The articles differed from the featured headlines by being more relatable and entertaining. The top three at the time we viewed the website were an article on the deteriorating housing market, an editorial about the election, and a mention of the show "Mad Men" winning an Emmy.

The Washington Post website does an excellent job of incorporating blogs and editorial columns onto the page. The three main blog topics are local, sports and politics and all seemed to be contributed by journalist. One of the most superb of them is a political blog by a man named Dana Milbank entitled "Rough Sketch" or "Washington sketch" that was funny and inventive. One of his best videos, "Live, From Colo., It's Al-Jazeera", is a satirical look at al-Jazeera's attempt to video locals in Golden, Colorado during the Democratic National Convention.

Users have the ability to post comments on the site. There are discussion boards ranging from politics to values and education to advice. Some discussions had several thousands of posts with a wide range of opinions and ideas. You must register with the website before being allowed to join discussions.

Washingtonpost.com has a wide range of video clips available to readers. Under a section titled "Video Series" there are four sub-categories; Voices on Leadership, Voices on Green, Voices on Small Business and Voices on Personal Tech. Each subcategory has several videos from different "experts" on that topic such as CEOs discussing necessary skills needed in the Voices on Leadership. Also, video is included in some featured articles and blogs and links to audio clips are available such as Bob Woodard interviewing President Bush.

Msnbc.com analysis

Msnbc.com


Merrifield, Avery

Miller, Kayla

Motton, Keeley

Panova, Olga



2. What are the futured stories listed on the home page of the site?

• Congress balks at bailout plan's pace, details

The article is about the crisis in the American economy and turmoil on the financial markets and the debates in Congress about the possible solutions. The article is a top story because it is situated in the center of the whole webpage, the headline is written in the largest font and large picture is posted below. Picture depicts members of the Congress discussing the issue. This story immediately attracts the attention.

• Looking for the winning strategy in Afganistan

This is the second top story. It is located in the upper right corner and its headline is printed in the large font. It also offers a quote from Newsweek and a picture from Afganistan, which draw attention to the article. The article discusses strategical aspects of the war In Afganistan.

• Dodd: Plan's 'unnaccaptable'

This story is located in the left upper corner in the section about economy. The story is drawing attention, because of its headline, which engages the audience. The article is discussing the problems on the financial markets and describes the debates in the Congress over the plan created to overcome hard times.

3. The site provides lists of most popular, top rated and most e-mailed stories as well as most viewed videos and top slide shows. There is also a section where readers can upload their own pictures or videos.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7468311/

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16712587/




4. The site provides different blogs. They are categorized depending on the topic. The bloggers are the msnbc.com reporters, NBC News producers, NBC News correspondents and foreign editors. But there are also message boards, created by readers that just express their thoughts there, sometimes even without a particular topic.

http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/

http://alphachannel.msnbc.msn.com/

http://boards.msn.com/MSNBCboards/board.aspx?BoardID=380

5. The site provides the opportunity for readers to leave their comments about the articles and leave the messages on the discussion boards.


6. The site offers a variety of ways to search for pictures or video. Sometimes pictures are posted together with the story, but you can also find them under sections of different topics or under top slide shows or most viewed videos.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8004316/

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4999736/

CBSNEWS.COM- Alternating Headlines

1. CBSNEWS.com

Mark Immler

James Leach

Kimberly Kahanek
Bailey Klatt

2. The Dems Tweak Bailout; Bush Urges Speed is the lead story with a large picture and a bold face article title. The picture is placed to be the first thing that the viewer notices. On the CBS homepage there is a brief summary, as well as options labeled Video, Explore, and Story to further educate yourself on the topic. Once someone is to pull up the CBS website the picture catches your attention right away. The next two articles that grab your attention are Over The Economy and Officials: Pakistan Fires on U.S. Copters. These stories are at the top of the list of articles on the CBS homepage. They are without a picture but still important because of their top rank. The article titles are written in a smaller font than the lead story but also provide a video icon to watch a clip and a place for comments. After viewing the website and articles we found that every so often the homepage refreshes itself and a new story on the list of articles is portrayed as the lead story with a picture and summary.

3. Yes, this site offers a most popular articles list. These articles are primarily political with the exception of one murder/mystery case. This section is broken down into three tabbed categories; Stories, Videos, and Photos.

4. Yes, CBSNEWS.com does incorporate a Blog section on the website. On the main blog site, the blogs are broken down into separate discussion topics including; Couric & Co., Campaign Horserace, From the Road, The Fast Draw, Primary Source, Tech Talk, etc. The blogs are created by CBS News journalists. The journalists write a brief story including their thoughts followed by a comment section that readers have the ability to comment on the journalist blog.

5. CBSNEWS.com has comment sections underneath blogs, opinion pieces, and articles. This allows viewers to express their opinions towards the topics at hand. There is not a typical discussion board for articles, just comment sections that readers can post comments about their opinions on the articles.

6. CBSNEWS.com incorporates multimedia content on most articles. The CBS homepage features a number of video links next to listed articles. As Shown Below.

Media & Society Blog #1-- DallasNews.com

Shelly Chrisman
Leah Cicardo
Rachel Cicardo
Mackenzie Clark



2. What are the featured stories listed on the home page of the site?

dallasnews.com


Dallas News and probably every other news web site featured a story about our current Wall street crisis. The article is very long so as to explain in detail to the viewer the specifics on the government's plan of action and the details of how badly these companies stocks have fallen. They feature a box on the main site next to this article stating:
The Dow Jones industrials tacked
a 161-point loss onto a steep drop from Monday.
Bernanke: Act quickly or face recession

Tell us: Is the financial crisis affecting you?

Bush to Adress Nation Tonight with economy Woes

The article also has an AP video(American Press Video-- below) that shows finance experts as well as normal American citizen's opinions on whether or not the government should step in or stay out of it and let these big companies face their bad decisions.

T.O. always hustles; Dallas Cowboys fans slow to notice Dallas Cowboys News Sports News News for Dallas, Texas Dallas Morning News


This site features Sunday night's Cowboy's game against the packers. This is probably on the main web page of Dallas because Dallas residents want to hear highlights from the game. Sports have a way of connecting to a community and get them involved. They even have a site with an open chat for anyone with an email address that wants to give their views of the teams strengths and weaknesses. Around the end of the article you can see off to the side a few other cowboys articles the viewer can click on if they want to read more. It also contains a box with options like a Cowboys photo gallery, wallpapers, and polls for the viewer to also click on

This photo was posted by a dallas news member who went to the last game. Dallas news has a place where readers can look at images and upload their own for others to see. An interesting way of active involvement with the news-consumer and the media

Another important story Dallas News features on their main web page is:

Gasoline supplies are tight in Dallas-Fort Worth News for Dallas, Texas Dallas Morning News Latest News

America in general is very dependent on transportation via car. With these rising gas prices it was smart of them to place this article in the center of the page. When you click on the article you can find headlines like "Don't Panic!" with tips on not panicking and buying as much fuel as possible because that is how we will run out of oil. Another headline stated the "Status of Texas Oil Refineries" containing the oil refineries residing in the gulf such as Valero, Exxon, and Shell along with the estimated amount of days till they are back to normal.


3. Does the site offer a list of the most popular or most emailed articles?


MOST POPULAR

Most Read
Updated Tues 9.23.08
Dallas Cowboys unbeaten and unrivaled this season
Dallas Cowboys' Adam Jones finding rhythm
Most E-mailed
Buttermilk pie: Good Southern home-cooking
Dallas ISD budget woes threaten teachers' job security
Possible mother-daughter team steal wig, hair extensions from Fort Worth store
6 ways to amp up your metabolism to keep weight off
Mexicans feeling pinch as income stream from U.S. slows
Most Recommended
Find foreclosure listings in your neighborhood (16)
DISD Superintendent Hinojosa says deficit is 'humbling situation' (10)
Dallas Cowboys take a Lambeau leap over Green Bay, 27-16 (9)
Authorities identify burglar killed in struggle with Fort Worth couple (8)
Home invasion turns deadly in Tarrant County (8)




4. To what extent does the site incorporate journal- style blogs?

The journal style blogs are located on the right side of the main web page. The different topics include Entertainment, Lifestyles, Recipes, Travel, People, and more. The reporters for each of these have different bloggers and experts writing for each section. For example, the article under Lifestyles named:



8 great merlots for less than $20 News for Dallas, Texas Dallas Morning News Life/Travel



--This is a featured article contributed to the Dallas news by Tina Daze who is a professional wine Critic and connoisseur.











5. Does the site incorporate reader comments or have discussion boards?

Placed around many of the articles are small icon browsers you can click on with options like, "Tell us if this article effects you and your daily life" or "Check out our blog where you can discuss this article and/or give your own testimony," to share with other Dallas news readers and journalists. Underneath articles throughout the website you can see others blogs or postings left by readers for the writer and other viewers to look at and analize.


6. To what extent does the site incorporate multimedia content such as video or audio clips?
This site utilizes media pretty heavily. You can view videos on current topics that are in the news but you have to watch a short ad presented by the sponsor which in this case was Verizon. The ad isn't longer than 20 seconds so the viewer will watch it if they want to see the online video enough. The news gets a win- win when they post videos, because they still make money off of ad- time, and viewers still get to see what they want without unbearable clutters of ads.

Fox News

FOXNEWS.COM

1. Luke Hinton, Sara Huckabee, Claudia Huerta, Janie Hammonds

2.Dow Slides on Oil, Bailout Fears--This article title was the first of three listed articles. It was at the top of the page, and had the largest, boldest font. The article described the uncertanding of today's stock market. It also stated that the market had the largest two-day percentage jump since October 1987.

Dorm Raided in Palin E-mail Hack--This article was second on the page and had a smaller text than the first. The article stated that the FBI served a search warrant against a 20-year-old college student suspected of hacking in to Sarah Palin’s personal e-mail account.

'SNL' Incest Joke Falls Flat--This article was third on the page, and it also had smaller text than the first. The article stated that SNL made a joke about incest among Sarah Palin's family. The joke made reference to the idea that New York Times is out of touch with the rest of the country including Alaska.

3. The site offers a tab to view the "Most Read" articles on foxnews.com. The "Most Read" articles differed from the front page articles in that they contained more entertainment value as opposed to economic and political issues/news.

4. FOXNEWS.COM incorporates a variety of blogs on the website. The bloggers are reporters, political analysts, and experts of different areas. The blogs on this site discuss weather, environment, health and of course politics and current events. Fox News Radio hosts also have blogs that listeners can follow daily.

5. The website offered readers comments on the news articles in the 'Opinion' tab. We could not find any discussion boards on the website.

6. FOXNEWS.COM offers a clickable link that includes their “top videos.” It also includes a clickable link for radio announcements such as Bill O’Reilly’s Radio Factor, Fox Across America, Tom Sullivan, etc., and other hot topics.