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“When a dog bites a
man that is not news,
because it happens so often.
But if a man bites a
dog, that is news.”
- Editor John B. Bogart, New York Sun
man that is not news,
because it happens so often.
But if a man bites a
dog, that is news.”
- Editor John B. Bogart, New York Sun
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5 comments:
I think it's interesting that the New York Times article pointed out that one of the reasons Pussy Riot is so supported is because they are being unapologetic feminists and strongly anti-government in a place where protests are never really talked about and rarely happen. Similar protests happen all over the U.S.but the most they get is a couple minutes of air time and everyone promptly moves on. The fact that they are Russian and going to jail gives all the westerners the chance to wag a finger in disgust and forget about their own cultures' shortcomings concerning the topic of women's rights.
From a newswriting perspective, I thought what was most interesting about these two articles* was the angle and difference in style and content each news outlet used to cover this current event.
Whereas Laura Smith-Spark of CNN approached the story with a hard-news summary lede, The New York Times’ Melena Ryzik chose a feature lede, and to focus on the protestors as musicians for the paper’s high-brow ‘Arts Beat’ segment.
What I most appreciated about Smith-Spark’s excellent reporting were the revealing quotations from important people involved. She interviewed people in positions of authority as well as sources close to the imprisoned.
I also thought Ryzik’s angle was refreshing–– zoning in on how the news affects New York City and interviewing aspiring pre-teen protestors influenced by the band.
Both the articles were well-written, but overall the CNN story was much more informative to the average reader. The Times’ article had an interesting unique conclusion, though-– that Pussy Riot is making music “dangerous” again. In a world of Justin Biebers and Miley Cyruses, that’s a pretty cool idea.
*CNN’s ‘Russian court imprisons Pussy Riot band members on hooliganism charges’ by Laura Smith-Spark and The New York Times’ ‘Pussy Riot Was Carefully Calibrated for Protest’ by Melena Ryzik.
I also found it interesting how CNN and The New York Times chose to focus on different aspects of this event. From the CNN article, readers were thoroughly informed of the court preceding and how foreign officials viewed the sentencing. Though Pussy Riot uses music to spread their message, I haven't actually read many articles that assess their music like The New York Times article did. I learned that they were inspired by other women like Judith Butler and the Guerrilla Girls which provides some context for the band's music.
I would understand if Pussy Riot were given a fine for performing their “Punk Prayer” in a church because they disrupted religious services. But I think this would only be justified because of the setting they performed it in, not for what they were saying. Jailing the women at all for the content of their demonstration and the message they conveyed is ludicrous.
Because freedom of speech is ingrained in us as Americans, I am not surprised that westerners are jumping at the chance to criticize Russian government for their handling of the situation and what seems to be their blurred line between church and state. But I agree with Rachel that in doing this, westerners do blatantly look past their culture's shortcomings regarding women's rights and the choke hold religion can seem to have on government over here in the US (particularly during this election season). The band is clearly a vehicle for political expression (also I find their music to be pretty awful sounding), so it is ridiculous that the judge for this case would consider the motive for the demonstration to be anything but political. Hooliganism is such a silly sounding claim to me. No one would do what Pussy Riot did just to get a cheap thrill or stand up to the man to say they did. There is passion behind their actions.
From a writing standpoint, the CNN article was clearly more hard-hitting and informational, seeking quotes from higher-ups like the EU foreign policy chief. To get a quick understanding of the situation, this article is the better choice of the two. But I really enjoyed the writing style and lede of the NYTimes article. Melena Ryzik’s unusual quotes offered a refreshing take on the issue and gave insight to the some of the ways Pussy Riots’ actions have been influential on many, even a 12-year-old feminist from New York City.
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