This essay aims to analyze how various news sources present the same story differently and how this impacts the overall message. For the purpose of this story, three articles on the Christchurch mosque shootings which occurred on the 15th March, 2019 will be analyzed. The three news outlets from which the articles are being analyzed are: the American news website; VOX, the Qatari pay news television news site; Al Jazeera, and the privately owned and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization based in Washington D.C., America; National Public Radio (NPR).
The headline of the VOX news website reads “Christchurch mosque shooting: what we know so far”. In the title of this article, no mention is made of any victims or casualties. The last part of the title “what we know so far” prepares the reader for an unbiased, emotionless and unsympathetic recall of what is known to have occurred in mosques on the 15th March, 2019. Within the sub heading of the VOX article reads “At least 50 people have been killed ...”. Typically this lexicalization makes the action appear to be intentional and more direct, for example, ‘A killed B’ as opposed to ‘ A caused B to die’. However, this article makes no inclusion of a subject who is carrying out the action or in this case; the killing. Initially, one might argue that it is because at the time the report was being written there was not enough information to do so. However, the second paragraph of the article writes “A 28-year-old man named Brenton Tarrant has been taken into custody and charged with murder. ” and later “ Two other people remain in custody as police try to determine their connection to, or possible involvement in, the attack.”, which proves this is not the case. The news article attempts to remain unbiased with the use of words such as ‘allegedly’ and phrases like ‘according to’ to disconnect the content from the beliefs and understandings of the writers. To further expand on how the paper attempts to be indirect, the description of the actions was done with the use of intransitive verbs, i.e. a verb that does not have a direct object receiving the action, as well as the use of verbs that can be both transitive and intransitive. Examples of this can be seen in “At least 50 people have been killed … ” and “ … where seven people died ”. With sentences like these, the story focuses less on the object, which in this case refers to the victims. Thus depersonalizing the victims and their stories.
In contrast to the VOX news report, the Al Jazeera’s headline reads “New Zealand mosque attack: Who were the victims?”. The title of the Al Jazeera report refers to the shooting as an attack. This is very important as the use of this specific word highlights the aggressive nature of the crime, therefore shining a hostile spotlight on the criminal. The sub-heading of the article reads “Here are the stories of the Muslim worshippers confirmed dead in the mass shootings at two mosques in Christchurch.” preparing readers for a heartbreaking and sympathetic tribute to the victims of the shootings, being sure to specify that they are in fact Muslims who were the ones harmed, injured,and killed during this devastating event. This clarification is crucial, particularly in light of the wild and unfounded comments you can often encounter on social media and in public discourse. This article personalizes the victims in its opening line “They were teachers, engineers and accountants.”, reminds readers that these victims were human, and lived lives no different to themselves, their neighbours or their families. To further personalize this tragedy, the article proceeds to list out all of the fallen victims one by one, stating their names and ages before giving a brief but well-written tribute to each.
The last article to be analyzed is the National Public Radio or NPR’s article entitled “'My Heart Was Broken': Mourners In New Zealand Bury Victims Of Mosque Shootings”. The author makes every attempt, from pictures to grammar and from grammar to word choice and expression to make this article a heartfelt and respectful tribute to the victims of the shootings. From the very beginning, in the heading, with the words “My Heart was Broken”, the writer is making it known that this event which has occured is an absolute tragedy and has resulted in great loss. The heading also refers to the ‘mourners’ who are now left to bury the ‘victims’ of the incident. This word choice personalizes the story and sets the readers up for what is to come. The beginning of the article focuses on the late Sayyad Milne, a 14 year old victim of the Christchurch mosque shooting. It also includes a picture of a handwritten sign, placed in front of Al Noor Mosque in his honor. The personalization continues with the inclusion of quotes from individuals who knew Sayyad, describing him as a ‘good-natured’ child who was “Always active. Always smiling.”. Unlike in the VOX article, the use of the word phrase “He was killed ” adds a personal effect to the story, especially with the story of Sayyad Milne which followed. An important feature of these articles are the words written in bold. These are "I'm alive, I'm alive", "Blaming myself" and “Handing in guns”. These three represent the three main focuses of the article and can be used to summarize the article. Even with just these, one can see the emotional connection the writer is drawing to the victims of the shootings.
The ways in which news outlets make use of grammar and expressed word choice, determines the way a reader might internalize a story, occurrence or event. An important difference between the three articles is the date on which they were published. While Al Jazeera and NPR were both published on the 22nd of March, the VOX report was written on the 18th of March. This may be the reason for the VOX report being the least personalized and sympathetic to the victims as well as the least detailed on their sufferings. However, even comparing the Al Jazeera and NPR reports, one can observe that the two articles spent far more effort in personalizing the victims and casting a sort of sympathetic and respectful spotlight on each and every one of them. It should also be noted that the focus within these articles is on the victims, presenting a respectful tribute to their lives and expressing sorrow and regret for their loss. While some may argue that concentrating solely on the victims can be controversial, it presents a separate issue that warrants attention.
References
Al Jazeera. (2019, March 22). New Zealand mosque attack: Who were the victims? Retrieved May 6, 2019, from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/03/zealand-mosque-attacks-victims-190316183339297.html
Schmitz, R. (2019, March 22). 'My Heart Was Broken': Mourners In New Zealand Bury Victims Of Mosque Shootings. Retrieved May 6, 2019, from https://www.npr.org/2019/03/22/705595367/my-heart-was-broken-mourners-in-new-zealand-bury-victims-of-mosque-shootings
Williams, J., Ward, A., Kirby, J., & Sakuma, A. (2019, March 18). Christchurch mosque shooting: What we know so far. Retrieved May 6, 2019, from https://www.vox.com/world/2019/3/14/18266624/christchurch-mosque-shooting-new-zealand-gunman-what-we-know
This is an excerpt from an essay written in 2019.
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