Hard vs. Soft
April 1, 2010This weeks blog entry for the Easter readings will examine the limitations and advantages that hard and soft news writing styles present to the reader.
The first two articles ‘RBA’s Stevens warns against housing speculation’ and ‘Push to end underquoting as market stays hot’ are examples of a hard news format. The advantage of writing a news story like this is that all the necessary facts are written down for the reader and they won’t be bored having to read through unimportant fluff. The first article in particular uses several statistics which signifies further background research being done, therefore making it somewhat more believable that this is the truth.
Interviews and first person perspectives are important to add to hard news stories too as it provides a sense of legitimacy that this incident has actually happened. I particularly like the example in the second article ‘Push to end underquoting as market stays hot’ because the quote from Prahran buyer Chris Tollis makes us feel the anger and frustration involved in looking for a home.
Disadvantages of a hard news format however is that it is told in a very matter of fact way and there is no emotion in it at all. Personally, I do not favour this format as the punchy and very staccato tone it has bores me! But then again, this type of style appeals to different audiences. Early morning commuters do not have time to read the airy fairy minor detail in the morning newspaper when they are in a rush to get to work- all they care for is what happened, who’s involved and where.
The complete opposite of this would be found in a glossy magazine or community paper; mediums read when there is time to spare. The last three articles ‘Naan violent protest’, ‘Flying in the face of convention’ and the Melbourne Food and Wine festival review are all examples of soft news formats and clearly written for people who care to learn more. All three articles use very colourful and colloquial language to get the message across, as well as speak to the reader like they are a part of it.
I particularly like the use of images in the Food and Wine festival review published in the Melbourne gastronome. I am unsure as to whether this is soft news story etiquette, to include picture, by it certainly works in my point of view. To be able to see exactly what it being described makes the story twice as impacting and therefore, making me choose soft news stories as my preferred way of writing format.
Good job Charlotte, this is a really detailed analysis of the readings. Most students are saying that hard news is kind of hard to ‘enjoy’; it really is the bread and butter of the audience’s everyday news engagement. But the writing style is important because it teaches discipline over your writing, and to keep yourslef out of the story; letting the facts speak for themselves (not telling the reader what to think) is a difficult thing for a writer to learn. So hard news is important but underrated!