Data Bases
Custom Term Papers
Free Term Papers
Free Research Papers
Free Essays
Free Book Reports
Plagiarism?
Links
Top 100 Term Paper Sites
Top 25 Essay Sites
Top 50 Essay Sites
Search 97,000 Papers @ DirectEssays.com
Search 101,000 Papers @ ExampleEssays.com
Search 90,000 Papers @ MegaEssays.com
Free Essays
Term Paper Sites
Chuck III's Free Essays
Free College Essays
TermPaperSites.com
My Term Papers
Get Free Essays
Essay World
Planet Papers
Search Lots of Essays
Back to Subjects
-
Miscellaneous
None Provided65
None Provided65 When most individuals pick up a newspaper, or magazine, or any other form of well-noted journalism, they expect that it will be truthful. By that, I mean that the consumer anticipates receiving factual documentations. That ideal has been well expressed, however, since the beginning, journalists have added their more than objective points of views. For journalists, it has become harder and harder to keep their opinions to themselves. The “hotter” the topics, that they cover become, the more they are personally drawn to them. It is then instinctively natural for them to contribute their experience and opinions in a more than ideally objective way. Opinionated journalism, as apparent as it is in all subjects, has practically been deemed more than appropriate, and even acceptable in sports reporting. In one related article entitled “U.S. men still playing catch-up,” by Elliott Almond, there are many instances of so-called slanted journalism. In his article addressing the unfortunate underrating of men’s Gymnastic events, he distinctly expresses his opinion in favor of the under-appreciated athletes. Elliot Almond begins to show his personal preference for the U.S. male gymnasts in his first two paragraphs. He begins his article with writing, “One year away, and nothing changes in men’s gymnastics.” Because this is only the first sentence of the article, the reader does not necessarily know what it is in reference to, but he or she can definitely tell that the writer has used a relatively strong statement—with a word such as “nothing”—to start his article. As the reader progresses into the next paragraph, he or she realizes what the first sentence relates to. “Prospects didn’t look good at the start of the U.S. Gymnastics championships Wednesday night at Arco Arena, where embarrassingly few—2, 500—came to watch America’s best compete in the six-ring circus atmosphere of individual events.” The writer vividly illustrates the shame of having few audiences by using the charged word—embarrassingly. It is a striking word that inevitably evokes strong feelings within its readers. The writer also applies contrasting words to create a strong impression. He implies that embarrassingly few were in the audience to watch America’s best compete. He maintains that these men—who are considered America’s best, did not get the audience they deserve. These subjective statements in his article happen to offer not only an accurate account of the underlying story, but also his own opinion which may in effect alter a reader’s own perception of the situation. There are additional areas where Almond’s article was partial towards the U.S. male Gymnasts. In paragraph five of the article, Almond writes, “Like figure skating, male gymnasts have been overshadowed by women for years.” He strongly emphasizes his point that male gymnasts just are not receiving the credit that they are past due. In the process of making his point and a couple of others that follow, he simultaneously puts down women. Almond further supports his allegation by stating, “The situation hasn’t improved since the U.S. women won the gold at Atlanta in 1996…” By writing this, he makes it very clear that he agrees much with the sentiments of one of his sources—John Macredy. John had made quite an immature and sexist comment— “As good as the women were, they never won until ’96,” and Almond just added on to John’s thoughts. Almond wrote that Macready “pleads for patience” with the audience who supposedly do not expect much of a performance from them. This is a subjective way of conveying that this male gymnast wants a chance. Almond concludes his article with placing Macready’s thoughts alongside his story. Through all of Almond’s subjective statements, the reader will have come to realize that he is definitely in favor of one side more than the other. He is unquestionably more supportive of Macready and his wake-up- to- male- gymnastics cause. It has been said time after time that everybody is entitled to their own opinions, and this is strictly what the writer of this article has entitled himself with. It is basically harmless, but it does pose interference. This interference may not be a significant threat, but because of slanted journalism, a reader may be wrongly persuaded towards the other side. Just as every person is entitled his or her own opinion, every person is permitted to form his or her own conclusions with unbiased information. Bibliography:
Word Count: 723
Copyright © 2005
College Term Papers
, INC All Rights Reserved.