Monday, February 21, 2011

Comparing Mediums: Television vs Print

Whether the news be in print, on the radio, or on television, they all have the same job which is to get the facts out. However, all three mediums have different ways of doing it. Television and print have similarities and differences that make them both useful and helpful in digesting information we receive from the media.
 After watching a CBS video about the recent rise of protest and violence in Libya, there are a couple of things to take in. The actual footage taken from people at the scene in Libya gave me a feel of what is happening without actually being there. That is something print is unable to fully accomplish. Although, photographs paired with print stories can often give readers a good feel of what is happening as well.
 The video medium is also able to give more of a background story than print. This is probably because video can keep an average person's attention span for a longer amount of time than print could in this day and age. Print has to get the facts straight across to the reader. Being too wordy is not attractive for a hard news print story. However, on television and video stories the anchor or narrator needs to sound intelligent and be able to tell a more complete story to the consumer.
 Comparing the CBS video from above with a New York Times article, the article included a lot more sources than the video did. There are quotes from everyone ranging from protesters to politicians, to researchers. The video did have a teacher speak on camera and a phone interview with a doctor. This shows that the video medium is more "on the scene" and reporting what they see. While on the other hand, the print medium is more thought out and processed news.

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