Comaring Media [Newspaper, Radio and Online Articles]

Skepticism wiped the smiles off most Americans on September 16, 2013, as illustrated by various media on the impending topic of “Obamacare.”

It seems many Americans are misinformed or unsure what will happen when open enrollment for health care begins in the next couple of weeks.
 
It was an online article which gave me the information I needed conveniently.

Perhaps I'm just more acquainted with a keyboard and also enjoy listening to music while I read, which I cannot do my while listening to news via the radio or television.

I also use a tablet which I'm connected to most of the time, and I prefer that as a form of entertainment and source of all things.

Though I can listen to music while reading a hard copy of the newspaper, I found it difficult and even a hassle finding a specific paper in the metal box lineup outside buildings (and who carries $1.50 in quarters anymore?).

Most hard copy papers available were either the free ones or in Spanish, and local coffee shops didn't seem to sell them anymore.

Newspapers, such as The Wall Street Journal and USA Today, had a small piece of the skepticism piece on their front page, which lead to a continuation on another.

The Wall Street Journal had access onto the following page, whereas USA Today had readers flipping a few pages before finishing the article.

USA Today had a 4-by-4 inch box on the front page with a total of two columns at 1 5/16 and 2 3/4 inches long and 1 7/8 inches wide.

Inside featured five columns with three half sizes at 4 1/2 inches long and 2 inches wide, and the other two columns were 8 1/4 inches long and also 2 inches wide.

They featured a 4-by-6 inch circle graph with poll percentages and opinion in black and green.

The Wall Street Journal did not have a graph but instead had an image that was 4-by-5 1/8 inches (they obviously had space to fill, as the image was much larger than it should have been!).

Though both had a different approach with visuals, they both were poll facts and figures on the skepticism of the Affordable Health Care Act, which was very boring to read when it was percentage after percentage.

Radio, on the other hand, has to be interactive, so radio stations must approach stories differently than other mediums.

Instead of reporting a skepticism poll of “Obamacare,” NPR implied there are skeptics using concerned listeners's questions.

This segment was only four minutes and 31 seconds long and was a listener scenario and question with an answer from someone who understood the law.

The problem with this type of medium is timing, as I am definitely not going to wake up at 3 a.m. to catch the “Morning Edition,” yet it is a national radio, so it works for someone in New York City.

Also, NPR has been doing a series of questions and answers for a couple weeks now, which I have missed, so I am not in the complete loop of what has been asked and answered.

Breaking up stories into parts and encouraging to call in and ask questions are how radio stations engages listeners and keep listeners wanting more, but I figured I would just get more questions answered sooner if I checked different online sources.

Online articles varied from 268 words (CBS News), 615 words (The National Memo) and even 1,369 words (Insurance Journal), allowing readers to pick and receive different perspectives in one location.

Though online sources can easily allow for multitasking (and listen to music and not running around looking for a hard copy!), the downside is how easily one can get distracted, but the articles still provided either graphs and pictures or social media and comments to keep the allure.

What both radio and newspapers do not offer are the witty, user comments below an online article.

The user comments are funny, debatable, and sometimes true, which I dub as the new “comic” section from traditional newspapers.

Words: 680

Online articles:

http://www.nationalmemo.com/majority-of-americans-skeptical-of-obamacare-yet-few-want-to-defund/

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57603078/uninsured-skeptical-about-obamacare-poll-shows/

http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2013/09/10/304665.htm