Analysing newspaper articles – Wie analysiert man Zeitungsartikel?

Hello! Let me welcome you to this clip. If you want to know how you can analyse different kinds of text in newspapers, then you've chosen the right video. I'll teach you all you need to know, so that at the end of this clip you will be able to not only describe the layout of a newspaper but also to comment on the language and content. You'll also learn some useful vocabulary that is related to the press and newspapers. I'm only going to use English today. So you may want to have a dictionary near you, in case you need to look up some words. I'll give you a tip: if you don't understand something I'm saying simply click on the pause button and look the word up before you continue watching. Like I said this video deals with newspapers written in the English language. Newspapers usually contain factual information. They present facts. Of course there are different kind of newspapers and we'll talk later on about how factual various newspapers are. But I want you to know that in this clip we are not going to discuss any fictional texts, no novels, short stories or poetry. Good! Let's start with the layout of a newspaper article. First, there's a heading which tells us what the article is about. This is a very important part of the whole article because after reading the heading the reader decides to continue reading or to stop. In order to attract the reader's attention, the so-called eye-catching effect is used. This means that big and bold fonts are used and also very concrete and specific vocabulary. What is interesting about headings is the fact that there are only very few verbs and no articles ("the", "a", or "an"). Another point is that very often shorter forms of semi-longer words are used. Instead of the word "executives" you see "execs". And also abbreviations are commonly used: "the EU" instead of "the European Union" or "NATO" instead of North Atlantic Treaty Organization. What's also typical of headings is the use of alliteration which is the repetition of the same sound at the beginning of a few words: Road Rage at Runcorn Alley. Quite often there is also a subheading. This adds information to the heading and further influences the reader's decision to read or not to read the article. And then there is the so-called body which means the text itself. Let's discuss the body in more detail. The body starts with the so-called head paragraph where you can find the most important information from the whole article summed up in a few sentences. In the text after the head paragraph you find more details, background information and other additional information. The whole body is divided into paragraphs which make it easier to read. They give the text a structure. Also here you can sometimes find subheadings. They make the reader interested in what is in the next paragraph. In many factional texts paragraphs start with a topic sentence. This is the first sentence of the paragraph which states very specifically what the paragraph is going to be about. Let's revise what we have just learned. Here is one possible example of a newspaper layout. On the very first page on the top is the title, for example a newspaper that is called "Daily Paper". This is usually the biggest font of the whole paper. Then there are a number of articles. Each article has a heading and usually also a subheading. Most articles are accompanied by a photograph or some other illustration. The description below the picture is called caption. Articles consist of paragraphs and they're structured into columns. The main text of the article is called the body. Good. Let's move on. There are of course many kinds of newspapers. The same topics are presented differently in different newspapers. The way they are presented is always adapted to the people that read them, and their interests and opinions. There are 2 big groups into which we can divide newspapers- Number 1: quality press, also called quality papers. And number 2: popular press which is also known under the following terms:  popular papers, tabloids, sensational papers or yellow press. When people talk about newspapers they often use these 2 terms: "Broadsheet" and "tabloid". Broadsheet stands for the more serious kind, the one that we just called a quality paper and tabloid refers to the popular, sensational kind of newspaper. These are often used in connection with British newspapers and the names come from the size of them. A broadsheet is of a very big size whereas a tabloid is a newspaper that has pages only half the size of those of a standard paper. But of course size is not the only difference between these two kinds. There are 3 criteria that help us differentiate between quality papers and popular papers: a.) the content, b.) language and c.) layout and format. Before we talk about these in detail you should also know that the way photos, illustrations, cartoons and other pictures are used, is also a decisive factor in how the reader will receive the texts. Good. Let's discuss the just mentioned criteria with connection to quality papers first and then popular papers. Quality papers: As far as content goes the main emphases lay on politics, economy and culture. Moreover, there are a lot of details and background information. It's also very clear when there is a factual report and when there is an opinion. Articles describing someone's opinion are clearly marked as "editorial". There are precise facts and exact numbers. You also know where the information comes from. Let's now talk about language. The style is quite formal with complex sentences. The paragraphs are longer and they have a clear structure. And the last aspect, the layout and format: you immediately notice that there is a lot of text and not many pictures. Also, the headings are not so big as in tabloids. And, as already mentioned, the size of the sheet is big. That's why it is called a broad sheet. Good, now I'll tell you something about the content, language, layout and format of popular papers. The content is not very serious. The usual topics that are discussed include crime, accidents, gossip, sports and human-interest stories. The term "human-interest" describes the aspect of a story in the media that interests people because it describes the experiences or emotions of individuals. The articles mix together facts with opinions and comments. The main emphasis is on people and relationships and the factual side of things is in the background. This is called "personalising". The news topics are often simplified and they are very dramatic. As regards the language, it is quite informal with a lot of colloquialisms and idioms. The vocabulary is dramatic and the sentences are short and simple with an easy sentence structure. Also, the paragraphs are much shorter and often there is a lack of logical sequence. The typical layout of a popular paper will have very big headings, a lot of colour, lots of pictures and photographs and, as already mentioned, in Britain the sheet will have a small size. So, if you learn all of these aspects of the 2 different newspaper types, you will be able to analyse newspaper articles according to their quality and structure. And this task is a common one in your final exam. A possible exam task could be for example this one: "Examine the language of this newspaper and explain whether it was published in a quality or a popular paper". By the way: the word "paper" is the synonym to the word "newspaper". However, both types of newspaper have some things in common. The topics of both can be found in the following categories: current affairs/ general news/ hot news. National/ home/ domestic/ international. Serious topics that include education, economy, finance, politics, social issues, arts, sports and entertainment topics: cartoons or jokes, human interest stories, stars, gossip, crossword puzzle, television listings. Okay, and one last thing before you go. If you are asked to describe the author's or the text's attitude towards the topic, there are some words that you should know. In a positive way we could mention words such as: in-depth, thought-provoking, controversial, entertaining, reliable, comprehensive, impressive, promising, objective, creative or critical. And the negative ones are for example: prejudiced or biased, subjective, stereotyped, unreliable, sensationalistic, gossipy, limited or offensive. Good! I know this is a lot to take in. So, why don't you watch this video one more time, just to remember everything better? Thanks for listening. I wish you a nice day. Bye bye.