Read All About It

Read All About It! Looking at newspapers

SECTION 2

Emotive Language

If something is emotive it makes people emotional. If you have just had your new bike stolen then your friends might avoid boasting about their bikes: bikes are an emotive subject for you at the moment.

Newspapers often choose emotive language (words) to get their readers to react emotionally to a story. If you call an event a 'riot' rather than a 'disturbance' you are much more likely to get your readers excited.

Below are four pairs of headlines.

In each pair which headline is most likely to excite the reader? (a) or (b)?

6. (a) Scabs thrown out of the union (b) Strike breakers must leave union

7. (a) Fire at school (b) School blaze

8. (a) Skilful Graf (b) Graf magic

9. (a) Stewart injured (b) Stewart agony

You probably found that easy.

Now read the headlines below. Re-write them, replacing the words in bold with more emotive words. The first two have been done for you as examples .

10. Man hit by robbers ( Pensioner hit by muggers )

11. A hundred peasants killed by troops (A hundred peasants slaughtered by troops)

12. Argument closes factory

13. Train seats cut by teenagers

14. House prices fall throughout country

15. Supporters run onto pitch

16. Shortage of money creates problems in schools

17. Trouble on roads after snow fall

18. Player hits referee.

19. Political meeting ends in disturbance

Re-read The Star's report about the school 'riot'. It is printed below. The report uses a lot of emotive language. For example, it uses "mob" instead of crowd or group ; "refused" instead of declined or decided not . Bored pupils riot as staff walk out

A MOB of 300 youngsters ran riot through their school yesterday - because they were bored. It happened when teachers at the 100-staff comprehensive refused to do dinner duties and walked out in a union dispute. Only the headmaster and two teachers were on duty, and they wre powerless to act. People living nearby watched, terrified, as gangs of 15 and 16 year olds rampaged through the 1000- pupil school at Bideford, Devon, chanting "We want a riot" as they smashed windows. Police who rushed to the giant complex in seven cars calmed the frantic pupils.

Hammers

As the afternoon lessons ended the youngsters said they were protesting about being confined to one playground. "We were bored and had nothing to do," they said. "We will continue our action until the teachers dispute is over. "We brought screwdrivers and hammers to school and stole knives from the canteen."

(The Star)

20. What quieter, less emotive words could the report have used instead of "terrified" (paragraph 4); "frantic" (paragraph 5)?

21. How do we feel about: a. the "youngsters", and b. the teachers who "refused to do dinner duties"?

22. Explain how the writer's choice of words makes us feel these things about the pupils and the teachers.

You have now learnt two important things:

 Newspaper reports often use language that is emotive rather than factual and neutral.  This emotive language affects the way we feel about people and things in the reports.

Now you can do your own study of newspaper language.

On the next pages are two reports published on the same day in 1990. They are about a political protest in South Africa. At that time Black South Africans didn't want other countries' teams to come to South Africa because Blacks were not allowed to play in South African teams. An English cricket team visited South Africa and many Blacks demonstrated angrily against it. A man called Mike Gatting was the English captain. The reports are about what happened at one demonstration.

You will find that one of the two reports is far more dramatic than the other and uses a lot of emotive language . You will also find that the way that Mike Gatting and the black demonstrators are written about encourages us to feel certain things about them . For example, one of the reports makes Mike Gatting sound panicky and even a coward. The other report makes Gatting sound more cool and dignified. One report is from The Independent; the other is from The Star. The report from The Star is in two parts. Read the reports from both papers. Mike Gatting gets canned at tea-time

MIKE GATTING walked 150 From Richard Evans standing behind a low wall. But yards through a chanting throng in Pietermaritzburg Mohammed Casimjee, one of the of demonstrators outside the Jan protestors, insisted that he walk Smuts Stadium here yesterday to to a podium 150 yards from receive a petition concerning "You guys in the British press where the biggest rally of the poor playing conditions in the have vilified Mike. But he has tour – nearly 5,000 blacks and Natal townships. come here with no knowledge of Indians – had been marshalled. Protected by the the country and has said nothing "You are guaranteed safe in, safe demonstrators’ own stewards, more stupid than a lot of white out," Mr Casimjee said, "Nothing who linked arms on either side of South Africans do every day. will happen to you." the pathway, Gatting – with Ali The situation is extraordinarily Dr Bacher looked somewhat Bacher, the managing director of complex and many people who doubtful about that, but Gatting the South African Cricket Union have lived here all their lives still moved forward and, after a and the man behind the tour, don’t understand it." conversation with the protesters, David Gravney, manager of the It all happened at thc tea set off. Despite the stones, the English team and John Emburey, interval during the third match of anger was contained. Chants of one of the players – was this inflammatory tour. Within a "Gatting go home" went on subjected to a shower of stones minute of returning, Gatting unabated, but nothing was and a few soft-drink cans during walked into the dressing-room thrown while the former England the walk back. A can bounced and said: "Come on, lads, let’s captain was on the podium, and off Gatting’s shoulder, but get out there." He then led the on the journey back the stewards otherwise the cricket party team on to the field and did an excellent job. "Gatting is a escaped. Graveney bowled the second brave man," one Indian said, "but "It was the most heroic over after tea. I still think that the tour should sporting achievement off the The original plan had been for be stopped." field I have ever seen," Dr Gatting to walk out of the main gates to receive the petition Bacher said when the party (The Independent) returned to the pavilion. while

REBEL GATTING RUNS Gatting GAUNTLET OF DEMO HATE stoned From JACK RIDGE in Angry Pietermaritzburg The rebel skipper had agreed by mob REBEL cricket captain Mike to meet the anti-tour deputation Gatting was pelted with stones during the tea interval. by screaming hordes yesterday. Then he was persuaded to And he was struck by a Coca- climb on to a podium to receive Cola can as he faced the fury of a a protest letter. 4,000-strong South African mob. Protest organiser Mohammed Gatting had agreed to meet a Cassimjee assured him: "You deputation of anti-tour are guaranteed safe in, safe out. campaigners. Nothing will happen. But instead of an expected note "You will be given a of protest, he was met by a hail memorandum relating to the of stones and a torrent of abuse. lack of facilities in townships Stewards were unable to and general opposition to the control the angry mob … and the tour." deeply shocked Gatting was But as Gatting walked to the jostled and bumped. podium with other rebel With missiles raining down on cricketers, the mood of the him, he raced desperately back to crowd grew angry. the safety of the ground. The demo happened at Shocked Pietermaritzburg during the match against a South African invitation team. He looked shocked at the deafening chants of "Gatting Go Home". The violence erupted as he raced for the safety of the at demo cricket ground. The England side had been CRICKET rebel Mike Gatting tipped off about trouble at the ran for his life yesterday when he match. stoned by an angry mob. Thousands of demonstrators A sea of missiles rained down swamped fields surrounding the on him from a 4,000-strong ground. South African horde after he And there was a massive agreed to meet a deputation. police presence with The shocked rebel captain helicopters, armoured cars and thought he was going to receive a water cannon. protest note. But they kept their distance in an attempt to avoid provocation. Bottles (The Star - page 2) But instead he was pelted with

23. Make a list of all the words in The Star report that are emotive. Next to each word write a couple of alternative words that mean almost the same but are less emotive. Set out your ideas in a chart - see the example below.

24. Write at least 150 words about the report in The Independent and the one in The Star. You should compare the two reports and look at the different sorts of language they use. Explain how the two papers make us feel about Mike Gatting and about the demonstrators. Write about details in the reports.

EMOTIVE LESS EMOTIVE NEUTRAL

mob gang crowd

raced ran hurried

Now let your teacher see your work on tasks 1 - 24.

Meanwhile you can get on with the last task - writing a newspaper report.

25. Think up a very uninteresting story. For example, a member of your family eating their breakfast messily, or your hamster escaping from its cage, or a teacher forgetting to set homework. Now write a tabloid newspaper report of this story.

Make sure that your report... - is clear and well organized; - uses quotes from witnesses and 'experts'; - uses dramatic and emotive language; - takes a simple event and exaggerates it.

Re-draft your report on plain paper so that it can be displayed. Add a picture to it if possible.