Sunday, 27 October 2013

Studio Brief 04 Selected Article Analysis OUGD403

From beginning to end the article, written by an official writer of the independent, is angled very much towards the cut off point costs per megawatt hour (the most we will have to pay for energy produced at this plant). The writer draws attention to the fact that this price will be frozen for the entirety of the 35 year period this deal covers, when other forms of energy will become cheaper. This focus on the economic over the eco friendly fits with the identity that the independent has created for its self over the years. The hint is in the name. “The Independent” tells us that it has no devotion or alignment with political parties and therefore it will supply its readers with honest hard hitting news; the facts open and objective. Whether this is actually the case is open to debate (can any individual writing to an audience ever manage to truly conceal their opinion?) but the economic focus of this article shows a dedication to maintaining this image, attempting to convey the facts that will affect, interest and inform the reader.

The use of speech marks on the title subtly conveys a dubiousness of the opinion being expressed or rather a wish to distance themselves from it, instantly attacking the person who said this, making the authors opinion that the governments arrangements regarding Hinckley point are somewhat farcical and without real reason.

The colour scheme that covers the page is dominantly read black and yellow, these colours have strong connotations of danger and specifically that of nuclear danger.

The article creates quite an explanatory and neutral tone, seemingly just providing the reader with the facts. However, the facts that are provided gently nudge the reader in the direction of an opinion, more effectively than overt indoctrination. For example, it explains that these higher price costs are incentives for companies to use low carbon emission methods to create electricity and in comparison to the prices of wind power and solar panels, the price of these recent subsidies seems quite descent, as can be seen in the table above. However, the quotes from various politicians placed throughout the article make it clear that they have gone back on their word, according to the independent anyway. The general impression given by the article is that the government have tied themselves in knots trying to ensure future energy for the country and generally made slight fools of them-selves. But as mentioned before this is s gently suggested the reader should not be fully aware.





In comparison the authorial voice of the article to the far right of the page, by Donald Macintyre, is punchy strong and immediate. To start with the strong sarcasm that saturates the article from the headline onwards not only invites the reader to laugh at what a mess the whole affair appears to be but creates an impression of the condescending position of the author on the subject giving his opinions a certain subconscious tint of gravitas and an erudite tone. This certainly fits with the knowledgeable and well-informed identity the independent is trying to maintain but lacks objectivity. Arguably, they have circled around this by naming and providing an image of the author, separating them-selves from the opinion expressed.

The choice of advert at the centre of the page must not have been coincidental. When reading the report the eye is constantly bombarded by the colours red and yellow, connecting negative connotations with the subject of the article. The fact that there are no outlines around the article that is supposedly from the perspective of the newspaper its self, suggests it is objective and information that is open and universally applicable. The article to the far right, however, has a thick and quite heavy grey outline around it distinctly separating it from the independent main article.

The tight text wrap around the image of the lib-dem politician who seems to have gone back on his word conveys the linguistic bombardment he is receiving in this article. Where as once again the square images in the independent article are given much more space conveying a certain desire of objectivity.
Throughout the paper there are more opinionated articles on this subject, which seem to be intended as catalysts for thought rather than the simple conveyance of information. The main independent article acts as in informer, brining the reader up to date with all the information and the other articles act as stimulants, getting the readers thinking about their own stance on the matter, in a way attempting to encourage independence. As part of my research I will go on to analyse these other articles and how they affect the reader and shed light on the subject of the Hinckley point nuclear power plant plans.




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