we have the facts and we're voting yes- reading journal for 1-4-2011

1) Sour economy and many crises test japan's young

31/3/2011

NY Times

Ken Belson

Breaking news from the powerful island country of Japan relates death tolls, personal stories and policy reactions to the recent slew of natural disasters, an earthquake and and tsunami (and nuclear crisis as a result). News sources the world over are inundated with articles concerned with the facts of the matter and only recently have online and print papers begun to analyze the effects of the disasters on the way Japan functions socially and morally. The country is irrevocably changed by the triple disasters, old ways are being rewritten and it appears that a generation is being awoken.The generation entering the workforce (most of them set to do so today) has long been criticized by older generations as coddled and selfish, unlikely to adopt the core Japanese values that drive the country forward and earns it a reputation for hard-working, self-sacrificing individuals. But those criticisms are being proven false, even as I write this.

With the influx of need for social support, volunteering and aid that has resulted from the triple disasters afflicting Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi and Meiji Province, the country's young are responding in a commendable fashion. They want to help. One such youth, Miki Kamiyama, illuminates this response when he compares his life and goals before and after the earthquake. "Before the earthquake, I thought about myself and what I can do for my new company, but now I think what I can do for all of society." And this is the generation that is accused of being selfish and materialist, that doesn't understand working hard for the benefit of other people with little regard to self interest. There is a cultural shift at hand, it's scope is yet to be seen. But this is the type of conclusion that is only reached at the end of lengthy analysis of the facts as breaking news reports them, it requires more interpretation. The facts are that the three disasters occurred. Analysis and interpretation of the facts produces the real story- that, as a result, Japan is going through a cultural shift.

The lede of this story actually is pretty close to a hard news lede. It contains a who (hundreds and thousands of young people), a what (begin their working lives, a when (Friday), a where (Japan) and a why/how (test a generation reared in affluence). But it contains descriptors, whereas hard news ledes seem so dry and bare bones. The object here is less relating the facts in the order of importance and more about relating a story and an emerging trend that is drawn from the bare facts as they would occur in a hard news lede. The structure of the article reflects this too, it doesn't follow an inverted pyramid but more a logical progression as if the author was walking the reader through his argument from beginning to conclusion. Honestly, I think I prefer this type of structure and story in general.

2) Syria's British-born first lady divides the women of Damascus

This story incorporates a human element. The news is that there is a new, chic first lady in Syria and that women there are skeptical of her. There is more to it which is revealed by analysis. The fact that women are so divided by Asma al-Assad  reveals quite a bit about the changing social structures and norms of what is and isn't acceptable for a woman to do (i.e. her manner, her dress etc). The lede is not a hard news lede and the story doesn't follow the typical inverted pyramid structure.

3) Nuclear's green cheerleaders forget Chernobyl at our peril

I think this one is more of an opinion piece, but it uses heavy analysis to prove it's case. The author is very skeptical and his interpretation of the facts is very convincing. Again, the story does not have a hard news lede (it's more like a thesis statement than anything else) and does not follow the inverted pyramid structure.