Television and Newspaper Coverage of 9/11 :: Papers

Television and Newspaper Coverage of 9/11 This case study will be analysing television news coverage for 11/9/01 and 11/9/02 and newspaper coverage for the same dates. I will start by analysing the newspaper coverage for 11/9/01 and 11/9/02. I looked at five newspapers from 11/9/01, three of which were tabloids, and two of which were broadsheet newspapers. I noticed that each newspaper used visual imperatives overtly throughout. The photographs were powerful, mostly of the twin towers before and after they had been hit, with smoke and fire all around, people jumping out of the towers, and all the debris. The photographs on the front covers were very colourful and filled the whole page, even on the broadsheets, which is not the usual format. Some even used photographs on the back cover, which is usually meant for sport. Use of the images were very effective, as they were dramatic photographs showing the realisation of what had happened. "The Mirror" did not use an image of the towers on the front cover, which was unusual. Instead, it used a small image of the president of the USA, and the word "war" dominating the rest of the page. This was very effective as all the other newspapers looked the same, and this one stood out from them all, yet still had an impact from the word "war". Images throughout the newspapers were very emotionally dramatic and eye-catching. The headlines were brief, blunt and got straight to the point. They did this by using striking words such as apocalypse, nightmare, and war. By using these headlines they expressed to the readers the seriousness of what had happened. There were also supplements that came with the newspapers which were mainly photographs and images, with very little text. Similarly newspaper coverage of 11/9/02, a year on from the event, used the same images, but also used images from after the attack. This was effective as it brought back memories and emotions from the year before. Strong headlines were used again, but this time they were