The Super Bowl Could Kill You

By Ryan Bowman
January 31st, 2008 at 02:58pm
Media, Newspapers, Websites

(Link to today’s important FoxNews exclusive on the Super Bowl here)

Jack Shafer writes today about the burgeoning tabloid tendencies of American websites in a piece on Slate aptly entitled “Fishermen Beat Rare Dolphin to Death“. American’s are particularly responsive (and, it has to be said, its media critics particularly sensitive) to the ways of the tabloid press but it’s not our fault - I promise - we just haven’t had much time to build up an immunity to the charms of humorous sensationalism. In fact, tabloids and their huge black punny headlines are alien to most of the country. Hardly anyone outside of New York reads or cares about the Murdoch’s NY Post - not that you would ever know that living in London. The British media tends to see their own tabloid-tainted reflection in American media and thus over-report and over-emphasize the influence of tabloid media in the States (the Post’s pithy headlines inevitably get disproportionate amounts of coverage on this side of the Atlantic…see here and here).

But, as Shafer notes, American websites have begun to bravely spread the tab-gospel to the rest of the country. And its no surprise, especially on the web where sites can easily fill many niches at once. CNN can be the desitination of choice for both 45 year old professional policy-junkies and 14 year old casual surfers. Unlike newspapers who have a limited number of pages or TV stations who only have so many minutes a day, websites have virtually infinite storage space and so can offer headlines like Watch that hot drink! Airline offers naked flights or Dog Disfigures Boy; Mom Blames Son, Vows To Keep It beside the latest news on the US elections or the violence in Kenya. It also interesting, as an aside, to look at Jonathan Puckey’s amazing website The Quick Brown which tracks headline changes on the FoxNews website. Its incredibly edifying to follow the life of a story as it progresses from a lowly wire pickup with a long, explanatory headline (Major Names in MLB Steriods Report) to a front page phenomenon with a three word shocker (BOYS OF BUMMER). All in real time!

Entry Filed under: Media, Newspapers, Websites