May 13, 2008...6:03 pm
China quake non-coverage turns DomPost into this week’s provincial rag
What a difference a week makes. Last week, I questioned the news judgement of the New Zealand Herald, for ignoring the biggest international news story of the month, the Cyclone Nargis catastrophe in Burma. The Herald filled its front page with crime and television stories, while the Dominion Post, which I’ve criticised more than a few times for questionable news judgement, ran the cyclone as its main front page story two days in a row.
Today the Herald had both the Cyclone Nargis aftermath and the cataclysmic earthquake in China on its front page (though with the obligatory crime story), whereas the DomPost virtually ignored the quake (save a small piece downpage in the second section), filling its front page with crime, cancer, petrol prices and global warming.
Why this change of emphasis in only a week? It certainly shows that news judgement on our two main daily newspapers is a hit and miss business.
It’s not as if the quake happened too late for our morning papers. The first news I saw of it came through as a news flash last night as I was watching a BBC World bulletin just after 7pm, hours before the final deadline of either paper. It was clear from the BBC’s reporting a 7.8 magnitude quake that this was going to be the biggest news story in the world today.
For the Herald to get the quake on page one and the DomPost not to suggests different news editors on at both papers compared with last week. And the Herald thinking of its readers — Auckland having New Zealand’s biggest Chinese immigrant community.
Whatever the reason, the DomPost today showed itself to be the insular, provincial rag the Herald was last week.
8 Comments
May 13, 2008 at 6:31 pm
You’re a journalist, right? You know what they’re doing.
Running different flavours on the front page to test what it does to circulation. Like Labour and National
May 13, 2008 at 6:50 pm
Will: heh, this is an interesting thesis.
I was up at the U today, and I overheard some fertile-minded folks talking about how it’s that the DomPost didn’t want to show Chinese authorities responding quickly and decisively.
*sigh*
L
May 13, 2008 at 8:26 pm
The Dom Post has been under-performing as a metro newspaper for some time. It struck me as odd to see its editor up on the podium at the Qantas Media Awards in Auckland last week. That such a mediocre newspaper could receive accolades at this event raises questions about the Qantas Media Awards. I hasten to add that some of the staff at The Dom Post, photographers for instance, are excellent.
May 13, 2008 at 8:52 pm
By the way, there’s an interesting post about the Qantas over at Marty Hirst’s Ethical Martini blog. Raises questions about judging and so on.
As for John: better the Dom Post than the Herald on Sunday, surely. How a tabloid can be rated over broadsheets astounds me.
May 14, 2008 at 10:17 am
That such a mediocre newspaper could receive accolades at this event raises questions about the Qantas Media Awards.
You’re aware that a few years back they gave it to the Otago Daily Times?
May 14, 2008 at 10:38 am
(Me wondering): Editorial Disaster Fatigue? (EDF).
May 14, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Why does a story about foreigners dying in an overseas nation HAVE to be the lead story? Of course it doesn’t.
As with all editorial decisions, what matters is local interest and relevance. You then look at what else is happening and make a call. Newspapers are also the worst way to find out about big events happening around the world. Yesterday’s news today.
May 19, 2008 at 9:52 am
Lawrence, thats a moronic response. Wellington is sitting on a fault that has a high probability of rupturing in the next 50 years, producing an earthquake of the size that hit China. The results and the aftermath are of direct pertinent interest to New Zealanders and particularly Wellingtonians.
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