Feature Journal

This first one is amazing. It provoked emotions for me, the reader, kept the story moving, even though it was fairly long, and described several cases without becoming too complicated to follow. I like the narrators use of his own voice. I also like the transitions between each case, it is so sudden, but if you read over it again the jump is actually a great transition. I think this has an awesome effect, because the cases and the stories a somewhat sharp and sudden and this article reads a bit like that, but it is done in an intelligent way. I think a feature like this, one that is undoubtedly an interesting topic with a lot of information, can be almost more challenging because there is such a rich story to include but it cannot read like a novel. And this one especially, since the content is so unsettling. It is almost too easy to make it gripping, but the writer makes it gripping but not exaggerated, there are still explanations and narratives interlaced with the pretty terrible facts so its a bit easier to read. In a few of the other pieces I felt like there was too much information and the article became bogged down because the writing and transitions perhaps weren't as strong.

"A Muslim leader in Brooklyn Reconciling 2 Worlds": first I am not a huge fan of title, it is kind of clique and over simplifies the piece. I enjoyed reading this article more than the next one, probably because it provides a better picture of the imam and I got to know him a bit better as a person and his own personal struggles separate from being an imam in America. The characters here are also described well and while reading it I felt a bit overwhelmed and annoyed at some of their comments, which I think is a sign of good writing. I would have liked some longer quotes from Mr. Shata, since I think that this is a feature about him and many of his quotes are so quick, that the interpretation of him is largely based on the writer's placement and descriptions, rather than his actual words.

"To lead the Faithful in a Faith Under Fire" read more like a news story than a feature piece to me. It was a bit too fast and to-the-point for such heavy material. There were also way too many topics thrown into one piece, with a few different scenarios and characters all over the place, without a strong enough relationship with the Sheik Shata to guide us through the stories. The content of course is captivating and it is presented in a way that keeps the reader engaged. But I wanted to know more details of the little stories rather than it all piled under the sort of profile of the iman. In many ways this is a profile story raising the greater issue of Muslim's acceptance in America- but oh boy that is such a loaded topic. And in this piece we have so many different perspectives, and then at the end are left with some very definite words from the imam and a quote that felt a bit misplace or unexplained.

The last one is all right. I feel like I kept wanting a more personal description of the imam though, because by the end I still had an unclear picture of him. I liked the way the writer incorporated history and gave us some examples of how Muslim's usually date and some background on the characters as they were introduced. As far as writing style, I found it to be a bit lacking, there were not necessarily any good pictures drawn or insightful details drawn out. However, the story does keep moving and while short sentences are not my favorite, I think here it works well to keep up the pace since the plot is not necessarily gripping.