Reading Journal Three

After comparing many mediums of news, I found that I had yet to incorporate an important form: the television. The television, as The Elements of Journalism states, is similar to the transformation that the Internet is providing now, in other words: the T.V. is just one of the many metamorphoses that journalism has undergone. This week I chose to write about a singular event, and the way in which the newspaper and the television have chosen to adapt it.

While watching ABC 7 at the Gym, I was unfortunately confronted with the suicide of college student Tyler Clementi. Clementi jumped off a New York City bridge because his roommate exposed his sexuality over the internet, through a secret spy webcam. Though any event so horrific would grab my attention, the way in which this story was framed was specifically intriguing: “A student at Rutgers State University wanted to play a joke…” the reporter soon went on to reveal the rest of the story, a joke that ultimately leads to a students suicide. This narration conveys something ordinary, something relatable that soon turned into a very disheartening tale. Such a framing, I suspect was necessary in order to foreshadow a message concerning the dangers of bullying. I wonder however, if this opening could survive in any other medium—would this framing me be appropriate in text, or would it be too literary?

The Guardian’s Ed Pilkington wrote an article about Clementi’s suicide as well. This article, sets a slightly different tone: “His last words, posted on Facebook about 10 minutes before he died were brief and to the point: ‘Jumping off the gw bridge sorry.’” Such an opening does not allude to a cruel prank taken too seriously, but to the exposition of Clementi’s suicide plans. Pilkington then goes on to tell the sad story of a boy whose secret lifestyle was not handled sensitively.

Both mediums go forth to connect the dots of the story, explaining how an adolescent prank, coupled with the huge force that is technology, can lead to an insurmountable tragedy. Television and the Newspaper have similar goals in mind: to inform the viewer/reader. I realized nonetheless, that the television has potential to be cinematic, such as the climactic narrative depicted on ABC 7. Unlike the differences between the internet and the newspaper, the television and the newspaper seem to coincide. Where the internet suggests possiblities of conversation, the television is still reminiscent of the gatekeeper.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/30/tyler-clementi-gay-student-suicide