News Analysis

Overview
    In television news media, stories are presented more for their entertainment value then for their relative importance.  The news that is portrayed in this broadcast is concurrent with this observation.  These stories tell viewers of the unresolved problems and health issues in today's world and also our nations many societies.  The newscasters relate stories in a manner that is interesting to the viewer that consequently makes some of the more important stories seem trivial.  Occasionally, a story is aired that has a positive connotation, but these stories usually get a brief time slot.  The information given is generally more important to the older audience, therefore causing it to be uninteresting for the youth of society.

Sequence
    "'If it bleeds, it leads' has frequently been used to describe the priorities at work in local news.  If this philosophy is still true the sequencing of news should verify the fact."  The opening news story, "Show of Force", is a prime example of the validity of this statement.  The story on Kosovo is a world issue that involves many countries.  The fact that it is about war and violence draws he attention of the viewer and keeps us engaged throughout the broadcast.  As the story opens, there is urgency in Tom Brokaw's voice as he describes the mounting tensions between NATO, the Serbs and Albanians.  The threat of going to war produces fear and emotional distress for those viewing the broadcast.  Of all the stories shown on that night's news the story of Kosovo has the greatest amount of drama, violence, suspense and conflict.

 
     These characteristics result in emotional and fearful responses.  Although the later segment on prostate cancer has greater implications here in America, the crisis in Kosovo is more dramatic and more appealing in entertainment value than a story about men's health.

Style
    The evening news opens with the same urgency every evening.  The news broadcast opens with the NBC Nightly News headline with the NBC peacock sign behind it.  There is a drum roll with a trumpet blaring in the background.  This strong and loud music draws people from the kitchen or other activities to come and see what is so exciting.  Tom Brokaw gives us a glimpse into what is to come.  The story on Kosovo is introduced with a map of the region.  The word Kosovo is in large black letters to emphasize its importance.  A picture of the feet of marching troops with the American flag waving.  The next story begins with a mug shot of Ira Einhorn then turns to a shot of him laughing and shaking his head "no".  A black and white picture of Holly, his murder victim, is then shown.  The next shot shows a large, gold medical symbol inter linked with a large, gold male symbol.  There is then footage shown of a hospital, this introduces the story on Prostate Cancer.  The words "The Family" are shown above a picture of a student taking a standardized test.  Tom Brokaw uses weighted words to title this story "High Pressure, High Stakes and High Tech Cheating."  The next thing that happens is a pan of the New York City skyline that focuses on the Rockefeller center, where the NBC Nightly News is produced.  The set of the news is shown from a distance so that it seems large and powerful.  All of these stylistic maneuvers are for a purpose; they make NBC and Tom Brokaw seem like the most intelligent and powerful group in the world.

Structure
    The structure of the stories in the evening news can provide the viewer a very skewered opinion of the broadcast.  We chose this story "Portrait of a Bigot" to demonstrate the structure of the news.  The segment opens with a head and shoulder shot of Tom Brokaw with footage of suspect, Billy King, being shown over Brokaw's right shoulder.  Tom Brokaw then announces that he is turning the story over to reporter Jim Cumins.  Jim Cumins provides a voice over while footage is shown of the suspect getting out of a car at the courthouse.  The suspect is shown wearing a bulletproof vest.  The importance of this scene is that King is portrayed as a dangerous man who is very likely to be attacked by revenge seeking individuals.
    In the next scene the mug shots of King and his three accomplices are shown.  After these are viewed a family photo of the victim, James Byrd Jr., is flashed on the screen.  This is important because by showing the mug shots the news producers are reinforcing the viewers that they are guilty.  The photo of Byrd emphasizes the idea that he was an innocent family man who was viciously assaulted and murdered.  After the men's photos have been shown they provide us footage of the rear of the truck from which Byrd was chained.
    The next scene puts the viewer at Byrd's tombstone.  The chain used to drag him is shown being pulled from a box.  When the chain is removed from the box it is displayed as evidence, the camera follows the length of it in slow motion.  There is then a layout of photos of the truck of which is a picture of the undercarriage of the pick up.  The viewer then hears a brief interview with Mary Verette, James Byrd Jr.'s sister.
    The segment ends with a shot of reporter Jim Cumins in front of the courthouse where King is on trial.  This shows the viewer that NBC News has the inside story of the murder.

Slant
    Boris Yeltsin, President of Russia is featured in this news segment.  On several occasions during this story, he is portrayed as weak and an inadequate leader for his country.  An example of this is, he stated that he made a phone call to President Clinton about the NATO agreement regarding Kosovo.  President Clinton has no recollection of this phone call.  The White House claims it never occurred.  This behavior is described as "worrisome" and "out of control."  The broadcasters also concentrate on his recent history of faltering health.  Footage of Yeltsin stumbling is shown and it is said to be caused by severe exhaustion due to a recent case of pneumonia.  This opinion is not only held in America, but it was said in the segment that "Yeltsin is done and sick," by a Russian commentator.  The reporter tells us that Yeltsin turned over power to his Prime Minister and then became jealous of his new found power and his ability to make decisions.  The use of loaded words is evident by the quotes that Yeltsin "loves power more than life" and "the world has lost confidence in his ability to run Russia."

 
    Another example of slant during this newscast is in the story of Ira Einhorn.  Ira Einhorn has been labeled as a fugitive from American justice since 1981.  His mug shot is shown with the caption "The Fugitive".  It has been stated "with a French twist of justice, he has been set free."  By using this loaded language the reporter emphasizes the bias of the American public, their target audience.  It has been a long held opinion that the French are ignorant and that they dislike anything American.  This stereotype is played up in this segment of the broadcast.  Einhorn states that he has made friends with the French people with whom he lives.  The French describe Americans as barbaric and therefore they will not extradite him.  Einhorn's freedom is seen as a matter of French pride and defiance against America.  In fact, one of his neighbors, Daniel Antoine, states "if he was the Oklahoma city center bomber, I would understand that they would really badly need him, but I mean he is only accused of killing one person." Although this quote may have been taken out of context, producers of the broadcast isolated his words as being conclusive. This reiterates America's perception that the French are ignorant of American justice.
    The French believe that the American CIA framed him due to his activism in the 1960's.  During an interview, Einhorn is portrayed as delusional because he believes that he is a part of a CIA conspiracy.  His delusion is reinforced at the end of this segment when the reporter announces that Holly's body was hidden for eighteen months in a trunk only ten steps from his bed.  When the body was discovered, Einhorn replied "You found what you found."  The final scene of this segment shows Ira holding hands with a woman and as he turns and waves to the camera the voice over announces that authorities "believe that he has a new passport and is ready to run once again."

Sponsors
     The commercials shown during the half-hour of nightly new are at times more interesting than the news itself.  They target a particular audience, those middle aged, hard working and exhausted individuals.  During the news you will see many commercials having to do with stress related health topics.  For example during this newscast there were two heart attack, three cholesterol, two constipation, one erectile disorder and one car safety commercial.  These commercials play into the viewer's overall stress induced attitude.
                                    
 
 

         Another common form of advertising is to promote the networks own shows.  Commercials about tomorrow on Today, Friday's Dateline and tonight's Extra were all shown directly prior to returning to the newscast.