Article vs. Editorial

News Articles
Stories about actual happenings and events without a personal bias or opinion are considered to be news articles. They strictly outline the who, what, where, when and why of an event. These appear in the news section of the periodical, on the front page of a newspaper. For example, a news story about 9/11 would explain the people involved, the number of casualties and the circumstances of the tragedy. There is little to no emotion in these articles, and if there is it is always from a third party via an interview. Articles are researched and fact based; they use support and analysis.

Editorial

An opinion based piece such as a review, advice column or rant, written using strong language, persuasion and emotionally charged phrases.

Fact – something that can be proven true

Opinion-thoughts on a subject, not necessarily informed by fact, often informed by emotion; a belief, judgment, or way of thinking about something.
Informed Opinion-thoughts on a subject by someone who is familiar with facts, studies, trends or firsthand experience

Directions: In the scenarios below decide which are “facts”, “opinions” or “informed opinions” and then write down your answer in the space next to the sentence giving it an “F”, “O” or “IO”.

 1. Swimming

¾ Boo Radley is the greatest swimmer of all time.
¾ Michael Phelps won more Olympic medals for swimming than anyone else in history.
¾ There is no way to really tell if Michael Phelps is the greatest swimmer in the history of the world, but he is definitely very good at swimming and the argument could be made that he was the greatest competitive swimmer in the world at one time.

 2. Food in the U.S.A.

¾ I say that Thanksgiving Dinner is the best food we have in the U.S. and a CNN poll also ranked it as the #1 food favorite in the U.S.A.
¾ Pizza is the best food, ever.
¾ There isn’t a way to really find out for certain what the most popular food in the U.S. is.

3. Animals
¾ Mudpuppies spend their entire lives underwater and are distinguished as the only salamanders that make sound—a dog-like barking.
¾ The Hammerhead Shark is the most dangerous sharks…just look at it!
¾ The Bird of Paradise is one of the best known dancers in the animal kingdom. See the article here.

3. Movies

¾ Twilight is the best movie of all time.
___ Avatar used a new form of 3D technology that proved more impressive than earlier methods.
¾ Gravity is the highest grossing film of all time.
___ Leonardo DiCaprio's performance in The Great Gatsby was received favorably by some critics.

Examples: Identify if the piece posted is an article or an editorial. Give reasons and specific examples that inform your opinion.

• Finding Shakespeare in Thor: The Dark World
• Are Grimm’s Fairy Tales too Twisted for Children?
• Are We Alone in the Universe?
• Does It Say ‘Arrgh’ When You Make a Kill?