Some articles recently published by The Cavalier Daily have readers grumbling about the obvious points made by authors. Senatorial behavior is divisive? Partisanship is killing redistricting reform? We need more civics education? What else is new? These pieces are well written and make clear points but there is little nuance or style in the way the arguments are presented. Articles should have a clear angle and titles should encourage readers to read on, not stop them in their tracks. One of the most challenging aspects of journalism is finding an angle for an article. However, this is also an excellent opportunity for authors to develop their voice and tackle issues in an interesting and informative manner.
For example, the issue of redistricting reform is important and has a powerful impact on voter power. The punch line of the article is that legislators have the ability to draw districts, and essentially choose their voters. Unfortunately the author buried the lead and the article title did not invite readers to learn more about why redistricting reform is desirable in the first place. A more appropriate title for this piece may have been, “Are voters choosing their legislators, or are legislators choosing their voters?”
Similarly, readers may have by-passed the article titled, “Senatorial behavior is overly divisive” entirely because they assume they already know the main argument. This piece details the dispute surrounding Elizabeth Warren’s speech in the Senate regarding the appointment of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, which occurred over two weeks ago. It is likely that readers already knew about this incident and had an understanding of the vast partisan divide that exists in Congress. Pieces like this one may be frustrating to well-informed readers and dissuade them from reading through articles in The Cavalier Daily.
Readers are looking for authors to offer perspective and engage with issues in a meaningful way. There is essentially no value-added when authors make points that are already self-evident to readers. Editors should ensure that titles accurately demonstrate the point of the article and make the reader interested in learning more. In addition, they should work to find engaging and original angles for their pieces. This is particularly true for opinion columns, as well as news coverage at the local and state and national level. Authors and editors should strive to present the best possible articles and work to incorporate constructive feedback from readers.
Jacquelyn Katuin is the Public Editor for The Cavalier Daily. She can be reached at publiceditor@cavalierdaily.com or on Twitter at @CDPublicEditor.
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