Hard News vs. Soft News

Article#1

The article, "Chinese boy survives 20-storey fall" would be considered hard news

seeing as it was up-to-minute news and was not trying to inform the reader against anything.

The article did not include any photos on the accident but it did explain

what, when, and who was involved. The article didn't include any elements of a soft news, it just mentioned how the little boy fell out the window, what injuries he had, and a similar accident that happened to a man.

Article#2

The article, "Alcohol ranked most harmful drug" would be considered soft news.
This article is trying to warn people how dangerous alcohol really is, and it even compare it to many of the most harmful illegal drugs, like crystal meth. The article included a photo of two mugs of alcohol, and there was a few quotes, one being from Wim van den Brink, a professor of psychiatry and addiction at the University of Amsterdam. "Drugs that are legal cause at least as much damage, if not more, than drugs that are illicit," he said.

Article#3

The article, "2 Montreal pizzerias firebombed" would be considered hard news since it is much more than just a human interest story; the tone is very serious, and the search for who cause it is still ongoing. The article included a picture of one of the burnt pizzerias with many of the firefighters and firetrucks still at the scene. There was no evidence of soft news but the article did mention the way both pizzerias caught fire...Molotov cocktails. Const. Anie Lemieux gives a quote about how both fires started.
"In both cases, apparently, the window was broken and a possible Molotov cocktail was thrown inside and that's what caused the fire," she says.

Article#4

The article, "Call of Duty and the war game dilemma" would be considered soft news, since it is dealing with entertainment and does not contain a very serious tone. The article included a screen shot from the game and discussed when the video game will be released. The article compared this game with other war games in the past and kept a very soft tone throughout.

Article#5

The article, "Memorials mark deaths in Afghanistan" would be considered both soft and hard news. The reason it would be considered soft news is that it is dealing with family life and how families are dealing with the deaths of their loved ones in war. However, it would also be considered hard news also because it is talking about a war that is still going on and still taking lives. The article included a photo of the monument to Afghan War dead at newly created Memorial Park at CFB Petawawa.