PoliticsPA.com is a website centered on the politics of Pennsylvania .
44-489: The website reports on political and campaign news in Pennsylvania, from the state legislature up to federal races. The editors write occasional features , like the weekly "Up & Down" scorecard and one-off lists like "Harrisburg's Smartest Staffers" and "Best Dressed Lobbyist" lists. In addition, PoliticsPa.com accepts anonymous tips; In 2012, it was the first news source to report that Tom Smith would challenge Bob Casey in
88-457: A biography by focusing on the person's personality or anecdotes, rather than the factual data about birth, education, or major achievements. Features may also cover aspects of business, political matters, media and entertainment, etc. The level of seriousness and characteristics differing it from hard news can range. In order to create and write a feature, the idea of the writing can be very individualistic. Ideas are inevitably everywhere and in
132-555: A "roller coaster" effect where the reader is purposely prepared for the focus statement and taken along a path describing characteristics, complications/conflicts, and then gently given the resolution with descriptions at the very end . The intro to the Feature Story will outline the lead/purpose for your article. A statement highlights the focus and the body of the article is a great place to elaborate upon that focus. The body of article can be broken down into smaller sections that allow
176-483: A career achievement. A study published in the American Behavioral Scientist illustrates that human-interest stories are furthermore often used in the news coverage of irregular immigration, although the frequency differs from country to country. Human-interest features are frequently evergreen content , easily recorded well in advance and/or rerun during holidays or slow news days. The popularity of
220-413: A certain tone, whether that be entertaining, humorous, saddening, serious or light. It involves and engages readers to the creative, subjective, informative, or entering aspects of the article, differing from informative news. Among sports writers, features tend to be either human-interest stories or personality profiles of sports figures. A profile presents information about a person, but it differs from
264-881: A list of the New York Times ' 50 best-ever articles. The story focuses on the struggles of Dasani and goes into significant detail about the challenges she encounters during her daily life including her sleeping by a rotten wall or having to use a mop bucket as a toilet. The article uses the human-interest format to draw sadness and sympathy from the reader and try to make them understand how difficult life can be for some people. Human-interest stories are also presented/ published in other forms of media such as digital media; consisting of websites and social media networks. Popular social media formats Facebook , Instagram and Twitter are becoming increasingly popular digital media forms where consumers are obtaining human-interest news. The prevalence of human-interest stories on social media
308-413: A narrative story, complete with a plot and story characters. It differs from a short story primarily in that the content is not fictional . Like literature, the feature story relies upon creativity and subjectivity to make an emotional connection with the readers. It may also highlight some universal aspect of human nature . Unlike straight news, the feature story serves the purpose of entertaining
352-438: A topic or issue that is of importance to the writer(s). Features follow the outlines of having a plot, a complication, if any, and a conclusion. Paragraph structures may vary. Unlike a newspaper article that is usually separated in a vertical grid pattern, features are separated into concise short paragraphs. The writer has control to convey their perspective, whether to make it angled in a certain direction or to be unbiased. It
396-450: A way that brings about interest, sympathy or motivation in the reader or viewer. Human-interest stories are a type of soft news . Human-interest stories may be "the story behind the story" about an event, organization, or otherwise faceless historical happening, such as about the life of an individual soldier during wartime, an interview with a survivor of a natural disaster , a random act of kindness , or profile of someone known for
440-502: Is a widely known American news program that has been adapted in other countries such as Australia and New Zealand. It is a program that often utilises investigative journalism to report its stories and is a producer of human interest stories. The program often features human-interest stories on prominent sporting figures, celebrities, controversial figures and criminals such as Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh . Within print media , human-interest stories and their content vary across
484-449: Is demonstrated through the popularity of the photo blog Humans of New York , a page which has over eighteen million Facebook likes and 10 million followers on Instagram. Humans of New York posts photos of New York citizens with an accompanying story about their life, and founder Brandon Stanton describes the purpose of the photo blog as being able "tell the story of the person right in front of me". The stories often evoke emotion from
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#1732855607175528-514: Is distinguished from other types of non-news by the quality of the writing. Stories should be memorable for their reporting, crafting, creativity, and economy of expression. Unlike news reports that mainly focus in factual evidence, feature stories tend to be subjective. Features vary in style, focus, and structure but overall, maintain an entertaining tone rather than strictly informative. A feature story differs from straight news reporting. It normally presents newsworthy events and information through
572-400: Is important to continuously acknowledge that the focus should also revolve around engaging the reader's imagination and portraying an engaging story. Of course, all while allowing the main statement of the feature to be understood. "Put people into the story, tell a story and let the reader see and hear for him or herself." - Benton Patterson 1986 The Pavilion describes this structure as
616-477: Is usually positive in nature, although they are also used to showcase opinions and concerns, as well sometimes being exposés or confrontational pieces. Human-interest reporting arose in the first decade of the 20th century. Originally devised by women, the journalists writing them were initially known as sob sisters because the stories were often written to elicit sympathy for their subjects. Within Western media,
660-533: The virality of a story, with the findings revealing that the human-interest frame increased Facebook shares by 33% compared to articles not utilising the human-interest perspective. The emotional response and interest the human-interest story draws from its consumers are reasons why the human-interest story is a widely utilised form of news media. The reception of the human-interest story has been mixed by both its audience and scholars alike. Studies from scholars reveal that when overused or given too much significance,
704-517: The American hero as an ordinary person with an inspiring story or profound success. The format of human-interest stories is not limited to just news segments during television reporting or articles in a newspaper. The human-interest frame is used in many different formats with no restricting time frame. The human-interest story is not just restricted to news reporting as there are documentary series and feature-length movies that follow
748-503: The Australian newspaper The Sydney Morning Herald this view is supported as the article's publisher Chloe Smethurst explains that the over exposure of human-interest stories have led real pieces of news to be discouraged or taken less seriously. However, The Sydney Morning Herald also puts forward the notion that the lighter moments of news can make a viewer's overall experience significantly more enjoyable and entertaining. This follows
792-486: The Commission to relax its image policy, allowing use in "legitimate promotion." Feature story A feature story is a piece of non-fiction writing about news covering a single topic in detail. A feature story is a type of soft news , news primarily focused on entertainment rather than a higher level of professionalism. The main subtypes are the news feature and the human-interest story . A feature story
836-662: The United States Senate race, as well as the fact that Governor Tom Corbett had endorsed Steve Welch in the contest. In 2004, it was the first news source to report in 2004 that Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter would face Pat Toomey in the Republican primary and that Joe Hoeffel would seek the Democratic nomination that year. On occasion, the website hosts original documents including political television and radio ads, campaign fliers, and controversial letters. The editors of
880-409: The delivery of the most important facts. A feature story can be in a news article, a newspaper, and even online. News stories are more so focuses on facts about and event whereas features stories analyze the significance of an event. The feature is one of the most wide-ranging categories of journalism appearing in more than just newspaper articles. A feature tells more than just a story. It emphasizes
924-430: The genre, said she took "considerable license with the facts that are given to me". The content of a human-interest story is not just limited to the reporting of one individual person, as they may feature a group of people, a specific culture, a pet or animal, a part of nature or an object. These reports may celebrate the successes of the person/topic in focus, or explore their troubles, hardships. The human-interest story
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#1732855607175968-654: The human-interest format derives from the stories' ability to put the consumer at the heart of a current event or personal story through making its content relatable to the viewer in order to draw their interest. Human-interest stories also have the role of diverting consumers from " hard news " as they often are used to amuse consumers and leave them with a light-hearted story. Human-interest stories are sometimes criticized as "soft" news, or manipulative, sensationalistic programming. Human-interest stories have been labelled as fictitious news reporting, used in an attempt to make certain content appear relevant to
1012-424: The human-interest frame. Human-interest stories are communicated through the mass media , and are presented in varying forms of broadcast media ; such as television programming, radio and film , digital media ; internet communication, websites , social media , and print media; newspapers , magazines and books . The wide consumption of the human-interest story has led to its prevalent reporting throughout
1056-447: The human-interest story can lose engagement from its viewers. But scholars such as journalism professor Perry Parks argue that walling off the human-interest story from serious news has led to an unhealthy split between emotionless "hard" news and affectively compelling "soft" news, and that in order for significant news to maintain its relevance journalists must reintroduce emotional elements to important news stories. In an article from
1100-605: The human-interest story gained notoriety when these profile pieces were published in the American magazine The New Yorker , which began circulation in 1925. Scholars of journalism have put forward that the origin of the human-interest story dates back further than this, as they cite the 1791 biography The Life of Samuel Johnson as a profile piece in which the author James Boswell utilised research, interviews and his own experiences to formulate his work, all of which are instruments of standard practice for modern journalists. The human-interest story has been used by
1144-466: The main mode. Feature stories are stories with only one feature, but are creative and true. While the distinction between published features and news is often clear, when approached conceptually there are few hard boundaries between the two. It is quite possible to write a feature story in the style of a news story. Nevertheless, features do tend to take a more narrative approach, perhaps using opening paragraphs as scene-setting narrative hooks instead of
1188-440: The mass media to give hope and inspire its consumers. Profile pieces on certain individuals and groups have inspired evolution in the public's perception of a "hero". Scholars Winfield and Hume explore how heroes have evolved from cultural figures such as Abraham Lincoln , to regular people through the reporting of the human-interest story. Stories such as Esquire ' s interview with September 11 survivor Michael Wright portray
1232-455: The mass media, and its content varies across these different forms of media, although it maintains the goal of drawing an emotional response from the consumer. Television reporting is the most popular form of news media and human-interest stories are common within news programming and are often used as a form of light-hearted news to end a broadcast after the "hard news" reporting. Televised human-interest stories often encompass interviews, and
1276-414: The reader and make them enjoy, sympathise or relate to the stories being told. It has been cited that the popularity of the human-interest story stems from a concept known as "emotional arousal", as the emotions of readers and viewers when consuming human-interest stories are heightened due to the stories purpose and contents. Dutch news media studies have discovered that the human-interest frame can impact
1320-518: The readers to identify complications and digest the resolution proposed by the writer. Feature stories end with a conclusion that does not necessarily persuade readers but rather reiterates the focus, giving them the entire experience of growth and gaining new knowledge throughout the entire piece. Human interest story In journalism , a human-interest story is a feature story that discusses people or pets in an emotional way. It presents people and their problems, concerns, or achievements in
1364-422: The readers, in addition to informing them. Although truthful and based on good facts, they are less objective than straight news. Unlike straight news, the subject of a feature story is usually not time sensitive . It generally features good news. Feature stories are usually written in an active style, with an emphasis on lively, entertaining prose. Some forms, such as a color story , uses description as
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1408-419: The reporting of information relevant to their topic, in order for the consumer to understand the situation and relate to its content. Within television reporting the human-interest frame can take many forms. It may be a short segment at the end of a news bulletin, a review of a current event from the human-interest frame or there may be entire reports dedicated to one particular human-interest story. 60 Minutes
1452-426: The run up to the 2012 primary, it received over 150,000 hits per month. The Columbia Journalism Review described PoliticsPA after the 2012 U.S. election as a news source that has "managed to break traditional journalistic boundaries and maintain a high level of quality, authority, and urgency." The Washington Post blog "The Fix" also named the website as the best Pennsylvania political blog in 2011. PoliticsPA
1496-521: The site along with lobbyist David Urban . The current owners maintained a similar structure, including using the "Sy Snyder" pseudonym. In 2005, the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission sent PoliticsPA.com a "cease and desist" letter warning against displaying an image of the Commission's historical marker commemorating Simon Snyder , which was protected as a federal trademark . State Representative Mike Veon successfully lobbied
1540-703: The site had become a popular fixture among political junkies and insiders, focusing on detailed political minutiae and "scuttlebutt." In spite of the small size of this audience, PoliticsPA.com became one of the "most influential forces in state political circles." Observers have compared it to the Drudge Report and subscription-based news sites the National Journal's The Hotline and Capitolwire . The website grew from 11,000 hits per month at its launch on October 22, 2001, to almost 40,000 hits per month in April 2004. In
1584-498: The society in which their story is relevant. Scholars have detailed how there are cases where human-interest stories have "increased the attribution of responsibility to the government". This occurs when a piece of human-interest news generates a substantial public response which may give the topic further exposure or cause it to go viral. Once this occurs, the person, group or agenda of the news story may be heavily supported, which may incite company or government action, depending on whom
1628-459: The story in the same manner as a newspaper and are often the subject to journalistic manipulation. Newspaper publishers of significant notoriety such as The New York Times utilize the human-interest format in their works. An article titled "Invisible Child", written by Pulitzer Prize -winning journalist Andrea Elliott , concerned a homeless 11-year-old girl who lives in New York, and is listed in
1672-439: The surrounding environment you are in right now. Of course, many ideas become overlooked. What someone sees as ordinary or may consider a basic topic, may have potential to becoming a feature story. All of which depends on the lens and viewpoint the writer looks through. Yet, the viewpoint a writer may have does have to be narrowed down, allowing for specification. Characteristics that attribute to feature stories include exploring
1716-572: The topic is targeting. Craig Foster , a former Australian footballer and analyst for the Special Broadcasting Service, used the human-interest frame to advocate for Bahraini footballer Hakeem al-Araibi , an Australian political refugee who was detained in Thailand in 2018 as a result of an Interpol red notice. Foster, with the support of others, became an advocate for al-Araibi's story and campaigned for his freedom through
1760-401: The traditional view that the human-interest stories' purpose is to take the audience's attention away from the "hard news" supplied by the reporting of current events and often provide a light-hearted segment for the consumer to enjoy towards the end of a news bulletin or within a newspaper. Human-interest stories and the emotional response they receive from consumers can often have an impact on
1804-512: The variety of print mediums. They are commonly in the form of newspaper articles, in which the author details the story of a person/topic of focus through an interview, photographs and information. The author's opinion on the topic is often included in order for the consumer to respond in a similar manner. Human-interest stories may also take the form of opinion columns or editorial pieces within newspapers. Human-interest stories are also published in magazines and tabloids which often do not detail
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1848-402: The viewer or reader. Human-interest stories are regarded by some scholars as a form of journalistic manipulation or propaganda , often published with the intention of boosting viewership ratings or attracting higher amounts of sales and revenue. Major human-interest stories are presented with a view to entertain the readers or viewers while informing them. Terry Morris , an early proponent of
1892-467: The website operate under the pseudonym "Sy Snyder," a nod to the former Pennsylvania Governor Simon Snyder Terry Madonna , professor at Franklin and Marshall College , said in 2003 that the level of expertise demonstrated on the site implies that "Sy Snyder" must be a reporter, a politician or a consultant. Specific speculation ranges from political reporters Pete DeCoursey and Charlie Thompson to former State Representative Tom Druce . By 2003,
1936-594: Was founded on October 22, 2001. The website was created by the Publius Group, a New Jersey –based media organization which, at the time. operated five similar state-based political websites, including PoliticsNJ, PoliticsVT, and PoliticsNY. Ceisler Jubelirer , a Pennsylvania-based media relations group, including Larry Ceisler and Jeff Jubelirer , purchased the website from the Publius Group in January 2007. Ceisler Jubelirer separated in 2010 and currently share ownership of
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