Media Blog #2

Today’s victims of comparison come from across the globe

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) holds its reputation as the oldest news source. A relatively spare webpage features a single top headline, with a few other popular current links to follow. This layout does not litter the page with many ledes or videos. Though this can benefit the reader by narrowing the focus, it also takes more clicks to get to another subtopic.

The most interesting part of BBC’s webpage is the power that it gives its reader to modify what they see on their homepage. The sports column can be replaced with the opinion section, and if food features are deemed more important to a reader than world news, the reader has the privilege of switching things around.

The Times of India ranks about 8th in the world for readership, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. Looking slightly reminiscent of our beloved New York Times, the Indian version also has a layout consisting primarily of headlines and ledes. Pictures and videos are front and center, but not overbearing. The site is easy to navigate as it is a familiar format. Substantial amounts of stories featured on the homepage allow for readers to see many different topics at a mere glance.


Featured story subjects differ on each news source. The New York Times features a story on a journalist’s visit to Dubai, and the growing economy. This article includes a plethora of pictures and videos, not just telling about the new structures and establishments, but showing.

Though the Times of India does not feature this same story, it does boast of the growth of the Indian economy through the duration of July to September this year. The economy has been boosted by 7.9% percent, according to the Times of India, though the upcoming monsoon season is expected to lower this number slightly. This high percentage has been attributed to stimulus packages that the government has put together.



BBC has nothing on economic status of the eastern countries, but rather, focuses more on Obama’s recent decision to send more troops into Afghanistan. BBC uses “American news sources” as a source, and discusses the response that Prime Minister Gordon Brown has on the situation. Brown has promised to have 500 British soldiers accompany the 30,000 American troops that Obama is sending over.


NYT’s headline story is the same topic. Though the story mentions the 500 British troops, the story focuses more on the unwillingness of the French to send soldiers over as well. The NYT edition of this story also covers other important questions, such as why Obama wishes to send more troops over, and reactions from many important political world figures.


Both BBC and NYT have options to email the article to a friend, and both ledes are straightforward.