Writing entails giving information about a certain issue in the society or what people should know about. As such, it is a broad category that is divided into various genres. Each genre of writing has its unique characteristics and approach that makes it distinct from other genres. Not all genres employ similar techniques, meaning that one should first understand the basic requirements before they decide to write about something. Whereas some genres strictly follow formal writing rules, other genres entail a ‘freestyle’ nature and are less strict on grammar and language technicality (Beck et al. 66). Writing a scientific research paper, for instance, is very different from writing poetry. Similarly, writing a speech entails a different approach from writing a tabloid as a source f information. At times, the audience that one seeks to address determines the rules that should be followed.
All in all, various writing genres require that one be adequately informed about the rules so as to ensure they stay relevant. Furthermore, the constant generational change dictates that writers should have a grasp about their genres if they want to stay relevant to the audiences (Beck et al. 81). This paper analyzes the genre of writing tabloid articles such as the people magazine. In doing so, I seek to give an overview on how this genre has developed and changed over time. Through this information, it is easy for one to have a deep understanding on this genre as a source of information. The emergence of the internet has promoted the usage of online mechanisms of getting information. Through more use of social media, tabloids have gained popularity. This calls for writers to understand on the various techniques required to write in this genre.
Unlike other genres, the tabloid genre puts more emphasis on trending stories. These may include gossip columns, astrology, crime stories, live of celebrities in the society, sports personalities and related news. Essentially, the tabloid genre involves attracting traffic to a given site; hence the stories written on are very attractive to the audience (McNeill, 14). In writing on this genre, a writer ought o have a sense of connection to the audience in order to understand what they should write. In most cases, the tabloid genre of writing is risky. There are several cases where celebrities and other victims have sued the tabloids for defamation and related suits. The authenticity of tabloid information is always not guaranteed, meaning that it is difficult to understand whether to take the information as the reality or to treat it with contempt (Lehrmann, 16). There is danger in trying to write a tabloid without connecting with the target audience. Unattractive stories in tabloids end up demoralizing readers who opt to get news through alternative sources.
Writing tabloids does not require a deep understanding of the formal writing skills. What one requires in order to be a favorite is creativity and coming up with stories that are attractive. When writing this, the rules of writing such as punctuation, sentence structure, and fragmentation are always not taken into question. Use of slang is also allowed as much as the audience can connect with it and understand what is being communicated. This liberalism, as compared to the traditionally strict nature of reporting news following writing rules to the letter has attracted more people to appreciating tabloids. One of the disadvantages of tabloids is that they do not offer a perfect platform for students to learn. By ignoring writing rules, the information presented to potential readers may corrupt their mind. Eventually, students may forget to follow the skills they are taught in class.
The writer should make sure they give catchy headings to their writing. In practice, it is not necessary that these headlines rhyme with the information that is given by the writer. The subject truth needs not to match the headline, as long as the two relate to some extent. A good example of this is where he writer gives the headline ‘Player A wants to move away from his team’; only for the subject matter of the story to state that they wanted their salaries to be reviewed. By employing this tactic, the writer would succeed to attract traffic to the source, hence gaining more popularity than the counterparts. It is also common that a writer in this genre should twist sentences to convince the audience (Lehrmann, 66). This skill is common in cases where the writer interviews an individual about certain aspect. Rather than directly restate what the interviewee stated, a tabloid writer should explain the response and distort some information in order for it to look attractive. It is however important that the writer be careful to avoid legal consequences.
Traditionally, tabloid writing entailed giving the real information on the ground for the audience. Over time, this has changed, and the common practice is to address issues that are sensitive in the society. Rather than concentrating on the important information, the writer should try to elaborate sensational aspects of the story. Such insights are highly welcomed by the audience, hence the need to understand what the society wants to hear about. It is also a common that when writing a tabloid, one should always give hanging headlines that are attractive (Lehrmann, 90). Although it is possible for the write to give a short and precise headline that communicates the story, writing tabloids entails keeping the audience in suspense. For instance, one may decide to go with the headline ‘A New-York based celebrity caught cheating on his wife’, instead of the short and precise headline such as ‘Tyga caught cheating up on his wife’. The essence of giving hanging headlines is to invite the audience to read the tabloid in order to understand who the celebrity in question is and what exactly happened. This trick is very common.
Social sites such a twitter and facebook have also promoted the development of tabloids. Traditionally, people trusted the hard copies such as magazines and newspaper as the genuine sources f information. However, these sources have proved to be expensive and have unlimited cover. With the emergence of the internet, sharing of information has become easy ad easily accessible. Because tablets can find their way into the social platforms, their effectiveness cannot be questioned. Most tabloids, including people magazine have realized the impact that celebrities have in social media, hence have written stories on these celebrities to attract the audience. Because of the high competition in tabloids, it is essential that the writer goes for the most attractive information so as to attract more clients (Lehrmann, 23).
The development of tabloid writing as a genre was facilitated by the development in technology, ensuring that more and more people can access the internet. Rather than the hard copies, tabloid writers depend on the internet to sell their information. Although this genre is gaining popularity, there is a great risk in that more and more people are joining the platform. Because of this, competition for sensitive information is high, prompting other writers to make false allegations for their papers to sell (Lehrmann, 29). With the constant change of the society, tabloid writing has constantly changed to meet the needs of the audience. One weakness of tabloids is the generalization of vague information, making it an unsuitable source of information. The liberality of writing tabloids also means that the source f information should not be trusted as one may end up being misguided. All in all, writing tabloids is supposed to be fun, and reading such information should be to one’s discretion.
Works Cited
Beck, Sarah W., and Jill V. Jeffery. "Genres of High-stakes Writing Assessments and the Construct of Writing Competence." Assessing Writing: 60-79. Print.
Lehrmann, Ulrik. "Tabloid Crime Journalism: Writing on the Edge of Existence." Northern Lights (2012). Print.
Mcneill, Laurie. "Editorial: Labelling Our Selves: Genres and Life Writing." Life Writing: 7-18. Print.
Watson, Tom. "Inquiring Minds Want to Write: Tabloid Magazines in Writing Class." Language Arts Journal of Michigan (1994). Print.
