ANALYSIS OF TWEET BY DYMOND24

I disagree that the story Dymond tweeted is unbalanced. The article, which was published by the Washington Post, is balanced because the article presents all sides of the story equally. The focus of the story is the victim's family and children and repercussions they will all face. The author explains how Caleb Crew changed his story from not guilty to guilty, offers an explanation for why he committed the crime and states his sentence.

Source: Washington Post

What makes this story unbalanced? The author provides information about both the victim and the perpetrator, who happen to be a husband and a wife. The story covers their volatile history and even explains how Andrea Crew had recently dropped domestic abuse charges against her husband, not long before he killed her. The timeline of events is clear. Images of Crew's attorney's reactions at court are engrained in the audience's brain. The article ends with a future-action kicker explaining the effect this incident will have on their couple's children.

Whats the News?
The article has the news qualities of human interest and proximity. Firstly, murder almost always includes human interest. We see this from the comments section below the article. People share the reactions to the article; these reactions include relating to the perpetrator's "temper" and sympathizing with the victim and her family. The story has proximity because the crime was committed in Fairfax, Virginia. Crew's sentencing is scheduled to be held on January 9 in Fairfax, Virginia.

Try Tweeting Something Less Newsy
While the story Dymond posted would be classified as hard news, here's an example of a feature news story. This story does not have any real news qualities, except that it is unique to a specific audience niche. This article tells a story of two collaborators who met on an "artistic blind date." The article goes on to list details about their shows. The tweet Dymond could write about this article could be something along the lines of "@aaronposner and @lauraeason may have met in college and are receiving recognition for their artistic masterpieces. http://wapo.st/1wdkbeF"