Two Sides to Every Story

Like most people, I watched the Toronto/Boston hockey game last night.  It’s slim pickings on the tube now that Montreal has been eliminated.

This morning, I decided to take a look at the way that the story was covered.

From Boston

• Game 7 win was the Bruins’ miracle on ice
• Bruins rally, stun Leafs 5-4 in OT in Game 7
• Bruins win Game 7 in OT after 
wild rally

From Toronto

• Maple Leafs blow lead to Bruins, lose Game 7 in overtime
• Toronto Maple Leafs season choked away in Game 7: Cox
  
• Meltdown in Beantown sees Maple Leafs eliminated in overtime of Game 7

Were these reporters watching the same game?  I thought this would be a terrific exercise in Media Literacy.

• Can you tell anything from the headlines?
• Are any of the articles going to be objective?
• If you were a sports writer, how would you have written the story?

We often talk about perspective in reporting; I can’t think of a better way to show that you can’t rely on a single source for balanced, objective news.  Sports really amplifies the message being delivered.

Meanwhile in Montreal, buried in the sports section…

• Leafs collapse sees Bruins move on
  Toronto surrenders three-goal, third-period lead in Game 7 OT loss

Oh, and the “Related Articles” adds even more content!

Related articles

• Bruins Score Twice in Final Moments of Game 7 to Force Overtime Against Maple Leafs (Video) (nesn.com)
• Bruins Defeat Maple Leafs In Overtime Of Game 7 (ridethepine.com)
• Discuss: Bruins’ incredible comeback pushes them past Toronto (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
• Bruins vs Leafs- Game Seven Preview (sidelinebanter.com)
• Maple Leafs vs. Bruins Game 7 recap: Boston eliminates Toronto (sbnation.com)
• Bruins’ comeback epic in many respects (espn.go.com)
• Increased police presence in downtown Toronto for Maple Leafs Game 7 (metronews.ca)
• Toronto Sun Cover Proclaims ‘The Choke’s on Us’ After Maple Leafs Blow Three-Goal Lead Against Bruins (Photo) (nesn.com)
• Bruins rally by Leafs, win series (bangordailynews.com)
• Bruins’ miracle comeback stuns Leafs in Game 7 (nhl.si.com)