“An Oregon farm stay gives travelers a peek into rural life” by Lynn Jacobson, The Seattle Times

http://seattletimes.com/html/travel/2019330636_troregonfarmstay07.html

The title did not necesseraly appeal to me but the lead and the illustration did the work. Next to the article you have a picture of two children stroking an adorable donkey. And this is also how you enter the story: “Paco is the kind of guy who makes friends easily.” After a few sentences you realize she is talking about the donkey on the picture. The transitions within the first paragraphs are really good, you go from this sweet donkey into the Oregon farm, and next into the broader topic, the trend “Farm Stays”. So, with the title and that you have a really precise idea of where the story is going.

The article is well structured, very logical, after this introduction you are given details about the farm, how it works, how it was founded and large descriptions of the place. Secondly she comes back to the broader topic and talks about this phenomenon, explaining to the reader when, where, how you can find these places. I particularly appreciated the balance between the specific angle, namely the Oregon farm she’s talking about and the bigger picture the “agritourism”. The conclusion brings another dimension, Jacobson tries to show what this kind of experience can bring you, appealing to the reader’s feelings.

I thought it was a compelling story because there are plenty of details that give the story more reality. The descriptions bring a good overview of the farm and its surroundings. And at the same time this is not only this specific farm, the second part of the article is about the background context. There is no dialogue but Jacobson use direct quotes and paraphrases to illustrate the story. There are plenty of anecdotes, from when the journalist spent time at the farm, the others are from memories of the farmer. Jacobson and the farmer are the only sources, maybe she could have interviewed somebody else who stayed at the farm, maybe she did but chose not to incorporate that in the story. In any case I thought this article was well-structured and well-written.

“Creating Space: Yoga” by Randi Bjornstad, The Register-Guard

http://www.registerguard.com/web/living/lifestyles/29253722-41/yoga-barkhas-chi-tai-center.html.csp

The title and the lead are a little misleading for me. The title implies that the story is going to be about a local practioner’s place (Yoga Balaam Sanctuary), and than the lead implies that the article will also focus on the general trend of growing yoga in this community. It might be a little harsh but, I don’t think the journalist achieve either of the two goals.

I see what the journalist is trying to say but I am not sure he chose the right form of article to express it. The structure is strange, it goes back-and-forth, it’s a little hard to follow. Once you are finished with the article you don’t understand if it was supposed to be a profile story about this practioner or a story about a trend with a specific insight. And the title said it was about the place!

Although you have background context at the beginning of the article, it lacks an appropriate description of the place. Instead we are given long paragraphs about the practioner’s life. There are interesting anecdotes, “turning points” in his life but like I said, the article is supposed to be about the place, and this comes late in the paragraph order. The local practioner is the only source, until the very end of the article where a student is quoted. Except if you are a yoga fan, you might stop reading because you don’t understand where the story is going.

Laetitia Béraud.