If you have ever been in a car searching for a radio station to listen to on the ride, you have probably heard of NPR or at least your local KERA channel. NPR or National Public Radio is a radio channel that provides all sorts of content from talk shows to game shows to podcasts to local, national, and even international news. They operate with the goals of “[connecting] with millions of Americans on the air, online, and in-person to explore the news” and broadcasting diverse news to combat “historic and present-day exclusion”(Source 3). With this in mind, how do they convey the feelings and lessons they hope to reach the millions through their content?
Unlike other news sources, NPR primarily broadcasts through the radio and by sharing news on its website. However, most news content they produce will be found on their website. If we look at one of their most recent posts, we can see some similarities between NPR and other media companies such as CNN, but content-wise, they differ greatly. NPR, in contrast to other news sources, appeals much more to people who are more left-leaning or independent. For example, the approach they took towards the crisis in Gaza. They used much more polarizing words such as “terrorism” and chose not to euphemize references to the death toll of Palestinians like when they mentioned “dead children and desperate hungry people” (Source 2). By doing so, they evoke feelings of displeasure and sadness within their audience. You can even see it in some of their titles such as “Trump tries out attack lines on Kamala Harris as her campaign heats up.” by claiming Donald Trump is attacking Kamala Harris, they convince their audience to believe Trump is in the wrong and using cheap tricks to get people to view his opponent as lesser than (Source 1). Ultimately, through the use of harsh language and highlighting the negative aspects of challenging topics, NPR convinces readers to support more progressive reforms and politics-wise, shapes people to be more democratic.
Sources: https://www.npr.org/2024/07/24/g-s1-13239/trump-rally-kamala-harris-2024-election, https://www.npr.org/2024/07/25/nx-s1-5048285/harris-gaza-war, https://www.npr.org/about/
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