Differences Between Print and Online Articles

Today we looked at the differences between print and online formats with the St. Louis Dispatch article "Vendors Cash in on the Rally Squirrel."

A bit of comparing and contrasting shows that the online version is richer in media. The paper includes only two pictures, while the online version includes five. Also, the web version allows readers to communicate with the writer, as well as, see her twitter feed.

In comparing the writing styles, we see that the online version was taken from the paper verbatim. Both are written in inverted pyramid style and are in the active voice.

As stated before, the online version includes sidebars that allow users to communicate with the writer and view her tweets.

The news is not actionable because there is no call to action, it is simply a feature story about the lack of copyright laws on the "rally squirrel."

There are no external links to other information that is related to the story.

One final difference is that the online version has included an editor's note. The editor realized that they  had given the wrong web address in the print version and wanted to set the record straight.