Full article: "Junior MasterChef is raising a crop of foodie kids" in Courier Mail
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| Source: Channel 10 |
This is a slightly coloured news story, reporting the potential effects Junior MasterChef has on the food trend of Australia.
The article is of typical length of a news story - 540 words – and with a short interesting intro about the potential changing taste of Australian kids. I think the intro captures the whole idea of the article, so I’d like to quote it here: “Forget fish fingers and spag bol for your children’s dinners, now it’s macadamia-crusted snapper and goats cheese ravioli on the menu.”
In terms of timeliness, significance and oddity, this news article nailed it. Junior MasterChef has just started, with an astonishing 2.2 million viewers for its first episode, and the buzz is likely to accelerate as the competition gets keener. The show obviously captures the attention of the whole nation and given our aggravating obesity problem and prevalent fast-food culture, the show brings about a lot of implications for people to consider.
For this article, Tucker-Evans did a pretty good job of balancing out opinions from different perspectives. The writer quoted four sources: fine-dinning restaurateur, Matt Moran, celebrity cook, Donna Hay, social commentator, Bernard Salt, and the show’s judge, Gary Mehigan. All of them provided different perspectives on what the show implies or triggers in the broader society.
To take the story to the next level, I suggest finding an angle that’s less obvious. The angle the writer used for this news story is fine. But to make it more interesting (probably for another story of the show later on), I will look into the lives of these Junior MCs and their families. The kids’ upbringings will provide more insights into how our nation should raise our next generation.
I am utterly blown away by how talented and passionate these kids are. Wouldn’t it be interesting to know the stories behind them?
A different style of critique that differs from your last post but very informative. I think you have made some great observations regarding some of the news values the article addresses.
ReplyDeleteThe news angle you suggested would be quite interesting and I think it could even work as a feature. I'm curious to know what is fuelling their passion etc. It's quite lovely to see that kids as young as they are, are getting involved and are encouraged by their parents.
I remember when I was little, I was told to stay away from the kitchen :(
I agree with Farah.
ReplyDeleteI would love to pick away at these budding cordon bleu chefs to see what is behind their motivation to cook? what are they blending out and what smells are they taking in?
Still , if they manage to out cook me i will cry!
I appreciate your idea.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to know the background of these kids and their family as well.
Why they have so much passion to do that? And Do their parents want them to participate in this activity or just because they like cooking?
Are they cook for fun or any other reasons?
Maybe the journalist can find a cooking talent by digging the behind stories from this participants. That would be great~
Hi Ariel,
ReplyDeleteGreat blog! I agree with what everyone has said, and I like your suggestion - it would be interesting to find out what is triggering or motivating these young contestants to take part in the show and what is the driving force behind their passion for cooking.
"The kids’upbringings will provide more insights into how our nation should raise our next generation" - I definitely agree with you here, particularly with the growing prevalence of childhood obesity in Australia - learning about these kid's upbringings could potentially curb the rising rate of obesity for future generations.
I agree with you, a small insight into the childrens motivation would have brought the story to life. Even a small video of them describing their love of food or how they fell into it would have been interesting.
ReplyDelete