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Hiding the synopsis implies that the article is meant to be enjoyed as a narrative, and is not an urgent warning. Breaking news and other urgent matters ("Men w
by kenning 9y ago
Hiding the synopsis implies that the article is meant to be enjoyed as a narrative, and is not an urgent warning. Breaking news and other urgent matters ("Men walk on the moon", "Nixon resigns," "Net Neutrality abolished") have the synopsis clearly stated at the top. Do those count as "fast food?"
- logfromblammo 9y agoJournalism style is supposed to be "inverted pyramid", such that all the sentences are ordered by decreasing importance to the audience. If you stop reading in the middle of the article, you only lose some of the details. It is a separate skill from writing an engaging narrative that builds up to a dramatic resolution. It is also a separate skill to know what style is most appropriate for your audience. I think most people casually browsing news on the web would prefer journalistic style to narrative style. But the ones who like narrative might also be willing to pay more for it.
- dredmorbius 9y agoYou can provide both. By way of analogy: a journey is in part about arriving at the (or a) destination, but it's also about the journey itself. Revealing the destination at the beginning, if it is in fact known, does not of necessity detract from the journey. And if an article is in fact about arriving at some conclusion, then, as a courtesy to the reader who is trying to determine how to allocate their own limited attention, providing some indication of where this particular journey ends may prove worthwhile. On the basis of the discussion here and criticisms of this particular article voiced, I'm about to close this particular HN tab and move on to others that may be vaguely more interesting and/or considerate of my attention.