MA Thesis: Mapping Malala by Monica Alisse

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Designing the News A Thesis By Monica Alisse

Information Design Design Academy of Eindhoven Joost Grootens June, 2013

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Designing the News Monica Alisse

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Colophon Working Date From The Fall of 2012 to The Spring of 2013 Paper: Printing paper 80 g A4 Size of Book 1024 x 768 px (36 x 27 cm.) Binding of Book: Short-edge binding Type Face, Size (Leading) Arial Family 18 pt. (15.5), 12 pt. (15.5), 10 pt. (12.9) Colours Total 4 colours (CMYK %): (0 - 0 - 0 - 100), (0 - 0 - 0 - 50), (100 -90 - 10 - 0), (0 - 100 - 0 - 0), (100 - 0 - 0 - 0) Writing and Citing Sources Style: Purdue OWL: APA Formatting and Styling Guide ÂŠ Monica Alisse 2013 All Rights Reserved

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Contents 1. Introduction www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/6 I am grounded by truth. As an individual and designer I have focused throughout my profession to find meaning in everything and embrace the process. 2. Defining the News www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/9 When presenting my proposed thesis topic in September I initially had a vision of what the news was to me. 3. Online Trends, Personalisation and Google www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/11 By collecting a variety of online articles, using Google search engine as the default search tool was intended to examine the links it gave to news articles about Malala. 4. Reporting the Reports of Day One www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/13 Collecting a variety of online articles, news reports, and blogs from Google for a period of 100 days was enough to come up with the definition of the role of news. 5. Empty Gaps www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/15 Distributing news from its origin is similar to Chinese whispers, or the “telephone” game. a. The Portrayal of Pakistan b. The Inconsistent Portrayal of Malala Yousafzai Over Time c. Conspiracy Theories and Irrelevant Connections 6. The Role of Authoritarian Figures www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/20 Several of the people discussed in the previous chapter, such as the Jamaat-e-Islami and Lord Ahmed are authoritarian figures responsible for diverting the story of Malala.

a. Opinion Leaders and the Two-Step Flow Theory b. Political Figures Condemning Malala’s Attack c. Celebrity Figures 7. Reasoning With the Inaccuracy www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/24 Partisan divide is a technique to add more opinion and criticism in the news. a. Partisan Bias b. Ideology and Glittering Generalities c. Self-Service and Participation 8. Designing Solutions, Rather than Stating the Problem www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/26 Obviously, the tool cannot make decisions for the user and say that the source is unreliable, but it entices users with questions about word us age and has them desire to do the research themselves. a. Exhibition Space b. The Online News Tool 9. Conclusion: The Dissecting Process www.thesis.designing_news.com/text/28 The process to making meaning behind this chaotic compilation of news articles and data had me map my findings along the way. These findings are a result of dissecting moments that stood out and supported the causes and effects of news and media communication. 10. Works Cited www.thesis.designing_news.com/works_cited/29 11. Image Library www.thesis.designing_news.com/images/34

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1. Introduction I am grounded by truth. As an individual and designer I have focused throughout my profession to find meaning in everything and embrace the process. By making meaning I usually expect to share with my audience the experience itself and hand them a conclusion. However, throughout this process of seeking truth and reason, I realised that no conclusion can be handed, for the beauty is for the audience to realise they have their own conclusions and responses. But what causes them to come up with these conclusions? The concept behind this thesis is that there are multiple truths in our reality and we all fall into the same trap of affirming what is truth by the information we consume. This thesis is composed of my findings and the documentation of my research. The more information I found, the more reflections I made. There were also moments of withdrawal when attempting to make linear steps. Ideas would surface again when attempting to seek relevance and connectivity. Some succeeded and others had to be discarded. Applied knowledge becomes a belief, a truth and a linear repetition of that belief is a comfort. If new ideas clash with our beliefs the feeling may be bewildering and uncomfortable. I am naturally mirroring visually and verbally the process of reflecting upon an overload of data supporting multiple theories. Sets of theories show the complexity of finding a solution or the attempt to simplify what is there. As I have discovered, we need to accept we live in a complex world with diverse networks of thought; those thoughts may match our own, or they may not. We should not be the fly trapped in one web of thought. We do not need to follow the thoughts, for we may not rely on them. If we have been branded to one web of thought, not all the information supporting it may necessarily be correct, and we become tricked into believing it is. Compiling my findings together present that I do not have a belief, but ideas and proposed solutions for this complexity that is ongoing, growing and cannot be controlled. I know what is there and the tools used for creating multiple sets of realities that become digested as a neutral commodity. I investigated the news platform. It appears as neutral, and is disconnected from subjectivity. I looked into the role of news and noticed the inconsistency in seeing all these realities compiled, which confused me at first,

Noun 1. The quality or state of being true: “the truth of her accusation”. 2. That which is true or in accordance with fact or reality: “tell me the truth”. Synonyms sooth - verity - reality - fact - veracity fidelity More info - Wikipedia - Dictionary.com - Answers.com Merriam-Webster

Noun A thing used in an occupation or pursuit Verb Impress a design on (leather).

More info - Wikipedia - Dictionary.com - Answers.com Merriam-Webster

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but had me realise that I cannot show a truth. In doing this, I researched on one story and tracked how it evolved to support my investigation.

MALALA YOUSAFZAI A girl shot by militants in the Swat valley, the northern region of Pakistan. See page 57, 58

2. DEFINING THE NEWS

I mapped Malala Yousafzai’s story, in which I have attempted to analyse the roots of where a story or news report comes from and why the story gets targeted to support various reactions. Malala is a girl who was shot by militants in the northern region of Pakistan. The reason behind choosing this story is its notable attraction to an American audience, due to news topics and general trends that are key to cultural ideals: human rights, democracy, feminism, extremism, and terrorist threats. I then analysed how these authors boost believability and reliability in their writings about Malala. It is important to note that this research only covers the relationship between the United States reaction and those of Pakistan because of my familiarity to American news corporations. I also researched reports and made my own surveys to understand how the news has changed over time; if it is genuinely seen as a reliable source, and what type of news source justifies their knowledge.

When presenting my proposed thesis topic in September I initially had a vision of what the news was to me.

My thesis is divided into nine chapters. The second chapter focuses on my original thoughts towards the news--its importance and flaws. Why is it so dependable? How does it influence patterns of behaviour, the formulation of a society, the way we connect to the outside world, or business and the market?

4. REPORTING THE REPORTSOF DAY ONE

The third chapter explains the results of using Google search engine as my tool to gather news information. I discuss how online news is causal to certain changes of its role, and how the growth of distribution gives the reader presence, from being news consumers, to news participants. Finally, I track word repetition, quoting and distribution, and discuss how trends begin to boost the inconsistency of Malala’s story. The fourth chapter analyses reports I have collected on the day of Malala’s shooting. I discuss my confusion towards reading reliable reports. I question the reasons behind the distortion, attempting to find answers with data and contacting the reporters responsible for the online publication.

See page 6

3. ONLINE TRENDS, PERSONALISATION AND GOOGLE By collecting a variety of online articles, using Google... See page 11

Collecting a variety of online articles, news reports,... See page 13

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The fifth chapter discusses why Malala’s story has become a timeless subject, making her shooting appear as a severe matter, victimising diversity. Throughout time, Malala’s portrayal and image evolves. Also, readers and more independent bloggers compare her story to irrelevant stories. Conspiracy theories also come up over time, making Malala appear as a conspiracy herself. The sixth chapter discusses how authoritarian figures in Malala’s case come into play: political figures, celebrities, and opinion leaders, recognised from Two-Step-Flow Theory and their opinions vastly diffused on Twitter. The seventh chapter examines the reason behind all these distortions: Partisan bias, ideology, glittering generalities, self-service and participation Although explained separately, I stress that these elements also depend on each other to boost and strengthen believability. The last chapter exhibits my findings and presents my final designs. The first design is one wall with animated graphics and tiny videos. The audience has a choice to enter the small-scaled world of perception or manipulation. Some videos are more devoted to collecting the facts, other use the facts to its own benefit by applying the elements of distortion described in the previous chapter. The second design supports the fact that I cannot find a truth, but I can design a solution that aims at guiding people to become more critical thinkers and questioners about the online news they consume. The tool is also attempted for professional news organisations to engage in considering guidelines for themselves to improve as writers. I aim to show that the role of news and media have been simplified forms of retrieving factual information, avoiding as much rumour and superstition as possible. However, it is still inconsistent due to the now granted amplification of information and its stress to maintain the validity of a selection of ideologies supporting societal behaviour. It instead should have us draw more questions about why it is depended on, or simply have us understand that what is put in print is not necessarily something that is set in stone. Perhaps we should question its definition altogether as being a battle over the ownership of selective voices validated by state and public to be heard and sold.

5. EMPTY GAPS Distributing news from its origin is similar to Chinese whispers, or the “telephone” game. See page 15

6. THE ROLE OF AUTHORITARIAN FIGURES ...Jamaat-e-Islami and Lord Ahmed are authoritarian figures responsible for diverting the story of Malala. See page 20

7. REASONING WITH THE INACCURACY Partisan divide is a technique to add more opinion and criticism in the news. See page 24

8. DESIGNING SOLUTIONS, RATHER THAN STATING THE PROBLEM Obviously, the tool cannot make decisions for the user and say that the source is unreliable, but it entices users with questions about word usage and has them desire to do the research themselves. See page 26