First look at media coverage on Ireland

Looking at multiple new stories covered by BBC News my first reaction of Ireland and the topics being covered was a very violent outlook. I am sure that many people who look at the United States news coverage it can come off as violent as well because of the amount of crime in our nation. However, the most recent stories that were being covered in Northern Ireland had to do with gang attacks, prisons, gun threats, a sword being used in a robbery and other crime-based stories.

The first article I read was about a teenager being attacked by a gang,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/8490832.stm
This story caught my attention because in the United States we do not hear about gangs as much as in the U.K. this may be a stereotype but in my opinion, I would say people associate gangs with the U.K. much more than gangs with the U.S. After reading the short article I felt I was not informed about the actual incident at all. The coverage was very broad and lacked any detail and I was disappointed with that.

Another article I read was about a businessman getting shot in his own shop. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/foyle_and_west/8487525.stm
The news coverage on things that take place in Ireland seems to being almost like a wanted poster. At the end of the article it showed that the police did not yet find the person who shot the businessman but to me it seems kind of odd that they were asking the public to talk to the police if they have any information.

Overall my first impression of news media from Ireland leaves me unimpressed. I feel as if the popular stories being covered are of interest to the people but barely even touch upon the actual story and issue that is supposed to be covered in the article. I am interested to see what stories other newspapers and news websites have covered and how they have been portrayed.