Evaluation of Editorial Articles

     An editorial is an article that is written by an author for a news publication. Editorials follow the same pattern of other articles or pieces of writing which include an introduction, body, and conclusion. This type of writing appeals to Kairos, where the timing is an important aspect. Editorials are not lengthy, they normally consist of around 500 words. Sometimes editorials have a personal aspect, but do not include content written in first person. Editorials address an issue, and they attempt to; explain an issue, criticize an issue, persuade an audience, or praise an issue. There is somewhat of a structure that editorial pieces follow. The process, again, is similar to other works of writing; they address an issue, present opinions or facts, present opposing opinions or facts, use examples to gain credibility, and conclude. (http://www.geneseo.edu/~bennett/EdWrite.htm)

     The topic of oceanic plastic pollutants that I have been researching this semester, has been researched and written on for many years. An editorial piece that I found on that topic was posted by the New York Times’ website. “Notes From thePlasticene Epoch, From Ocean to Beach, Tons of Plastic Pollution” written by The Editorial Board, was posted on June 14, 2014.

     This article addressed the issue of plastic waste that is ending up in the ocean and on surrounding beaches. It mentioned a common misconception regarding “floating islands of trash”, but clarified that the ‘islands’ are “… more like vast, soupy concentrations of flotsam, some of it large, some tiny, all indigestible, sickening and killing fish, birds, whales and turtles.” They also went on to show the readers about the amount of trash that one organization removed from the ocean. “They collected 1,312 pounds of trash…” which included mostly plastic waste, and could have been prevented if more recycling programs had been implemented. 

     This article does a good job of making the issues of oceanic pollution relevant, as well as clarifying some misconceptions regarding the issue itself. This article was short, as many editorial articles are, but it was very effective. It appealed to Kairos, because it was urging the readers to become more involved in recycling programs, and it offered information about another cleanup that was going to be happening within the next month following the its publish date.