QRG's: The Genre

Lyall, Laura Muntz. "Interesting Story" 1898
Public Domain

Below, I will be analyzing the qualities and characteristics of a genre based blogs or articles. Then through a series of questions, I will conceptualize how genre based blogging utilizes its data, visual examples, and content structure in order to corroborate its main claim.

Question I: What do the conventions of this genre- The Quick Reference Guide- seem to be?

•  Headline/Introduction- The article or blog uses a "catchy" yet informative paragraph in order to draw its reader into the discussion. Using quotes or memorable- sometimes controversial- statements in order to hook the reader's attention. The author relies on the reader's emotions to bring his/her attention into the text.
•  Visual Aide-  This can usually in the form of statistic graphs, data tables, pictures of the issue, or timelines.  They act to solidify the information given throughout the blog piece.
• Headings/Subheadings-  Headings categorize the new points that will be addressed, giving the reader an expectation/ general understanding of the points to come.
• Bullet Information- Act as a form organization for presenting a large quantity of information; therefore, making it more readable.
• Links-  Serve to corroborate the information and cited sources presented by the author. Thus, verifying the reliability of the blog. 

Question II: How are those conventions defined by the author's formatting?

Based on a number of examples, the headline is always above the entirety of the post- giving a basic concept of the information that follows. This is followed by a picture or visual aid to catch the reader's attention as well as serve to conceptualize the issue. The information will then be given on short- but concise- points within a paragraph style (formatting in either bullets or a timeline). The author's points of argument are then set up into subheadings, signaling new information.

Question III: What does the purpose of QRGs seem to be?

QRGs are simply designed to give brief informative information or research. They are either created for political or commercial purposes, so that the information can reach a larger audience, or made to generally inform readers to an issue. 

Question IV: Who is the intended audience for these different QRGs? Are they all intended for similar audiences or different ones? Why?

 The example QRGs are designed to target a specific group of individuals who have an unclear stance on a current issue. Therefore, the author can use the data collected and this argument to sway said audience to support his claim. The author aims to target all groups, for educated to misinformed, and use the brief points and easy to read formatting structure to get the reader generally informed; so that, they will continue to seek other media sources.  

Question V: How do the QRGs use the imagery or visuals? Why do you think they use them in this way?

• Graphs/Charts: Act as a form of organization for statistical information (numerical data) visually and make the information more readable. The author uses this format in order to make the data presented more comprehensible and less daunting. 
• Pictures:  Photos are added to create a more emotional and down to earth feeling for the article; also act to verify the issue as a real world problem. 

Reflection:

After reading the posts made by Morgan, Nick, and Ayra , I have found that when creating a QRG the use of brevity in presentation of information is the most important formatting structures. This is in part due to the author's need to present information on an issue that will stick in the mind of the reader. Therefore, the use of bullets and visual aids are ideal to the imprinting of the information within the mind of the reader; also such structures contextualize the issue and make the information more of a real world issue.