1.What do the conventions seem to be?
Throughout all of the different QRGs we looked at in class, there seemed to be five elements they all had in common:
- Informative titles and subheadings to aid the reader's search for certain content.
- An introductory paragraph that gives an overview of topic to be expanded upon.
- Images- including graphical statistics- to help humanize different parties involved and provide information without the need of in-depth explanations.
- Internal linking to provide more insight if wanted by the reader, and to add credibility to the QRG.
- High-level use of white space to make the QRG easily skimmable.
2. How are these conventions defined by the author's formatting and design choices?
It is easy to identify effective QRGs by their usage of white space and headings. Headings and subheadings are informative enough to provide the audience with a clear view of what will be discussed, but also avoids confusing them by giving too much information. By keeping the text nicely spaced out, it invites the audience in to continue reading. Emotional images also help to draw in the audience, and those images that are more fact based are easy to understand and are explained briefly. If more information wants to be acquired, the many hyperlinks within redirect the audience to the desired place.
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| Altmann, Gerd. "Info, Information, Tips, Icon, Support, Announcement". 9 months ago via pixabay.Public Domain License |
The purpose of QRGs is to provide an audience insight and perspective into certain issues without having to research on their own. The QRG puts the issue at hand into context by providing a basic background, identifying key figures involved, and explaining why and how it is relevant to our daily lives.
4. Who are the intended audiences? Are they similar or different? How and why?
The intended audiences for QRGs are typically the general public. The types of QRGs read will depend on what the specific reader is interested in. For example, those interested in the developing controversy of the growing presence of women in mainstream media may choose to look at the QRG for GamerGate.
On the other hand, those wishing to know more about the health effects of E-cigarettes may choose to take a look at Vox's E-cigarettes and health analysis. An individuals interests will determine whether or not they will be drawn to certain QRGs, but anyone in the general public can obtain more knowledge with the simple click of a mouse.
5. How do the QRGs use imagery? Why do they do this?
The QRGs use imagery in a plethora of ways. For those topics with a lot of important groups or individuals to remember, the use of images helps to easily identify said people. If the author is aiming to portray an emotion, they may use an image that sparks feelings from within. The QRG on Greece's growing debt shows an image of a young child looking afraid, attaching on to the reader's emotional instinct to want to protect them.
Imagery is also useful for providing the audience with a lot of data in an easy-to-read-format, rather than overloading them with numbers and information. Not only does it make it easier to understand data, but it also prevents the information from being a wall of text. Images provide color and break up different sections, making the text easier to read.
Reflection:
After reading through the blogs of Mira, Alex, and Samantha, I found that we were all in a general agreement over the conventions of a QRG. Alex's comment on there being a smaller target audience within a QRG reminded me that I shouldn't get too broad when writing my own QRG. Mira mentioned that keeping all of the important information for the end is a good idea, because people tend to skim through the bulk of the text anyways, and Samantha emphasized the distinction between graphics and images. All of these posts have given me more things to consider as I edit my own QRG.
This post was very well organized and pointed out some important things about QRGs. I thought the way you described the effect of the visuals on the readers was very interesting and went into good detail. Your answers made me think about how similar QRGs seem to be as a genre.
ReplyDeleteI like how you included the image if between the questions to give the reader a break from the text. I also totally agree that if the conventions are used correctly they can be useful!
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