Poverty is a worldwide epidemic that is changing trends in the country’s economy and affecting the economic prosperity of the community. This social problem is within my two articles and is focused on Americans of all ages. The U.S poverty rate slightly declined last year but despite that, the Census Bureau studied that still, about 38 million people were poor in 2018. Although this poverty rate in the United States has gone down, there are still millions of people that are suffering from low-income and unemployment. This is detrimental to society as it can threaten our nation with crime and affect our economy by not using the opportunities for employment and income growth. Stronger labor markets and higher income levels can help families living in poverty, but the economy cannot grow if there is not employment. The two articles showing our country in poverty are similar in ways that they provide the statistics of those living in poverty, as well as American income levels. While showing that 38.1 million Americans were in poverty last year, children are also experiencing poverty. With more than 12.8 million children in America in poverty, and about one in five live and face these harsh realities every single day.
Both of the articles speak on poverty in a large frame but one thing that makes them different is that one focuses on the entire population while one speaks much more deeply about the children affected by the poverty levels. This places a much more subjective view on the point of poverty. After it is all said and done, no one in their right mind truly wants someone to be placed in a position of poverty, but no one especially wants children to be in this situation. Providing the article speaks primarily on poverty’s effect on children, it hopes to cause a greater impact on the reader seeing as these children have no decision on the situation they are brought into. “No child should have to worry where her next meal will come from or whether she will have a place to sleep each night in the wealthiest nation on Earth,” the article states.
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One issue that I believe is not brought up in the articles is other options that can be put into place to tackle the issue of poverty. Just like many other instances, the reporters are simply placing all the pressure on the government to adjust funding or for the government to do something about the issue rather than presenting ways in which every day people can help with the issues at hand. Perhaps providing information like this would allow for the readers to find ways to reach out and help in ways that they can rather than to place the reader against the government. After all, there are many “normal” people in this country than there are government officials. While the government officials do carry large amounts of power in their hands, so do the citizens of this country. Providing options for everyday citizens to combat the issue could see to be very beneficial.
The first article about overall poverty in America seems to be value-neutral, with no real outright biased statements being made. However, the article on US children and poverty is highly biased. The overall poverty article speaks mainly about facts and stating numbers rather than tugging at the heartstrings of the readers like they do in the second article. “The question is not whether we have the knowledge or resources to end child poverty, but whether we have the moral decency and political will.” This quote from the article places bias on the reader as to whether or not we are “morally decent.”
Both articles present evidence that is very logically based and supported by the numbers. The first article simply speaks on the changes in the numbers in poverty, it is truly backed up by the numbers they present. In the following quote, “Despite the decline in poverty, the Census Bureau found that 38.1 million people in 2018 were poor. This was 1.4 million fewer poor people than in 2017, but about one in eight Americans still lived below the poverty line — $25,465 for a family with two adults and two children.” the article not only provides the difference between the number of those in poverty showing the decrease in them, it also still brings attention to how it is still an issue. The second article also does the same thing, presenting a case on poverty in children while also presenting numbers and graphs on the issue at hand. “More than 12.8 million children in America - about one in five - live in poverty and face these harsh realities every day.” This is supporting the reporter’s claim of the issue of poverty in children of the United States.
Both headlines of the articles speak exactly what they are trying to reflect in the body. “U.S. Census Bureau Reports Poverty Rate Down, But Millions Still Poor” and “About 13m US children are living below the poverty line, rights group reveals” these both are exactly what is talked about throughout the article, neither vary from what is being said or slant the headline in any way. The issue that could arise when comparing both headlines would be the fact that the first headline references the U.s Census Bureau reporting the information while the other revealed by a rights group. This could sway the reader away from the rights group as they are not nearly as well known or credible as the U.S Census Bureau is.
Both articles will affect the reader in their outlook on poverty as they both provide areas in which poverty is becoming less and less as the years go on, but is still a major problem in today’s society. They appeal to many types of people as well, as if you are more of a realist looking for information from credible sources and interested in nothing but the facts then the article given by the U.S Census Bureau provides just that. On the other hand, if issues like this appeal to your emotions then the effect it has on children can be very impactful. Both articles present information that would influence the reader’s perception of this social problem in their respective way.
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