I’m not sure what to make of this:
On page C1 of today’s Vancouver Sun, there’s an almost full-page feature, “Working out like a vampire: It’s about elegance and power, says local trainer who taught Twilight cast members a few moves.”
On page C3, there’s an almost half-page feature, “Twilight relationship unhealthy, professor says: Sequel portrays submissive female character Bella as putty in the hands of obsessive male lead.”
And, back on C1, there is: “New Moon Rising: Watch for daily features on Twilight Saga: New Moon leading up to the movie’s release on Friday.”
My first reaction, which I admit was knee-jerk: with one-third of the articles in the Health section Twilight-related and more promised for the rest of the week, it’s hard to take seriously complaints from the newsroom that it is lacking resources to do important journalism.
Second reaction: Newsroom woes (to steal William Gibson’s take on the future) are here but unevenly distributed. Canadian newsroom, even though they’ve been through rounds of layoffs and buyouts, are in much better shape than those in the U.S.
Third reaction: Newsroom resources are limited, and the Sun is making a conscious effort, by linking its lifestyle coverage to the Twilight franchise, to prove its value to young readers who, in newspaper-think, are still seen by some as the subscribers of the future.
I have no idea which of these three — or others that haven’t yet come to mind — covers the decision to throw resources at Twilight, using it as a hook for a fitness story, dating advice and who knows what else that will come in during the week.
One thing I am sure of: to my mind, this takes the line between promotion and journalism and makes it much less fine and much more blurred.
Update: A comment in my Twitter stream raises a fourth possibility, that the Sun is doing what newspapers have always done by tapping into popular culture and using that to attract readers to stories that explore issues or tell interesting stories. That may be supported by the fact that two of the Twilight-related stories were among the most-read stories at the Sun’s website last night and this morning.
