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Saturday, 10 May 2008

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What the world is reading on the net

That there is often a dichotomy between what editors think is important news and what their readers are interested in was shown again on Saturday morning when I surveyed major international internet news sites. In nine English language sites, all of them of a serious kind which publish a list of their most read stories, only at the UK 's The Independent did the tragedy in Burma rate on top as the most read. Yet three of the newspaper web sites, including that of The Independent, had Burma as the lead story with another three featuring it second so we cannot blame the editors for the apparent lack of interest in the worst natural disaster so far this year.

This is how the papers On Saturday morning covered events:

The Los Angeles Times leads its paper with the latest form guide on the presidential horse race showing that both Clinton and Obama are leading McCain. Burma is prominent but second. The readers have copped the tip and have the opinion poll on top with Burma coming in ninth out of 10.

The UN seeking $187M in aid for Burma cyclone survivors leads the USA Today website but a story about a beastly illegal immigrant who raped a 10 year old and got her pregnant attracted most readers with Burma not in the top 10.

The slow moving Papayon river is the setting for the UK 's The Independent splash on the deaths in Burma . The readers agreed with the importance of the story of the river delivering the dead. It was the most read in the last 24 hours,

The London Times has Burma on its second line of stories after an exclusive on the relationship between the present former British Prime Ministers. The subject no longer makes the top four most read on the internet. The interest in the Austrian incest case has lasted much longer – still the most read story for readers of the posh paper.

There's a mess at Delhi international airport reports the Times of India prominently while the mess left by a Burmese cyclone is relegated to the website small print. Why are men going off sex? - clearly is not out of sympathy for the Burmese neighbours. Burma doesn't make the most read listin India 's leading serious daily.

At the Straits Times, published in Burma 's fellow Association of South East Asian Nations partner Singapore , aid for Burma is the featured story but for the readers sex is again more interesting. The Myanamar junta seizing all aid shipments comes in fifth.

China is clearly getting in to the spirit of the Olympics and readers of The People's Daily with more reading a story about the Olympic torch than anything else. Burma does not rate which is not surprising because if you only read this site you would be unaware of the extent of the devastation unless you made it down to the small print of the eighth story in the foreign news section. President Hu Jintao visiting Japan gets the attention you would expect of a man who runs the party that owns the paper.

That closeness to trouble is more important than the extent of the trouble is made clear by the news judgment at the Tornoto Globe and Mail. A single death and 246 ill people on a Toronto bound train is given prominence over relief workers being angry that the Burmese military junta is stopping food and medical aid for the million or so desperate survivors of the cyclone. The readers placed the Burma story even lower down than the editors – the fifth most read today.

The Australian national daily The Australian led with a preview of the government to be brought down in Parliament next week with aid delays in Burma second. The readers shared the interest of the editors in the budget but put Burma down to number four on the most read list.

United States – LA Times: Times poll shows Clinton and Obama beating McCain

United States – USA Today: 10-year-old gives birth in Idaho; Suspected illegal immigrant charged with rape

UK – The Independent: The River of Death

UK – The Times: Why he did it: Joseph Fritzl's statement

Singapore – The Straits Times: Man jailed 1 year for sex with underage girl

China – The People's Daily: Olympic torch lit on Mt. Qomolangma

Canada – Toronto Globe and Mail: Woman dies mysteriously on Via train; others sick

India – Times of India : Why are men going off sex?

Australia – The Australian: Economic slide puts jobs at risk