Evaluation of New York Times Stories

After looking through many different stories in categories such as business, tech, art, and politics, I found that art and tech had the two most interesting articles to write about. Familiar Faces Lend Star Power to Video Game Voices, relates to the transition of being an actor to a voice actor in cartoons and videogames with the main focus on Mark Hamill as an example of this transition. The second article, Apple Says Sales of Iphones Have Slowed, I found in the tech category, related to how Apple’s Iphone sales have had the slowest sales rate than ever before as Timothy D. Cook later explains.

First Article:
1. Does there seem to be a "main character" or "protagonist" to the story? If so, who is it and how are they are the "center" of the story? If not, are there any important or central characters in the story at all? What role do they play?

In the New York Times article "Familiar Faces Lend Star Power to Video Game Voices" written by Thomas Rivas, the "main character" or "protagonist" to the story is Mark Hamill. The article’s main discussion about actors transitioning to voice acting roles in video games and cartoons is depicted through Mark Hamill’s success as the main focus of this transformation. Mark Hamill becomes the "center" of the story as he is not only a beloved figure in Star Wars to many, but is recognized for his exceptional talent in voice acting for video games and cartoons. Thomas Rivas writes how the actor’s highly valued voice has become more important than ever to the video game industry, as currently video game developers are more concentrated on the story telling aspect of video games than any other element.

2. Where do the specific events in the story take place? Is there a specific setting? Describe the settings for the stories and how they influence the plot and characters.

Mark Hamill's career of voice acting reached its peak around the early 1990's. During this time, Mark Hamill played the voice of the Joker in "Batman: The Animated Series". Now, Mark Hamill is using his voice along with many other actors in an upcoming game called Star Citizen: Squadron 42. Although there is not a specific setting in which the story takes place, Ms. Toyias, a casting and voice director for Blizzard Entertainment, describes how the setting of the studio influences the actors and the plot. Ms. Toyias puts this into words with "Everything changes when the actor walks into the room".

3. Is there any kind of disagreement or debate happening in the story? If so, who is participating, why are people debating and what seems to be at stake for the different characters in the story?

Towards the end of the article, the issue of how successful an actor can be from transitioning to a voice actor of a video game is presented to readers. This is described with the example of Peter Dinklage, who is best known for his exceptional performance of Tyrion Lannister in the HBO show "Game of Thrones". Peter Dinklage's performance however in the video game "Destiny" did not please the audience, instead finding the dialogue dull.

ClkerFreeVectorImages, "Batman Bat Signal Black Yellow", 8/3/2014 via pixabay

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Second article:

1. Does there seem to be a "main character" or "protagonist" to the story? If so, who is it and how are they are the "center" of the story? If not, are there any important or central characters in the story at all? What role do they play?

The “protagonist” for New York Times article “Apple Says Sales of iPhones Have Slowed” by Katie Benner appears to be Apple chief executive Timothy D. Cook. Timothy D. Cook becomes the center of the story as he explains how the sales of the iPhone have slowed down more than ever.

2. Where do the specific events in the story take place? Is there a specific setting? Describe the settings for the stories and how they influence the plot and characters.

There does not seem to be a specific setting for when this story took place. However, the slowed iPhone sales can be seen around the world with China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, who only rose in sales with 14%. Before, this region used to have 70% annual revenue growth in the past. Additionally, Apple chief financial officer, Luca Maestri believes that the iPhone sales have declined due the increasing strength of the U.S. dollar. Thus with the lowered iPhone sales in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, and the dollar growing in the United States, setting has influenced the slow growth of iPhone sales.

3. Is there any kind of disagreement or debate happening in the story? If so, who is participating, why are people debating and what seems to be at stake for the different characters in the story?

There seems to be a disagreement between investors and Apple. Shares of Apple fell last year within a few hours after the financial results were presented. Similarly, investors did not have high expectations for the iPhone 6 and iPhones 6S and they imagined that the product’s demand would be low. Mr. Cook reassures the audience that this is a period of economic uncertainty and that it is fundamental to understand how a substantial part of Apple’s revenue happens over time.