One event, many angles
Imagine a council raises parking charges. One outlet writes 'Drivers hit by parking price rise'. Another writes 'Council raises funds for bus improvements'. Both are true. Each picks the angle its readers care about, and the headline sets your first impression before you read a word of the article.
Framing in action
Framing means choosing which part of a story to put first. Focusing on the cost shows the story as a burden, while focusing on the purpose shows it as an investment. Neither is a lie, but the reader who sees only one frame gets only half the picture.
Word choice carries weight
'Regime' and 'government', 'rebels' and 'fighters', 'illegal immigrants' and 'undocumented migrants' all describe the same people or institutions with a different emotional charge. When you notice a loaded word, translate it into a neutral one in your head and see what is left.
Numbers can be framed too
A figure can be shown as an increase of 50 percent or as a rise from two to three cases. It can be compared to last year, to last month, or to a different country. The choice of comparison does a lot of the persuading, so ask what the number is being compared with.
Audience shapes the story
Outlets know their readers and often give them what fits their view of the world. That is why reading only one source tends to make you feel more certain than the evidence justifies.
A practical exercise
Next time a story interests you, find it in two or three outlets and read only the headlines first. Then read the first paragraph of each. Whatever all of them agree on is probably solid. The differences show you where interpretation begins.