New and Digital Media Week 5

USA today's Facebook - inspired use of emojis gets thumbs down

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/oct/12/us-todays-facebook-emojis-twitter

USA Today: emojis on the front page were inspired by Facebook Reactions.
This article talks about how emojis are a common feature of online messaging on smartphones and computers and is extremely popular with the public. It also says how 'USA today's' have started using them with each article they produce e.g an article about Russian bombing of Syria was illustrated with an angry red face, while a story about the stabbing of a US citizen - who had recently helped stop a terrorist attack in France - carried a sad face with a tear emerging from one eye.  It was noted that the more digital people are, the more the seemed to like them.

• The stunt received a mixed reaction on twitter, with some pointing out that it jarred with the serious nature of the stories being covered and others questioning whether emojis had a place in print.

In my opinion, having emojis on a newspaper would take the seriousness out of the article, it would seem like the newspaper company is mocking the content of the article. However it does help the audiences and the journalists empathise with the people the story is on.