Evaluation of New York Times Stories: Depression and Raccoons?

The New York Times is one of those media outlets that you know you can trust because of its past credibility and editing services it has. It speaks on all topics from current political happenings to new trends in fashion. In this post I will specifically explore and evaluate New York Times topics on animal rights and depression screenings.

I don't know about you, but whenever I see an article that has a picture of an animal in it or a headliner with anything of the animal variety, I am instantly excited. If you're in the same room with me when I find said article you can usually hear a squeal or two. So, for the first article we will be exploring, it, of course, has a picture of an animal. A raccoon to be exact. Raccoons that the city of Brooklyn has mandated be 'humanely killed' if found in the city. This article, written by Annie Correal, speaks about the pros and cons of killing a raccoon in the city of Brooklyn

• There are many main characters in this article as it describes from many points of view on the issue. There is a woman, Wendy Hooker, who called a mandated trapper, Don, to take the raccoon from her house for it was disturbing her garden. There are many other people in the article who take on the same roles of these two members of the Brooklyn society and offer their opinions to this debate of morality. The different people who speak in the article offer different views and information about why the raccoons in Brooklyn are a problem and how to solve it.
• The whole article centers around the city, Brooklyn, where it is known for being a very busy city. Since it is a large city, the problem that raccoons pose is very prominent in their society. The people in Brooklyn often have to deal with raccoons on an every day basis.
• There are many many different perspectives on the raccoons in Brooklyn. Some love the antics of the raccoons and see them as just another part of the big city, while others see them as dirty animals that have a love for destruction. The debate between morality is also held in question in Brooklyn. The trappers in Brooklyn often let the raccoons free into the wilderness, illegally saving them from a 'humane death'. While, to them, this is morally just, scientists have pointed out that the raccoons often have rabies, so when they go back to the closet neighborhood, there is a chance of infection.

"Cute Raccoon". 13 July 2009 via Wikamedia Commons. Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported.

After enjoying that picture of the cute raccoon, we will now explore a more serious article about depression in pregnant woman and how some people believe that these pregnant women should be screened for depression. This article, written by Pam Bullock, is a more informational article than debatable.

• While there is no main character, the overall focus is on pregnant women and their mental health. Pregnant women in this article are being looked at and analyzed by scientists, some who believe that depression is very prominent in their lives after their first child.
• There is no specific setting other than in present day time. Many people believe that the women of our society today should be screened for depression because some studies show this common mental health problem. 
• There is heavy debate on this issue because of the medications involved and the high stress situations that every mom is involved in before, during, and after pregnancy. Some people believe that the pills taken for depression could cause extreme problems for the baby while others don't believe it will. The idea of mental health in general is up for debate in this article because some people believe that mental health is untreatable with certain methods

Now that we've explored these two vastly different articles, I suggest reading more and discovering your point of interest just like I'm doing as an undecided major!