Which is the better type of reporting? Personal experiences or Statistics?
This post was written by a student. It has not been fact checked or edited.
The Russo-Ukrainian war is a conflict that has been going on for about 3 years and it’s important we realize what life is like for the people who are caught up in the war. But is sharing personal experiences from citizens a better way to report about the war better than stating statistics?
In my opinion, sharing personal stories is the most effective way to learn about the war since it emotionally connects the reader with the citizen triggering empathy. Also it is more reliable since some stats may be fake while a personal story most of the time is honest.
However, statistics could also be effective since numbers supports claims with evidence and they also create a bigger picture than just focusing on one sole person.
But why do people prefer stories rather than statistics almost 100% of the time? An article written by “Chris Westfall” states that even though statistics provide evidence and focus on the bigger picture information doesn’t lead to realization. For example you read an article about how a donut contain about 39% of the recommended amount of sugar you can eat in a day. Will that stop you from eating them? The answer is probably no.
A relevant statistic we could look at is how the poverty rates in Ukraine skyrocketed during the war. Unric.org states that poverty rates increased from 5% to 24% in 2022. However, this statistic does not make us realize that every 1 in 4 people live in such conditions while before the war it was 1 in 20. But with personal experiences you are able to see insights of the lives from people living in cities that have been bombarded and what important parts of their everyday lives they lost. You would feel bad for these people and not see them as just a number that changes statistics.
So, which is the best approach? Despite what some people may think, in my opinion storytelling from individuals who experienced the war firsthand is the best approach. I believe many would disagree because they prefer to see the overall image of the war with statistics rather than listening to a story of an ordinary human that had something such unfortunate happen to him.
I believe that that’s the best method to report about the war since they always emotionally connects me with the people and they always grab my attention.
Comments (1)
Yes I agree with you. I also believe that stories of individuals are the best way to report about the Russia-Ukraine war because sharing personal stories make other people around the world to understand that everyone is on the same level no one is bigger than the other while people might believe the facts and statistics not knowing the conditions of other people will make them not take a second look at it. When an affected individual decide to share his/her story about what he/she has been going through like of the Russia-Ukraine war, people will realize that there are people around the world that suffer or are depressed because of the war and they will learn not to look down on people.
THANK YOU.