Analysis: Rahm Emanuel Accepts Post...

TITLE: Rahm Emanuel Accepts Post as White House Chief of Staff
LINK:http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/06/us/politics/07elect.html?hp

A quote from our president-elect is tactfully used halfway through the lede, after the important who, what, where, when, and why have been established. Overall, solid, intriguing lede.

Directly following the lede, the author, instead of summarizing that Barack chose Emanuel for White House Chief of Staff, uses Barack's very own words to tell the audience. Another killer use of killer quotes.

The article lets readers breathe for a brief moment, quickly stating who Emanuel is, (a veteran of the Clinton administration and a member of Congress from Illinois), and that he is stepping down from the fourth-ranking Democrat in the H of R to help guide the Obama administration.

Another killer quote from Emanuel this time, is nicely placed, having just been introduced into the article formally. "Now is a time for unity," Emanuel said, "I will do everything in my power to help you stitch together the frayed fabric of our politics, and help summon Americans of both parties to unite in common purpose."

I think it's a pretty good quote. It's the kind of patriotic optimism that the audience has been hearing, and wants to continue hearing during election time.

A few paragraphs down, the article shifts gears and begins to focus on Obama's transition into The White House. The transition is described in much detail, going so far as to say what Barack's Thursday schedule looked like, (morning workout at 9:30 AM, returning to his home about 90 minutes later.") I'd say this bit of information is distracting and unecessary, especially since the piece was initially about Rahm Emanuel accepting his new post.

The rest of the article is mainly fact-based, summarizing which seats were taken by which party in which state. Which eventually swings back around to talking about Emanuel's now empty seat, the special election that will take place to fill this seat, and finally, back to Rahm Emanuel himself...

Nearing the end of the piece, Senator Lyndsey Graham speaks about Rahm's qualifications and characteristics that the Obama administration will benefit from.

The conclusion sums up what's next, including the president and the president-elect's plan to help the economic crisis. It talks about a proposed $100 billion stimulus package. Then ends.