Close Reading #2: "Tactics set, Obama, Romney hurtle toward finish"

http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2012/president/candidates/romney/2012/10/20/tactics-set-obama-romney-hurtle-toward-finish/HywYmnELFmufPSUH2jqAqJ/story.html

             As I was searching for articles to read for this blog post, my eyes landed on the article title that was the most eye-catching. Even in the title, interesting diction is shown, "hurtle", which pertains exactly to the subject. This article also includes syntax and detail.
            I think that the best technique that this article has is diction. There are many good word choices and adjectives that the author, Charles Babington, uses to describe the detail that is presented. For example, "He [Mitt Romney] pounded that theme in last week's second debate, sounding almost like a romance counselor in imploring Americans not 'to settle' for a less robust economy than they deserve," includes diction that adds to the tone and makes readers want to continue reading. Both "pounded" and "imploring" are, in my opinion, pejorative diction, which leads me to believe that Babington does not agree with some ideas of Mitt Romney. In addition, Babington's similie that stated that Romney sounded like a romance counselor created a humorous, but also condescending tone. I think that although this article is supposed to be unbiased, Babington's diction causes it to be slightly biased.
          Another technique that this article includes is syntax. For instance, the interrupter in this sentence, "And on Nov. 2 - less than 100 hours before Election Day - the government will release its monthly unemployment report, for October," emphasizes the importance of how close Nov. 2 is to Election Day. The emphasis makes readers question if they will factor the unemployment report into who they will vote for and because the report will be released shortly before Election Day, it is highly unlikely that readers will do so. The interrupter is also an important detail that informs readers of new information.
           Like the detail in the interrupter example, Babington uses additional details to convey important political information about the presidential race. For example, "Democrats see Ohio, with its lower-than-average unemployment rate and general embrace of the president's auto-industry bailout, as their best chance to stop Romney cold," makes readers aware of the importance of voting in Ohio and may unintentionally cause readers to act upon that new knowledge by advocating their favorite candidate to Ohio voters or to carefully make the decision on who to vote for (if that reader is from Ohio). Details like this one personally pertain to each individual reader, which causes readers to be more interested in this article.
          Overall, Babington's use of diction, syntax, and detail create well-written and engaging article. This article's interaction with readers makes them feel connected and continue reading and also helps American citizens participate in voting.