Yes, both can have the same effect of selecting the editorial content of the photograph. With both methods (plus the selection of what photos from an event to publish) a photographer or their editor can choose what to convey. For example, if you have a photo of a group of people you can selectively crop, or frame in teh viewfinder, only the people that will convey an gripping editorial message, e.g remove or only include a certain demographic or action. If there are 1000 protesters standing around and 5 throwing stuff, the 5 will be photographed and reported as representative of the entire protest.