The Stefanie Rengel murder case and media responsibility

Women and Violence

Natural Born Killer

The article relies on the presentation of a judged and classified murder case, whose protagonists, both the victim and the aggressors, were young people in their early teens.

Stefanie Rengel was only 14 years old on the 1st of January 2008, when she was stabbed six times and then left to die in a snowbank in front of her house, by 18-year-old David Bagshaw. The reasons which led Bagshaw to such an action regarded not even a personal feeling of dislike towards the little girl; he seems to have been only a tool with the necessary physical strength for his current girlfriend, Melissa Todorovic, who simply found Stefanie "annoying." The article further presents the sentence of the Court, which consisted in 10 years of prison for the murderer, with no parole eligibility. Due to the gravity of his acts, David Bagshaw, although being just shy of his 18th birthday, received an adult sentence, meaning he would be monitored by authorities for life and also, he would be kept in prison as long as parole officials deem it necessary.

All in all, the article brings a professional and complete view of the occurred events, with sufficient details for the reader to understand the case and also, with a general objective statement of facts. Yet, an objection one should make regards the introductive part of the article, which leads to a general prejudice that all people having a disorderly background are predisposed to further violent acts and behaviors.

Furthermore, the writer is aware of the importance of selecting the pieces of information that can be published in accord to the unfolding of the investigation. From the writer's notes, one can understand that previous articles regarding this case were edited, but not until the current one was the name of the aggressor fully mentioned (D.B instead of David Bagshaw). As at the moment of publishing it, the case had been judged, sentenced and closed, one could insert in the text information as names of the protagonists. In a previous phase of the investigation, the publication of these pieces of information could have made the entire investigation more difficult.

Moreover, a positive point is that the author doesn't bring to front too much information regarding the victim's background. What interests most is not the good or the bad side of the murdered girl, but the gravity of the violent act itself. Whatever the victim was a good or a bad person, this is not relevant for the current theme and, by avoiding this type of details, the author also avoids the possibility of creating misleading perceptions from the readers. Sometimes, the way in which the victim is described leads to a sort of blame that is related to him/her. Yet, the description of David Bagshaw starts from his early childhood, focusing on detailed violent behavior. In terms of choosing language of describing, one should focus on the current case, as preconceptions regarding people's backgrounds might appear.

On the other hand, one might find the article incomplete, as although in the beginning the editor creates the impression of Bagshaw being just a "puppet" in his girlfriend's hands, no further information regarding the faith of Melissa Todorovic appears. In addition to this weakness point of the article, one can also find the closing of the article inappropriate, as it sort of exploits the pain of the victim's family, by highlighting their lack of awareness regarding the danger that threatened their daughter.

As a general conclusion, the article has numerous strengths in terms of structure and content. The main improvement one should do regards the tendency of generalizing and the lack of think "outside the box." One person's background, although having a certain importance for his/her further development, does not have a full relevance in these types of situations or, at least, must be considered in accord to other external factors.

Killer charged in woman's stabbing

The article tells the story of Ennio Stirpe, a man convicted for manslaughter by fatal shooting in 1998 and sentenced to thirteen years of prison, from which he served nine. The victim was Michael Kiklas, and, as the aggressor himself, testified, there was no conflict between the two. The motivation Stirpe brought in discussion in front of the jury was the resentment he had against the victim's current girlfriend and, at the same time, his previous wife, Kathy Ford. He has revived in the attention of the authorities along with a new case of violence, this time against a woman. Stirpe is currently charged with attempted-murder, as he stabbed a woman in Vaughan.

The article is extremely short, its main thesis consisting in describing the aggressor's background, with focus on its previous misbehavior, shooting an innocent man. The violence of the current situation, the stab of a woman is poorly mentioned and appears more as an occasion or an introduction to the real subject of the article. One could consider this an inappropriate approach. The life of a person, and moreover, the attempt of taking it, is the most valuable and should be treated as such, especially if one refers to a current issue. Killing Michael Kiklas by shooting is with nothing less important, as one is also talking about taking a life, but, in comparison to the current attempt, this case has already been judged and the culprit sentenced, so one should focus on the present violent situation.

As the article focuses expressively on the aggressor, none of the two victims benefits from a special description. Yet, regarding Ennio Stirpe, it interesting for one to see how specific details regarding his existence are mentioned. The fact that he was "an aircraft mechanic and recovering heroin addict" has no relevance neither for his past act and nor for the present one. The writer should avoid these kinds of insignificant details.

Furthermore, information like the one regarding the reaction of Stirpe's first victim's sister should have remained confidential, as this could represent a real danger for Tania McDonalds (Kiklas's sister). She mentions she had delivered a sort of petition at Stirpe's trial, in order for him to serve a long sentence, along with the feeling of constant fear she has. All kinds of information related to the actions of victims' relatives or anything similar to this should remain private during the unfolding of an investigation or a process. Also, in this case, media exploits the story and constantly quotes the family of the victims, without mentioning their permissions.

In terms of quoted sources, the article uses the statement of an eye-witness and also a neighbor, therefore an inhabitant of the specific area, which brings authenticity in the description of facts.

All in all, the article has a few weakness points, with the most important being the lack of discretion and sensitiveness, and also, the lack of focus on a current and extremely violent act which occurred as an attempt to take one's life.

Accused killed 4 to steal their IDs, get rich, trial told

The current article contains information regarding a fact of an extreme gravity- the killing of four people in order to maintain an image of a rich, successful business man, by using the victims' identities and, therefore, collecting money on behalf of them.

Charles Kembo was accused of murdering his wife, stepdaughter, girlfriend and business partner over a period of more than two years.

At the moment of editing the article, the suspect was still in custody of the authorities and the process was thought to last from six to eight months.

With the investigation being in current unfolding, there is little information revealed by the article. Most of it regards the manner in which the murderer activated with a few details about his victims' goods and how they were killed.

As a positive aspect, the article relies especially on the gravity of the violent act itself, without bringing unnecessary details to the reader's attention. In regard to the victims' background, one mentions only the relevant parts for the current issue, meaning their relationship with the murderer and also, their values and goods, which one should consider relevant as this is the case of murders made exclusively for money.

The suspect itself does not benefit from a long detailed description, the emphasis permanently being on his acts and his further sentence. This objectiveness and detaching lead to the lack of perceptions and social attitudes created by what reporters consider important to include and offer a clear, un-crowded view of the facts.

Furthermore, a significant part of the article relates on the statement of crown prosecutor Jennifer Oulton.

As the source is extremely important in an article, one can say that, in the current situation, citing a frontline worker from this case is a very positive aspect. First of all, one can remind the high interest they have for the case they work to and the multitude of details they can offer. Moreover, the experience of such a person, along with the idea of citing an official, formal source, makes the entire article extremely trustful and lively.

Yet, one should take into account a certain part of the statement, regarding the status of the victims. The expression "low net worth people" must not, by any chance and even if it's the case of citing an authority, appear in an article. No matter the status and the position of a person in the society's hierarchy, life is the most valuable good one has and has the same importance for all peers.

In general, the article can receive a positive review. It is objective and the case is clearly exposed, it does not contain irrelevant pieces of information and it does not insist on minor details. The lack of description for protagonists leads to creating no preconceptions. Furthermore, media does not roughly exploit the story. One can not assume there is sensitiveness in narrating the case, but as mentioned before, the article relies on objectiveness. However, the only aspect that might be considered as being insensitive regards the characterization of the victims.

Also, the most important aspect is the cited source, which follows the statement of a person involved in the investigation and therefore, becomes trustful.

Desperate mom wants boys

The following article relies, not as the previous ones, on a specific case of crime, but approaches an extremely large area of interest, especially for the field of sociology: the discrimination of women.

There is, in some parts of the world and cultures, the deeply rooted idea that a woman must give birth to boys instead of girls, as boys would carry the name of the family and bring luck, while girls would need a constant concern for getting them married and are, in general, unwished. The best example is the Indian population.

The article presents the numerous tries of a woman to get pregnant with boys. The editorial is extremely interesting, as it brings to front not only the discrimination of Indian women, but also their status and role in the family, which results from their desperation to have baby boys. They are constantly humiliated, accused and punished for a thing they have no power to control and are not responsible for: the sex of their babies.

Indians seem to have developed a real industry for avoiding girl births. This is what emerges from this article.

However, the article appears as extremely complex, not only when judging by the approached theme, but also by its structure and conclusions that it highlights. It builds full view of the situation of these ethnicities, a view that one completes with statistical data on ratio regarding boys and girls, disproportions, etc.

Its main positive point is that it looks for the context as a whole. The problem does not consist in the person who sells drugs and pills that impedes the birth of the girls, but in the people's indoctrination. As mentioned in the article, "It's a decades-old problem," one can refer to as a culture that is old for centuries and that people are not willing to renounce to. However, this large perspective of analyzing this case gives one the possibility to gain a better understanding of the phenomenon and to search for appropriate solutions.

Also, the article relates a lot on sensitiveness. The manner in which one presents a case not only influences the perception over him, but may also be a good strategy for developing achievements. The fact that Indian women receive a bad treatment in their families is not unfamiliar to anyone, so maybe just presenting the case of a male abusing a woman would not have had a more powerful impact.

But by presenting the situation as the article does, with a general approach to the issue and an introduction to the Indian world, followed by searching methods for improving and development will surely create a strong social attitude towards this.

It seems, though, that for some task, a general approach of the issue is more helpful than concentrating on a specific issue. Obviously, it depends on the gravity of the subject. But in the case of this article, it manages to create connections among internal and external factors, it "thinks outside the box" and by this, it calls for the reader's interest and attention.