This paper focuses on a rhetorical analysis of two news articles, that is, the Guardian News and the CBS News article. These articles report a recent strike that was performed by the Black Lives Matter Activist group. The purpose of the strike was motivated or triggered by a recent case of arbitrary shooting by a local police officer in Minneapolis that led to the death of a 24 year old black male. The articles basically report the specific incidents that took place as well as events that might have occurred before and after the strike i.e. the shooting, destruction and the opinion of other concerned stakeholders in regard to the strike. The specific aim of this analysis is to demonstrate similar literary features that are evident in both articles, for instance figures of speech used in both articles. Consequently, the analysis will focus on the differences, that is, the different figures of speech or literary features used in each article as well as the intention of the authors.
One of the most interesting narrative approaches used in both articles is the sequence or chronology of key information. The articles apply different approaches in the manner in which key information is sequenced, for instance: In the Guardian News Article, the author begins by introducing his/her readers to the impacts of the Black Lives Matter demonstration as he indicates that; “Largest Shopping Mall in the United States was shut down.” It appears that the motive of the author in this case is t capture the attention of their readers by describing the impacts of the demonstration. However, the sequence of narrative applied in the CBC News article is quite different from the Guardian News article, instead of introducing his audience to the impacts of the protest; the author directly describes the magnitude and the specific time in which the protest began.
The other most interesting features of narratives that have been used in both articles is creating titles that attract targeted audience at first sight. In the CBS News article, the author uses the title, “Black Lives Matter Protesters Target Minneapolis Airport”; this title could be considered an eye catching title. To begin with, it is important to acknowledge that airports are some of the most sensitive transportation sectors to incidences that may cause security threats. By indicating that the protesters “target” Minneapolis Airport, what comes to the mind of any reader is the destruction that may occur at the airport as a result of the strike. It appears that the use of such a title in order to introduce the news is basically to attract a wide perspective of readers. This is because most people are sensitive to issues that may jeopardize the safe operations of transportation sectors, particularly airports.
The use of a striking or an appealing title is also evident in the Guardian News Article. The title reads “Black Lives Matter Protest Shut Down Mall of America”; the most probable insight or understanding that any reader acquires from this title is the essence of destruction as a result of protest (Holpuch, Amanda). By including the words ‘shut down’ in the title the first impression any reader gets is interruption of destruction, hence increasing their desire to read the entire article. This is because shopping malls play a significant role in the socio-economic well-being of a society and, hence, any action that would jeopardize their operations would attract the attention of the general public.
Additionally, both articles include specific details concerning the chronology of events that led to occurrence of the strike. Apart from the fact that the CBS News article introduces its audience to the actives that occurred during the protest, the author goes further to provide an insight to his readers on the specifics that led to the strike. According to the article, a 24 year Old black male was shot during the previous month by a local police. He lost his life a day after he had been shot by a local Minneapolis office (Jamar Clark Police Shooting). The article also indicates that the intention of the protest was to draw the attention of relevant stakeholders in relation to the arbitrary shooting that has been taking place in the United States, particularly among the black communities.
The incorporation of specific details on what led to the strikes/protest/demonstration is also evident in the Guardian News article. The author asserts that Black Lives Matter protesters camped outside Minneapolis Police station for three days after a 24 year old black man lost his life (Holpuch, Amanda). Despite the fact that this article does not indicate the specific cause of the death of the 24 year old black mail, it is evident that the intention of the author is to expose his audience to the root cause of the demonstration or protest.
However, the most striking issues in relation to the inclusion of specifics of the actions that led to the strike; both the CBS and the Guardian News article indicate the exact cause of death of Jamar Clark. From a personal perspective, including specific details to the root cause of a particular issue discussed in a news article enhances its accuracy and reliability; that is, it enhances the confidences of targeted audience towards the news material of the author.
In order to enhance the credibility of the information provided in both article, both articles and authors, that is in the CBS News Article and the Guardian News article incorporate the opinions of other concerned stakeholders regarding the issues under discussion, for example: In the Guardian News Article, the author has incorporate screenshots of the reactions of the general public on social media, particularly, twitter. These screenshots presents the various reactions of the general public regarding this matter (Holpuch, Amanda). The essence of incorporating opinion of other concerned stakeholders i.e. reaction of the general public on social media is also incorporated in the CBS News article. It appears that the motive of both writers to include the opinions of other stakeholders, particularly, those that had witnessed the protest, is to indicate the magnitude of the strike and the perception of the general public in regard to this issue. In addition, the including the opinion of other authors in the article is also crucial as it enhances credibility of the information provided. This is an indication that indeed the author’s of the two articles performed broad research in order to collect the information provided.
It is important to acknowledge that while both articles have incorporated the reaction of the general public in social media, they differ in the sense that the authors use different expert opinions, for instance: In the Guardian News Article the author incorporates the opinion of the Mall Attorney, Susan Gaertner who asserts that issuance of a restraining order would clarify that the Mall does not encourage demonstrations (Holpuch, Amanda). It is possible that the motive of incorporating the opinion of legal stakeholders concerning the strike is to enhance the understanding of readers or targeted audience that demonstration targeted or directed towards private property are considered illegal. That is, the author attempts to expose readers to legal issues ascribed to demonstrations that target private property. While the Guardian News article incorporates the opinions of a legal expert, Attorney Susan Gaertner, the CBS News Article incorporates the opinion of Governor Mark Dayton who expresses his sympathies for the concerns of the demonstrators as he also mentions that targeting private properties during demonstrations is unlawful. It is appears that the motive of the author is to expose readers on how government officials perceive the strike. That is, the opinion of government stakeholders in regard to the Black Lives Matter strike and how it could conflict with legal framework of the City.
Apart from including the opinions of other stakeholders i.e. opinions published on social media sites and eye witnesses, the authors of both articles go further and discuss perceived consequences that were associated with the demonstration. In the CBS News Article, the author indicates that a significant number of malls had closed their businesses due to fear of destruction a few hours before the demonstration. The Bloomington Police Deputy Police Chief indicated that the number one priority of the local police department was to protect the safety of the people within the Mall (Jamar Clark Police Shooting). Many people in Montgomery also believed that such demonstrations would interfere with the region’s capital flow. Moreover, these issues are also covered in the Guardian News article where the author deviates from the major issue, which is, demonstration by Black Lives Matter Activists, to indicating the opinions of local police and investors concerning the damages that might result from the demonstration. Taking the aforementioned issues into consideration, it appears that the intention of the authors or the articles is to enhance the insight among their targeted audience concerning other consequences that may arise in relation to the demonstration.
The manner in which information is organized in both articles is also quite interesting. In both the articles, the authors begin by introducing readers or targeted audience to the main issues or main topics, for instance: In the CBS article, the author directly introduces his audience to the events that transpired i.e. a large demonstration began at the Mall of America and rapidly spread to Minneapolis (Jamar Clark Police Shooting). In regard to the Guardian News Article, the author also introduces the discussion by going direct to the point as he states that: Thousands of demonstrators or organizers gather in front of the largest Mall in Minneapolis and the United States (Holpuch, Amanda). The discussion goes further in both articles in a chronological manner indicating how events transpired or how one activity led to another. It is important to acknowledge that the main reasons why a significant number of authors begin their discussions by introducing the major topics or issues is to ensure that the attention of readers is not deviated towards author issues. Many have also developed laxity in regard to reading documents that seem long; in order to ensure that such readers do not miss major points, hence, the need to introduce the critical issues at the introductory sections.
Works Cited
"Jamar Clark Police Shooting: Black Lives Matter Protesters Target Minneapolis Airport." CBSNews. CBS Interactive. Web. 25 Feb. 2016. <http://www.cbsnews.com/news/black-lives-matter-protesters-target-minneapolis-airport-jamar-clark-police-shooting/>.
Holpuch, Amanda. "Black Lives Matter Protest Shuts down Mall of America and Airport Terminal." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 2015. Web. 25 Feb. 2016. <http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/dec/23/black-lives-matter-organizers-protest-mall-of-america>.
