‘They Are Slaughtering Us Like Animals’

Since Rodrigo Duterte took office as president of the Philippines on June 30, two thousand people have been killed by the hands of the police alone as a part of his brutal antidrug campaign. Mr. Duterte made a call to slaughter anybody suspected of dealing or using drugs. Vigliantes and police officers have taken this call to action and have shot down people in the streets and in their homes. Many times, police officers make up stories about suspected drug dealers/users taking up arms against officers and being shot as a result, when the truth is many people are completely defenseless when they are shot and killed. It appears as if nobody in this country is safe.

I like that it started off with a very descriptive anecdote. It complemented the headline well and really helped set the scene. The author’s use of pictures and video also gave the article impact. I believe they were tastefully incorporated throughout the story and I really liked the fact that they were full screen and the text disappeared when you viewed them. It made them inescapable.

I believe that a story such as this can be much more lenient with organization since it’s more of a story telling article of the deaths of specific people. That being said, I still believe this article had excellent flow.

This article is newsworthy because of human interest, impact/significance, and timing. This story appeals to human interest because it is emotionally charged with pictures of the deaths of innocents. This story is significant because an entire country is being impacted by this President’s reign and many people have died as a result. I also believe this story is timely because it’s covering an ongoing event.

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