19-12-2022 Portfolio
Legal English I
RE2A 2022-2023
,Summaries
America’s death penalty divide: why capital punishment is
getting better, and worse
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/15/us-death-penalty-abolish-executions
Currency
• When was the information published?
o The article appeared on 16 december 2021, making it a recent
article. The article describes the expiring year 2021.
• Does the topic require (more) recent information?
o As the article describes the past year 2021, no or hardly more
recent information can be included.
Relevance
• Does the information give an answer to your question?
o Yes, it gives a very clear picture of just how things are with the
death penalty in America. After all, we know that the death penalty
has been abolished in Belgium but it is interesting to know what the
evolution is like in America.
• Who is the information written for?
o For people interested in the death penalty or the US legal system.
• Did you check a variety of sources before deciding this is the one you will use?
o Yes, I knew I wanted to write about the death penalty so I read a
few articles on this before choosing one.
Authority
• Who is the author / sponsor / organization? What are the author’s
qualifications?
o The author is Ed Pilkington. He is one of the authors of The
Guardian and writes many of the articles.
• Is there any contact information? Does the URL tell you something about the
source?
o The Guardian is taken as one of the most important and serious
newspapers in the UK. The URL tells it is a commercial site. The
website offers the option to contact.
Accuracy
1
, • Can you verify the information in another source?
o Yes, the article refers to a report by The Death Penalty Information
Center. So the information can be checked here and other
information can be checked on other websites.
• Does the language seem to reflect an opinion, emotion or a point of view?
o The article contains a point of view. It is against the death penalty
but in my view is still very professionally objectively described.
Purpose
• Does the point of view seem to be objective or rather subjective?
o It is quite objective but you do notice that it is written against the
death penalty so there is a subjective insight behind it.
2
Legal English I
RE2A 2022-2023
,Summaries
America’s death penalty divide: why capital punishment is
getting better, and worse
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/dec/15/us-death-penalty-abolish-executions
Currency
• When was the information published?
o The article appeared on 16 december 2021, making it a recent
article. The article describes the expiring year 2021.
• Does the topic require (more) recent information?
o As the article describes the past year 2021, no or hardly more
recent information can be included.
Relevance
• Does the information give an answer to your question?
o Yes, it gives a very clear picture of just how things are with the
death penalty in America. After all, we know that the death penalty
has been abolished in Belgium but it is interesting to know what the
evolution is like in America.
• Who is the information written for?
o For people interested in the death penalty or the US legal system.
• Did you check a variety of sources before deciding this is the one you will use?
o Yes, I knew I wanted to write about the death penalty so I read a
few articles on this before choosing one.
Authority
• Who is the author / sponsor / organization? What are the author’s
qualifications?
o The author is Ed Pilkington. He is one of the authors of The
Guardian and writes many of the articles.
• Is there any contact information? Does the URL tell you something about the
source?
o The Guardian is taken as one of the most important and serious
newspapers in the UK. The URL tells it is a commercial site. The
website offers the option to contact.
Accuracy
1
, • Can you verify the information in another source?
o Yes, the article refers to a report by The Death Penalty Information
Center. So the information can be checked here and other
information can be checked on other websites.
• Does the language seem to reflect an opinion, emotion or a point of view?
o The article contains a point of view. It is against the death penalty
but in my view is still very professionally objectively described.
Purpose
• Does the point of view seem to be objective or rather subjective?
o It is quite objective but you do notice that it is written against the
death penalty so there is a subjective insight behind it.
2
