Decades in prison for girlfriend killer_The Namibian_17 April 2015

Name of article: Decades in prison for girlfriend killer”

Name of Publication: The Namibian

Date: 17 April 2015

Country: Namibia

Theme: Gender Based Violence

Skills: new reporting

Genre: News

GEM Classification: Gender Blind

 Analysis

• Using single source story
• Focus is put on court proceeding and statements and no other information is used to add value to the story

Description: The article discusses a court case and handing down of verdict for a GBV perpetrator who killed his girlfriend of 21 years old at the time of murder. It offers a vivid description of the extent of brutality experienced

Headline: The headline is relavenat to the story as it zooms in on the severity of the case and hence the more jail time.

Sources: Only one source is used in the article. In as much as it is the norm in journalism to use official sources in news more voices are needed in the stories especially voices of those affected for example family members of the victim. Article missed several opportuinites to interview other sources relevant to the story eg, the family of the victim , womens rights groups.

Perspective: .  Court records are used to map the story and a judge, who is the only source is quoted throughout the story. By simply relying on the court reports and proceedings the coverage lacks depth and breadth showing that there are missing aspect to the story.The human rights dimensions of this act are not explored. No representatives from women’s rights groups are interviewed. The story does not provide any context, for example, an explanation of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), or detail rates of GBV in Namibia. court documents contain accurate information which form a foundation of any court case, but  the reporter misses an opportunity to interrogate issues further.