Outrage over Stanford sexual-assault sentencing (National)

STANFORD, Cal.

TIME Magazine reports that outrage has erupted over social media since the sentencing of Stanford University star swimmer, Brock Turner. 20-year-old Turner, was convicted on three sexual offense charges, and sentenced to six-months in county jail.  

CNN obtained court documents that say police discovered Turner sexually assaulting an unconscious woman behind a dumpster on January 18^th. He was arrested after trying to flee the scene.

According to TIME, Judge Aaron Persky’s ruling has come under fire on social media, believing it not a severe enough punishment. TIME also reports that online petitions to recall Judge Persky have collected over 500,000 signatures. Hashtags such as “#brockturner” and “#Stanfordrapevictim” have also been trending.

The 23-year-old victim read a 12-page account of how the incident has impacted her life. CNN reports the letter has been viewed over 13 million times on Buzzfeed alone.

Reasoning:

I chose this story because by now it has become ubiquitous, and everyone is aware of it. It is also very newsworthy because of the activism that has erupted for safety on college campuses, which is something that impacts students, parents, professors, alumni etc. The story has also gained prominence due to how many have shared in on social media and has been included in national conversations about racism, feminism, and rape culture. It became even more newsworthy on social media, which sort of showed it’s new found power when it comes to journalism, and how the public is getting their news. It’s also very interesting because it comes soon after semester has ended, and also just before the summer Olympics. The latter is another factor that adds into the public’s intrigue because Turner was a prospective Olympian at one time.