The campaign will also highlight the pivotal role the public will play in reversing the detrimental effects these plastic bags have had on our planet in such a brief period of time.
I think this is one of the main point that Finn is try to portray in her supporting of the ban the bag movement. Throughout the article she uses many rhetorical strategies to support and strengthen her claim as well as appeal to her audience.
They kill thousands of marine mammals and shore birds every year. Last year 10,500 plastic bags were removed from the South Shore estuary by volunteers. The answer to this ubiquitous pollution plague is simple, ban the bag.
Here Finn uses both logo and pathos to strengthen her claim. She makes the audience feel sad for the helpless animal being killed by the bags while also using statistics for the actual number of bags that were removed from the water. It is also evident that Finn is biased towards her claim and wants the "bag to be banned".
BYOB – Bring Your Own Bag
Finn uses this to connect with and appeal to her audience
Spencer said he'd heard from scores of local residents, business owners and environmental advocates that a move to ban the single-use bags was needed
"They": In the article, Finn is addressing the general public who both support and disagree with the idea of a ban on single-use plastic bags. She presents a lot of biased, but supportive, information to help argue that the proposed ban should be passed. She is also bringing light to the fact that almost every one agrees on the fact that ocean pollution and general pollution by plastic bags is bad, including the companies making them. She states that business owners "feel with the current movement to reduce their use a countywide policy would make sense" and that the "time has come to work together and tackle this issue". This also illuminates the view of the stakeholders (the plastic bag companies) position on the idea of their product causing pollution and what course of action they are going to take.
$4 billion per year to give out the bags; a cost that is passed on to the consumer in the form of higher prices
Here Finn is addressing the concern of the consumers who fear that if plastic bags are banned from supermarkets that they will not be able to afford a new type of bag. Here she uses logos to support her argument. She states that the bags are actually causing an increase in product costs, whereas with the new bags a reusable bag would be a single cost of 10 cents and lower prices. She also states that $10 million a year is spent to dispose of plastic bags. This information supports her argument and persuades her audience that plastic bags should be banned.
Should Single-Use Plastic Bags Be Banned?
Finn, Lisa. "POLL: Should Single-Use Plastic Bags Be Banned?" North Fork, NY Patch. 09 Mar. 2016. Web. 10 Mar. 2016.
This article is published by the North Fork Patch, a local news station for North Fork, New York that presents information on breaking and local news, events, weather, sports, schools, shopping, and restaurants. The article is written by Lisa Finn, a journalist for the station. In the article Finn talks about the proposed ban on Single-Use Plastic bags in places such as grocery stores and how the general public is reacting to the proposal. This is a popular source rather than an academic source or scholarly journal.
Suffolk County Legis. William R. Spencer, M.D.
Throughout the article Finn quotes William Spencer, a Suffolk County Legislator who is also a Doctor of Medicine; he recently passed a bill to "limit the use of disposable plastic bags". This increases her credibility because she is bringing in outside sources who have experience in the area she is discussing (the usage of plastic bags) and who have titles of credibility (legislator, M.D.).
Those who've been imploring local government officials to "just say no" to single-use plastic bags might soon see their wish come true, as officials consider a Suffolk County-wide plastic bag ban.
Finn does not explicitly articulate her claim however she argues her claim throughout the entire article: she argues that a ban on single-use plastic bags should be passed in North Fork, New York despite some opposing views on the topic. While she presents bias throughout the article she also uses evidence and some rhetorical strategies to support her claim and to increase her credibility.