Questions

• What is the author's / speaker's socio-political position? With what social, political, or professional groups is the speaker identified?

The speaker identifies with a professional group because she keeps herself out of it. She is thinking of the people in Jail. 

• Does the speaker have anything to gain personally from delivering the message?

Not that I can find from the information given and the research I have tried to do on her. 

• Who is paying for the message? Where does the message appear? What is the bias of the medium? Who stands to gain?

The Washington Post's website pays for and displays the message. The bias seems to be toward the inmates. They are the ones standing to gain.

• What sources does the speaker use, and how credible are they? Does the speaker cite statistics? If so, how were the data gathered, who gathered the data, and are the data being presented fully?

The author cites government documents such as the 8th amendment and the National Commission on Correctional Health Care and they are all linked in the article; no statistics were cited. 

• How does the speaker present arguments? Is the message one-sided, or does it include alternative points of view? Does the speaker fairly present alternative arguments? Does the speaker ignore obviously conflicting arguments?

The speaker presents the argument professionally giving both sides of view but mostly using facts from our government documentation. She seems to touch base on both sides of the argument but being toward the inmate. 

• If the message includes alternative points of view, how are those views characterized? Does the speaker use positive words and images to describe his/her point of view and negative words and images to describe other points of view? Does the speaker ascribe positive motivations to his/her point of view and negative motivations to alternative points of view?

She does view both sides of the article but is looking at the poor health care for the inmates in jail. She uses a tone that is negative on how the inmates are being treated health wise.