In recent years, death row prisoners have been presented with the firing squad as an option — and some have requested it. After Marion Bowman considered the firing squad, South Carolina officially brought back the method by executing Brad Sigmon in March 2025.
For social media videos, Marshall Project Staff Writer Maurice Chammah and Audience Engagement Producer Chris Vazquez explained recent developments to share the voices of people on death row and to share the history of U.S. executions. In a media ecosystem where true crime sensationalizes gore and suffering, The Marshall Project reported frankly on the complicated realities of the criminal justice system.
Vazquez scripted, directed and produced short vertical videos that were cross-posted on YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and Instagram Reels. In one clip, he interviews Chammah from the viewpoint of a viewer curious about execution methods while acting out Chammah’s narration to capture attention. In a follow-up video, Vazquez shares commenter’s perspectives on the firing squad vs. lethal injection, then they add research findings to the conversation for viewers to consider. In another follow-up to commenters, Vazquez draws from Chammah’s book on the death penalty to narrate a sketch on how the U.S. ended and then restarted executions decades ago.
