The News Media

The News Media: When is enough, enough?

The News Media: When is enough, enough?

The headline reads: 27 killed by 13 year-old at middle school in Smallville, USA. No, this did not happen, but similar headlines are not uncommon. Once something like this happens in America, we see an onslaught of media coverage which shows all the horror and drama of the incident. Before the night is over we know who did it, how it was done, and on occasion we even find out why it happened. The news media is in a feeding frenzy, trying to get more "scoops" of information to report. With all the information that the news media digs up and reports on various criminal investigations, you have to wonder if the news media is out of control and acting irresponsibly, or if it is effectively exercising its constitutional rights to freedom of the press.

The First Amendment

The First Amendment states: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances" (Nardo, 1998).

Freedom of speech has been an ongoing controversy. The First Amendment has long been a shield to the media upon crime coverage. The First Amendment gives the media the right to make known to the public details for ongoing and closed investigations, regardless of the person(s) involved. At the time this Amendment was derived, Americans appeared to have more of a sense of their morals, and what to relegate to the public. Over time, it has become more and more of a problem. Free speech has entitled the media to publish actions and accusations on many issues. Crime in general is covered so highly today, resulting from the requests of the inquisitive minds propelling "I want to know!"

The perception of guilt or innocence of the accused offender

Innocent before proven guilty couldn't be more obscure when it comes to crime coverage by the media. The media has such an impact on the thoughts and ideas of the general public that make it very hard to uphold.

We must recognize that society is made up of millions of individuals and the majority of them are responsible for forming personal opinions. However, let's not discount the affect that media plays on that formation. The fact that the media is covered under the First Amendment gives them the opportunity to give the public pieces of information that could easily sway opinions from innocent to guilty. Because of the First Amendment, and its protection over the media, juries are often kept secluded from the media and any contact with other outside influences during an ongoing trial due to the possibility of tainted perceptions.

The media can greatly effect the right to a fair trial. In the case of O.J. Simpson, the media released an abundance of negative information, which did nothing but deliver a guilty verdict for Orenthal James Simpson, before a trial had begun. When the media broadcast prior abuse, the Bronco chase and other incriminating evidence from the crime scene, it sent the public into a guilty verdict. In this case, the media played a large role in the public's conviction before a trial had ever begun.

Excessive Media Coverage

A 911 call is placed and the police are immediately dispatched to the scene of the crime. When the police arrive to the scene they find the usual components of a crime scene wish are a victim, a subject, witnesses, evidence, and the news media. The police find news media already monitoring and broadcasting information about the criminal investigation; something that they have been doing freely for years. Many believe that the news media's coverage of the crimes and the ensuing investigations could adversely affect the ongoing criminal investigations.

When the media reports progress on the investigation it tips off the suspect where the investigators are on the case. In a recent interview with Detective Dory of the Clarksville, TN Police Department, Detective Dory stated, "When the media releases specific clues from the crime scene, it alerts suspects prior to questioning." Detective Dory continues to say, "If the media does not reveal the specifics of a crime scene, then the police department has a greater possibility of a suspect slipping up in questioning" (Personal interview, January 2004). The suspect is supposed to be surprised when caught not knowing what the investigators know.

The news media can often make the crime worse than it is by filming the investigation at the wrong time. An example of filming an investigation at the wrong time would be when body bags are lying around or a bloody crime scene. This gives the viewers a gory image and violates the victim's privacy. It is not known what occurred and the media is broadcasting it on the nightly news.

Another concern of the media includes interviewing witnesses at inappropriate times. The media usually gathers their information from the people on the streets. There is a reason why the detectives wait to interview the witnesses. The time and the place is back at their office not on the streets. Witnesses need time to gather their thoughts and get past what happen. People tend to say things before thinking when asked on the spot and this causes false information to be broadcast over the television.

As stated before, the media violates the victim's privacy by searching for the negative information, printing the victim's name or address, and digging into the victim's past. When the victim is scattered all over the news they want it to go away and they do that by not being involved in the case. This causes the case to be unsolved and a suspect to roam the streets free. Not only does this affect the current investigation but also it will affect future ones because the victims will not want their information out on the news. The media needs to understand the emotions of people involved in the investigation.

The media is involved with investigations from start to finish and tend to release information that the public possibly does not need to know. There is control on what the media should know, but they always get information one way or another. Law enforcement officers, whether they are Federal Agents, local police officers, or detectives, are forced to adjust their tactics to circumvent the media.

Primary and Secondary Victimization

As victims of heinous crimes, surviving relative or survivors of crimes, going through the stages of grief