Conclusion Mass media has become easily accessible and has grown bigger than anyone could have imagined 20 years ago, for the invention of the internet, mass media is able to reach a bigger audience at an almost unbelievable rate. Many people depend on mass media as a source of information, taking the information at face value, perpetuating the information they received unto others. Whether the information be about politicians, world affairs, and or the police, we, as society, do believe what we see and hear, though we often don’t question or ponder the validity of such information. This research was created in order to contribute insight on how our perceptions of police are crafted by the information we receive, but this insight isn’t limited to the police and we should we question what we receive, for provided information may not be necessarily true or an accurate representation of a group or entity. Gathering information from one source doesn’t further one’s knowledge of a subject, but through many sources, one can garnish an ideal that may be fair and neutral and if one were to blindly accept the information fed by the mass media, social media, physical interactions, and worth of mouth, thus would create misconception and misinformation.
The research suggests the media played a small role and only had slight effects in altering the way people perceived the police, but ultimately, many people’s perceptions of police were shaped by their physical interactions and the
The study shows, “This shift in discourse has been motivated by two factors—first, the recognition by public officials that increases in the professionalism of the police and dramatic declines in the rate of crime have not led to increases in police legitimacy, and second, greater awareness of the limits of the dominant coercive model of policing and of the benefits of an alternative and more consensual model based on public trust and confidence in the police and legal system.” Tyler, Tom R., et al. "The Impact of Psychological Science on Policing in the United States." Psychological Science in the Public Interest, vol. 16, no. 3, Dec. 2015, pp. 75-109. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1177/1529100615617791. There are also statements of how a police officer’s behavior has effects on the community and how the perceive the
The majority of individuals don’t interact personally with law enforcement. Those with negative views of police often don’t want them in their neighborhoods. In the article Racially Biased Policing: Determinants of Citizen Perceptions the authors point out that, “leaders within the minority community often criticize the police in public, which may reinforce whites’ impressions that minorities are trying to interfere with crime control”(Weitzer and Tuch, 2005). When a crime occurs, the police are often blamed for not being around. If individuals were able to form their own opinions based off of their own experiences, they may be more willing to cooperate with them. Press’s portrayal of police can have a major impact on their day-to-day work. For instance, when police try to locate a suspect and ask for help from locals only to be ignored. Media can sometimes give the image that a certain group of individuals, such as police, have particular biases. The most prominent bias people are labeled with is race. While biases do exist, people often don’t acknowledge the ones that can play a part in how an officer acts. Perhaps they were on duty at night, or in a neighborhood known to be particularly dangerous. Media often helps individuals from their opinions, but they could also help to bridge the gap between civilians and law
When the majority of a community complies with the police it not only enables the police to focus on those breaking the law, but it also establishes a relationship with the community and gains their help in aspects such as identifying wanted suspects. It is when a community believes the police are being effective in their work that they are more likely to be willing comply. In a study conducts to gain insights on how people view the police’s legitimacy, they are asked numerous questions to find out why they feel they should comply with the law and if they agree or disagree with statements such as “I respect the police”. The way people feel about the policed is often largely shaped based off their previous interactions they have had with police. When someone comes into contact with police and they act in a professional manner the experience is more likely to be positive and leave a positive impression of the police on the community member.
In one study, during and after a five year period after a social media post went viral indicating that a particular police department used excessive force, the number of police reports and citizen complaints decreased about 10%. This research implies that police officers does in fact reacts to social media posting and are likely to decrease excessive force used on the job due to being watch all the time. As expected, this research make officers and citizens more aware of the huge impact social media has on the use of excessive force by police. In addition, this research proposal should or may encourage officers to avoid police brutality while on the job in unnecessary situations. Why? Because their actions will be posted to social media and millions of people will be able to form their opinions and perceptions. What this also mean is citizens cannot be too sensitive to police interaction with the public (if the situation is cause to use excessive force) because anything can go viral and can create a broader situation of hostility and distrust between our protectors (police officers) and
According to Masters (2017), police officers are responsible for being able to maintain order, enforce laws, and provide service to the public. To assure that their job is done, police departments develop different approaches: preventive patrol, problem-oriented policing, community-oriented policing, and aggressive order maintenance (Masters, 2017). However, when police officers exhibit these approaches with wrongful intentions and lack of experience and education, many of the citizens’ experiences with officers can tend to be negative, which could cause “lower opinions” and a “stronger effect on attitudes” towards general law enforcement (Weitzer & Tuch, 2004, p. 307). Weitzer and Tuch (2004)
I agree with Surviving the Circus: How effective leaders work well with the media. The media has a lot of influence on the way people think and have. I think the media have the ability to encourage most people to work the police department and view the police department in a favorable light instant of a negative light when they feel like the department is being honest with them. Believe
The media portrayal of policing is filled with both positive and negative representations of police work. As a result, a complex relationship exists between media consumption and public attitudes towards the police. The purpose of this study is to test the impact that media consumption has on attitudes toward police misconduct. The research design proposed for use in this study would be the experimental design, a two-group, posttest-only, randomized experiment.
“Research indicates that the majority of public knowledge about crime and justice is derived from the media (Roberts and Doob, 1990; Surette, 1998). Therefore, it is imperative to examine the effects that the mass media have on attitudes toward crime and justice. The purpose of this research is to examine how the media influences audience perceptions of police effectiveness and to examine whether media consumption is related to fear of crime and punitive justice attitudes.’’ – with that being said, if the news media is portraying the police badly – the public will see the police badly. In reality, I question myself how often I see the news media air an article about the excellency of the police, it is often slim to none. While we also have those crimes aired that are serious which increase the fear of crimes in some individuals listed in a study shown in one of my sources listed “In terms of audience effects, fear of victimization will depend on who is viewing the crime stories. Research indicates that residents in high crime urban areas who watch a large amount of television are more likely to be afraid of crime (Doob and MacDonald, 1979; Gerbner et al,
In the journal, Media Influence on Citizen Attitudes Toward Police Effectiveness, Kenneth Dowler researched the effects media has on community attitudes towards how effective police are. Research shows that race, gender, age, education, geographical location, political views, and socioeconomic status plays a role in attitudes towards police (Dowler, 2002). There allegedly is a discrepancy whether police are portrayed positively or negatively by the media (Dowler, 2002). Dowler measured using three different types of questions, seven total. The first three questions were about confidence in police protect, solve, and prevent crime (Dowler, 2002). Dowler’s next three questions were about related to police promptness, fairness, and friendliness.
In this age of social media, all our issues as a society finds its way onto the pages of Twitter, Instagram, Facebook etc.. However, none more poignant than the eroding relationship of everyday American citizens and police commissioned to protect and serve them. Social media has put into the spotlight the behavior of the police as well as the people they serve. Before social media, the events that have flooded the media in recent months, may not have gotten a second glance. However, now every person with a cellphone is a potential witness, willing to share the footage with the world; at the push of a few buttons. Presented with these images, we have to ask ourselves a few obvious questions: Has social
This essay will seek to redress the balance by arguing that, while clear guidelines for the use of the police deadly force must be present, the remodeling of the role of the police as a public servant first and foremost is seen to be the key to ethical law enforcement (Pollock, 2012). In addition, the critical importance of accurate media representation will be considered, as this is the factor that, in essence, shapes public opinion.
In the past six months, there has been a noticeable change in how Americans view the police forces. Though many believe the police must act with responsibility and care, they see the officers as doing what they feel is needed to protect the most people possible. Others appreciate the officers, but have low confidence in their decisions and believe they are abusing their authority. The public has responded in several ways to the recent killings of both civilians and police. However, life without police would be complete anarchy leading to more violence. It is because of these officers, that we, as Americans, are able to go out into our daily lives without total fear of our surroundings. Although many have responded to the escalation of
At San Francisco State University and other colleges, mass media had a slight effect on people’s perception of police, but the data was not entirely conclusive on whether or not mass media was a direct causation; the survey is suggestive in that mass media is indeed a slight modifier of people’s perception of police. Majority of the respondents had some sort of a physical interaction with the police, but most of the interactions involved some sort of traffic violation and most of the people felt that they their perception of police stemmed from their personal experience with the police, as well as conversations with friends and family. Though when asked if mass media does sway people’s perception and whether they have been swayed
Recently, local police departments in the U.S have been under scrutiny. Media reports increase identifying with police brutality, discrimination, and self-protection. There has been systematic coverage of attacks and other violations. In these reports about the police and wrongdoings in the media, it is not hard to conclude that crime is on the rise all around. The United States feels like it is no longer a protected place where youngsters can play in the front yard without hazards. The media provides an awesome source of information. In any case, it is basic to perceive that it has some level of control over our recognitions and we should search for actualities before making a speedy judgment. All things considered, educated natives are basic to a solid government. As Mass Media reports on the current events, its audience is subjected to the opinions and theories of the reports. Most people are not going to investigate for themselves what is really happening, they rely on the
Behavioral sciences play a central role in figuring out the likely effect of mass media and communication in the society. Different theories and approaches are used to figure this out. This study refers to the Uses and Gratifications, and Cultivation theories to consider the effect of the media article below on individuals. The uses and gratification theory argues that consumers of a given media uses this media to satisfy and fulfill specific desires and needs. On the other hand, cultivation theory holds that heavy exposure to a certain media can cause an individual to have an illusory perception of the life reality based on the most consistent and repetitive message that is given in this media (Fourie, 2011).