Comm455/History of Journalism

The main goal of the abolitionist movement was to achieve immediate emancipation of all slaves and end racial discrimination and segregation. It didn’t become as intense until 1830. In the decade before that, religious movements arose, stressing the moral imperative to end sinful practices, like slavery.

In 1831, William Garrison began publishing his famous newspaper, the Liberator, which was supported by free African Americans. Two years later, Garrison and 6 other delegates met in Philadelphia, to found American Anti-Slavery Society. This society was against slavery and portrayed it as being a sin that must be abolished immediately. They also endorsed nonviolence, and condemned racial prejudice.

Activities by this society sparked hostile responses from the North and the South. Violent mobs became extremely dangerous, especially for those who were writing about banishing slavery, like Garrison and Elijah Lovejoy. After Lovejoy was killed by a violent mob, people became to fear speaking up against slavery.

The movement ended around 1870. The society didn’t rest until its mission was complete. It wasn’t until the 15th amendment was passed that the American Anti-Slavery Society declared their mission completed (The 15th amendment extended male suffrage to African Americans).

http://www.gq.com/story/justin-bieber-gq-cover

Is it just me or does it seem as if majority of magazines sold today focus solely on the body, fashion and mindset of a woman? Whether it is the newest edition of Vogue, Elle, Harper’s, or the Cosmopolitan, they all seem to mainly focus on the female sex. It wasn’t until the creation of Apparel Arts in 1931 where a magazine of men’s fashion became a trade publication in New York City. The magazine of Apparel Arts eventually adjusted its name to GQ, short for Gentlemen’s Quarterly, in the year of 1958. The previous editor-in-chief, Art Cooper made the executive decision to expand the central idea of fashion and turn the magazine’s focus onto general topics such as politics, sports, technology entertainment, food, fitness, and relationships. In 2003, Jim Nelson, current editor-in-chief has continued to grow and magnify these central ideas since. However, the target market of the magazine was directed more towards young men between the ages of 13 to 30. With Nelson’s lead, GQ has been nominated for 46 National Magazine Awards.

            It’s no surprise that GQ remains as one of the top men’s fashion magazines to its competitors. The magazine releases yearly awards known as “GQ Men of the Year” in order to appreciate the most powerful and inspiring men during that time. In addition, they report about top celebrities, athletes and music artists, which attract a large crowd of consumers. On their most recent cover for the month of April, they released a story on the model and soccer superstar- David Beckham. Upon the cover Beckham, the magazine promotes words such as “style bible, hair gods, the patron saint of swagger, and cheap guide to look expensive.” It’s rather clear that GQ magazine chooses and promotes specific men who represent the values and ideals of the company. Beckham upholds the ideas of respect, style, athleticism and family, which appeal to most men who are reading the magazine. So, for all the men looking to spruce up their style, understanding relationships, or proper health advice, make sure to pick up your latest edition of GQ.

To learn more about GQ magazine, click this link here.

Micheal Finkel and his sister Source: http://www.nationalgeographic.com /adventure/0211/popup_finkels.html

Micheal Finkel, once famed editor for the New York Times Magazine, was given the pink slip after “lying in print” in an article entitled “Is Youssouf Malé a Slave?”. Michael Finkel was known for bizarre stories, specifically stories from places considered to be outside the realm of traditional journalism. In reality, the truth had fallen outside of conventional journalism, and was lost in various undocumented accounts and unwritten notes. In fact, Finkel rarely carried a notebook. The only source of information was his head, and what came out of his head wasn’t always representative of what had gone in. According to the Observer, Finkel claimed to have taken the words of several young workers and “…combined them into one representative voice”. This “one” voice was the fabricated “Male Youssouf’s“. Finkel realized his errors and accepted his punishment without reprisal. How he got in the career-ending mess would come to light shortly after his removal from the New York Times.

“We were suspicious…but we believed there might be an explanation of what had happened.”- Adam Moss, New York Times

When Finkel arrived at the coccoa plantations of West Africa, he soon realized that his story would fall apart without some sort of adjustment. In his words, Finkel describes the whole ordeal as a “busted play”. When he arrived in Africa, he found nothing more than harsh conditions. There was nothing representative of slavery. There was nothing representative of illegal conditions. Something had to be done to save the story. Finkel spent weeks in Africa, attempting to make a child labor story out of something that wasn’t there. Finkel began a draft that was a running article consisting of various compiled stories. According to Chris Anderson, Micheal Finkel’s photographer, Finkel worked on his story for “three days straight”, facing multiple rejections from the New York Times. In Anderson’s words, Finkel finally “cracked” and decided to run the draft through the Times.

Child laborers on a cocoa farm Source: http://mindthismagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/chocolate-child- slavery-ivory-coast.jpg

After it’s publication, the fact-checkers became wary of the story. Various tips were given to the Times, suggesting significant inconsistencies within the article. Adam Moss, editor for the New York Times Magazine, launched an intricate investigation into the article. He immediately contacted an individual with whom Finkel reached out for information. The man’s name was  Ibrahim Haidara, a worker for Save the Children. Haidara pointed out things that never happened, such as Haidara teaching a young child the Malaian national anthem. In addition, Haidara pointed out that Finkel compiled interviews from various children. He didn’t even recall a boy named “Youssouf”. It was discovered that “Youssouf Male” was devoid of all contact with the outside world. After the investigation was completed, Finkel was removed from his position. Finkel could no longer be trusted as a journalist.

Micheal Finkel’s story represents the priority of timeliness over accuracy that has become ever-present in the mass media. As an audience, we expect news to be objective, and free of prior bias. We cannot say that the Finkel story is a complete failure of journalism, as Finkel was caught and ultimately faced repercussions. What we can say is that these stories have unforeseen consequences. Every bit of news that reaches an audience produces an impact, which can fuel a reaction. A reaction that can forever change the world.

Portland Trailblazer’s CJ McCollum CREDIT: http://www.blazersedge.com/2015/12/28/10676658/cj-mccollum-improved-nba-scorer-turn-heads

Lehigh’s CJ McCollum‘s dreams were answered when the Portland Trailblazers selected him with the 10th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. After 2 years of playing behind talent players, McCollum was elevated to starting shooting guard and is having an incredible season for a Portland Trailblazer team that is suppose to be in an rebuild year but are a playoff-bound team. With all of his current success in the NBA, McCollum is already starting to carve out is role for life after basketball.

Unlike many NBA prospects, McCollum graduated from Lehigh University with a degree in journalism. When his career ends, McCollum wants to pursue a career in broadcast journalism. Even with his playing career still progressing, McCollum is already carving out a career in broadcast journalism.

McCollum’s program CJ’s Press Pass CREDIT: http://www.theplayerstribune.com/cj-mccollum-portland-trailblazers-why-journalism-matters/

On Derek Jeter’s The Player’s Tribune, McCollum reflects on “Why Journalism Matters.” In his piece, McCollum is able to share the unbelievable experience of rehearsing calling a game with NBA broadcaster Tim Capstraw and his educational program, CJ’s Press Pass. CJ’s Press Pass provides high school students in the Portland area the opportunity to get journalism experience to see if that’s what they want to pursue as a career. Through this program McCollum was able to provide Portland’s Madison High students a once and a lifetime opportunity to cover a Portland Trailblazer home game against Minnesota Timberwolves. McCollum is providing potential journalist the opportunity that could be the thing that changes their life.

CJ McCollum has further his journalism career in congruent with his growing NBA career. Through Sirius radio and the Trailblazer team website, McCollum runs a weekly radio show. Also, McCollum was able to interview incoming NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.

McCollum interviewing NBA Commissioner Adam Silver CREDIT: http://www.forbes.com/sites/darrenheitner/2013/07/11/trail-blazers-guard-c-j-mccollum-interviews-incoming-nba-commissioner-adam-silver/#486911712a30

CJ McCollum has set himself up to not only have a impactful NBA career, but a career in journalism after basketball.

Even now, when I’m watching an NBA game at my house or at a hotel, I’ll often mute the sound and call the game in my head. I try to think of how to translate what I’m seeing into an interesting piece of insight that the average fan would be able to digest.

The Washington Post released an article called “Sweet and Sour” by Marta Zaranska this week that was quite interesting, to say the least.

The article described a plethora of research and increase in studying a potential psychological-olfactory correlation. According to the article, in essence, mood and taste buds are linked. According to studies, your mood can influence things such as how sweet the water is that you are tasting.

… And this is just the beginning.

Not only can mood influence  the things we taste,but the things we taste can also influence our mood and perceptions about our environment around us. The results have shown that ingesting sweets has the potential to “make you feel more romantic” and a 2013 experiment found that just thinking of love can even make plain water “taste sweeter”.

Nancy Dess, a professor of psychology at Occidental College in Los Angeles performed a study on bitter sensitive rats. Her findings found that those that showed a higher aversion to bitterness were also “more jumpy” then regular rats and showed hire indicators of stress than others. in addition, they also showed higher levels of social subordination.

In addition, a propensity towards certain tastes can tell a lot about an individual’s personality type. The article describes how individuals who are typically more sensitive to bitter taste are not only more easily disgusted than others but also have a tendency  to be more emotional “…after watchingand anger and do you think video then other people”.

A 2014 study conducted by German and American psychologist showed that bitter-sensitive individuals were much more likely to be “jumpy” and react more strongly when exposed to loud noises.according to science, this makes sense. Naturally bitterness tells us that a food could potential he contain toxins and is an indicator of danger. So, it is therefore logical to find that bitter sensitive individuals would also have a higher level of sensitivity to other cues of dangerin other aspects of life.

Furthermore, The author went on to state that people who enjoyed foods with more bitter notes in them (i.e. tonic water, radishes)we’re more inclined than others to admit that they “enjoyed tormenting people or that they tend to manipulate others to get their way”.

Does your significant other tend to enjoy a nice, wholesome grapefruit every morning for breakfast? Be careful–Because if they do, they’re probably a sociopath..

If the Beatles have a song named for it, it must be important. I’m talking, of course, about the British music newspaper turned magazine and blog, the New Musical Express (or NME). The music newspaper launched in 1949 in standard newsprint format, and was the first to publish its own singles chart that tracked the climate of music in the UK based on record sales.

The publication has documented the many trends and bands coming out of England for the past 60 years. From psych rock and the rise of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones in the 60s to the punks of the 80s and the chaotic Madchester scene of the 90s, NME covered the most ground on anything going on in the music world. In a country known for producing some of the finest music in the past decade, music fanatics and casual listeners alike could rely on the paper for comprehensive charts and entertaining coverage.

And when musicians from the US started to dominated the airwaves, NME jumped o
n that too, covering the likes of Nirvana. The rise of indie rock again in the early 2000s gave writers lots of new content. The internet allowed them to reach new audiences with online publication of articles but sales still dipped. NME.com saw success and won several awards for its online coverage.

The publication is responsible for informing the masses about indie music throughout many decades. Some have criticized the publication’s one sidedness when it comes to covering only certain genres. But borne of that was calling music that sounds like NME would cover it, well, NME. If a publication’s lasting impression is the coining of its own genre, I would say they’ve weathered the storm of change within the world of music journalism.

Article in the New York Times on the Charles Lindburg Jr. Kidnapping Source:http:// images.rarenewspapers.com/ebayimgs/ 1.93.2012/image012.jpg

Charles Lindbergh Jr. was kidnapped on the evening of April 3, 1936. He was taken from his crib in the Lindberg’s beautiful home in Hopewell, New Jersey. What would ensue afterwards would be one of the most bizarre stories that crime journalists have ever reported. Initially after the kidnapping, the New Jersey state police took over the investigation. Additionally, Lindberg led the investigation, beginning negotiations with Lindberg Jr.’s kidnapper. Lindberg’s lead in the investigation was immediately made public, and it mad the community question the reliability of the police. The investigative team used a retired Bronx schoolteacher by the name of Dr. John F. Condon to communicate with the kidnapper. Dr. Condon would begin these negotiations with the perpetrator under the alias “Jafsie”. The perpetrator went by “John”. Dr. Condon met with John three times in a New Jersey cemetery. In the last meeting, a ransom note was given in exchange for Lindberg Jr. Instead of receiving Lindberg, “John” handed over a note stating that Lindberg Jr. was on a small boat along the coast of Massachussetts. This boat was never found. A month later, the body of Lindberg Jr. was found four miles away from the Lindberg estate. The body had a significant blow to the head, and the cause of death was determined to be homicide.

Comaprison of a sketch of “John” to a photo of Hauptmann Source: http://www.crimemuseum.org/wp-content /uploads/2014/08/ hauptmann.jpg

An interesting break would take place in 1933 when the president issued an executive order declaring that all gold certificates be returned to the treasury. A significant portion of the monies given to “John” were gold certificates. Additionally, the serial numbers of the certificates given to “John” were recorded. Pamphlets were given to banks throughout the region that listed the serial numbers. The New York Bureau was alerted to a $10 gold certificate bearing one of Lindberg’s serial numbers. The certificate was tracked to a gas station. Investigators discovered that the gas attendant had written down the license plate number of a man who had given him the gold certificate. The license plate number was tracked to a man named Richard Hauptmann. After searching his home, police found $14,000 of the Lindberg money. Richard Hauptmann was taken to trial and found guilty of first degree murder. To the press, Hauptmann’s trial was a critical trial to cover. A kidnapping amongst such a prestigous family warranted extra attention. Hundreds of papers throughout the country bore the news of the trial on the front page. Hauptmann was sentenced to death. On April 3, 1936, Hauptmann was put to death. Despite the tremendous evidence against Hauptmann, the case still begs to question whether or not Hauptmann actually committed the crime. Also, how did the press cover this “crime of the century”? What made this case bizarre? Perhaps a long line of false suspects and bizarre twists.

Paper displaying the conviction of Hauptmann Source: <a href="https://s-mediacacheak0.pinimg.com/736x/25/56/ca/ 2556ca13f51551523b343a33b522c212.jpg
“>https://s-mediacacheak0.pinimg.com/736x /25/56/ca/2556ca13f51551523b343a33 b522c212.jpg

Violet Sharpe, the waitress for Mrs. Lindberg’s mothers home, was questioned throughout the investigation. According to the Charles Lindberg website, Violet Sharpe committed suicide by taking a poison pill prior to re-questioning. What is more bizarre is the fact that she had nothing to do with the crime, and upon further investigation, all of her whereabouts were accounted for throughout the night of the abduction. In addition to this bizarre suicide, investigators exhausted thousands of leads throughout the United States. One group in particular, the “Purple Gang” of Detroit was investigated thoroughly. Boat registries throughout the United States were inspected for “Nellie”, the alleged name of a boat on which the Lindberg’s were told  the child had been taken.

One particularly significant lead was Gaston B. Means. He had previously been approached by an investigator named Evalyn McLean. Means had informed her that prior to the kidnapping, Means had been informed of an important kidnapping taking place. Means declined to join in the endeavor. He additionally claimed that his friend had committed the kidnapping.  Mrs. McLean gave $100,000 to Means in order to retreive the child. Mclean conducted daily updates with Means on the investigation and his communications with the alleged perpetrator, named “The Fox”. After a month of no results, McLean contacted the FBI. Means and a another man named Norman T. Whitaker were arrested for embezzlement and fraud. They really had no information on the whereabouts of Charles Lindburg Jr.

With today’s technology, it is now possible to deliver breaking news stories with only using a phone ( and maybe a laptop.) This idea of backpack journalism means that a journalist can go into the field with only a few items, and deliver a news story to their bureau just as if they used expensive equipment.

I personally can say that backpack journalism is a great tool for journalists to have. For example, recently I made a video package using my phone as a camera.

There are a few things that one must consider before pursuing a story though

• 1. Remember to charge your phone-This goes without saying, but if you don’t charge your phone, you have nothing to film with.
  2.  Don’t film sideways
  3. Make sure your shots are well lit. Phones do not have a powerful image señor compared to professional camcorders, so  you need to make sure your subject is not too dark or too bright.

With using small camcorders or phones it is now even easier to deliver breaking news, but there is still even more you can do with your phone. Check out my earlier blog post about how to use your phone to deliver video news live.

A few days ago I watched the Frontline documentary ‘Chasing Heroin’. It was trending on my timeline, having been shared thousands of times and described as a searing film about an epidemic. That epidemic? Heroin.

It’s a well-made film, typical of Frontlines with a strong journalistic edge. It is in fact searing and worth the recognition. Scroll down past the praise and there is a string of commentary that arose– would there be the same reaction if this was a minority community?

Twitter user @TheRealJStan says ‘ Frustrating that the de-escalation of the War on Drugs has only come about due to the face of addiction becoming more white. @TacumaRoe remarks that it’s only when the heroin epidemic hits certain communities that ‘police go from being enforcers to social workers.’

This isn’t a mute point; the documentary itself addresses this issue.

Eric Holder, a former judge in Washington D.C and current Attorney General, talks about his change of heart regarding Drug Policy. Holder references the mandatory minimum sentences he was forced to enact because of the drug war – a practice he describes as problematic.  In Holder’s opinion, drug courts are more effective, and a non-violent petty drug user doesn’t constitute 5-10yr sentences.

Again, the crack epidemic of the 1990s is referenced. Frontlines points out that in the predominately white city of Seattle, the majority arrested were blacks (1:19:45) It wasn’t until a public defender, Lisa Daugaard, brought the disparities to light, that people began to take notice. Naturally, she was met with a great amount of backlash.

This is unfortunate, but it’s nothing new.

Just like in the Jim crow south politics are entangled with racism, this parallel is discussed in Michelle Alexander’s ‘The New Jim Crow’.

Alexander argues that racism adapts and manipulates the system in favor of a racial hierarchy, ultimately reinventing a system that oppresses blacks.

The war on drugs directly targeted low income African Americans and as Alexander points out, it’s ‘regrettable but predictable’ (pg.21, The rebirth of caste)

The United States’ political system was never intended to protect black people. It was made to protect whites and their interests.  Pre-Reagan’s War on Drugs, there was this idea that blacks lacked work ethic.  This lead to legislators in the South adopting ‘black codes’.

“ We have the power to pass stringent police laws to govern the Negroes – this is a blessing – for they must be controlled in some way or white people cannot live among them. “

The codes were meant to keep blacks in place and oppressed. Fast forward a few decades, and history is repeating itself.

As the civil rights movement began to gain traction, it caused concern within the white communities. The fear of African American mobility was just as prevalent, if not slight when Reagan ran for president.

“ It is during this period of uncertainty that the backlash intensifies and a new form of racialized social control begins to take hold”

With Reagan in office, it turned from a war on poverty (which was inclusive of whites)  to a war on drugs (which specifically targeted blacks). Although only 2% of the American population  thought of drugs as a major issue, it didn’t deter Reagan from taking a militarized approach to drugs, specifically crack cocaine.

Via blueskytreatment.com

“By waging a war on drug users and dealers, Reagan made good on his promise to crack down on the racially defined “others”.This is just another example of how the system used blacks to protect the whites and their issues.

The amount of money given to the drug war programs went from 8 to 95 million.  In contrast, programs that supported treatment and education saw a slash in budget.

Crack users, abusers, and dealers where being taken of the street in droves and sent to jail. Meanwhile, the neighborhoods where still experiencing an economic collapse. There was a lack of jobs, lack of education, and lack of funding to address these issues. Money instead was being poured into the tough on crime, drug war.

Even though crack was referred to as an epidemic in the 1990s, there was no push for treatment

Incarceration was the answer. 

There wasn’t a political push from white house staff to offer help instead of jail. It took politician’s children dying and overdosing to realize, drugs isn’t just a ‘black issue’. Similar to how the civil rights movement became a ‘poor people’s movement’, the issue of drug use and abuse had to become an issue inclusive of whites to see systematic change.

The war on drugs didn’t stop with Reagan, it continued with George Bush Sr. and Clinton, who saw the power the fearful white vote holds.  Crack heads commit crime and to be soft on crime can’t be tolerated.

Now back to Heroin,

Now that heroin has become a ‘white issue’, seeping into to suburbs and the home of the powerful, it’s an epidemic, one that requires a light, corrective touch – a stark contrast to the War on drugs that  used harsh punishment and mandatory minimums, birthing the New Jim Crow.

-J.

Looking into the history of journalism we can see as early as 3500 B.C. that velocity was important to news as the Chinese domestication of the horse was used to increase the speed of news. Today with the rise of the Internet and other instant communication technologies, velocity has increased dramatically for both better and worse.

During times of war, velocity is incredibly important as it ensures the people learn of important events as quickly as possible. Today we learn about daily updates in the battle against ISIS in Syria almost as soon as events unfold, even from halfway around the world. This was not always the case.

As we can see in 1775 at the beginning of the Revolutionary War, news of shots being fired at Lexington and Concord on April 19 does not appear in newspapers in South Carolina until May 31. The increases velocity today is a distinct advantage in comparison to times like these in our history.

Another advantage velocity gives both news producers and consumers is that it increases the edge to which journalism can reach. Whereas horses can only run so far, the Internet can reach anywhere it is accessible. So while it may take a print edition of the New York Times weeks to reach far away locations, if that location has Internet access they could view the same content in seconds.

Blogs like Kevin Sites’ show how technology has increased the velocity of journalism Credit: Wired

Another benefit velocity has given journalists is new technologies to use in areas where news is hard to find. Journalists embedded in war-zones or other hazardous situations like Kevin Sites are able to use smartphones and video editing technology to record, produce, and publish content all on a computer.

Though these benefits have made journalism more accessible to many people around the world, the increase of velocity has also had some negative effects. Perhaps one of the most difficult challenges that has arisen from this issue is balancing velocity with accuracy.

With an increasing demand for instantaneous news and updates, competition in the news industry has made being the first outlet to break a story an important part of the process. Editors are now being asked both to ensure content is mistake free and to publish as soon as possible, a difficult balance to keep.

New York Post misidentifies Boston bombers Credit: New York Post

Examples like coverage after the Boston Marathon bombings in 2013 and the controversy over 60 Minutes Benghazi coverage show what can happen when timeliness is prioritized ahead of accuracy. The New York Post was sued for defamation by one of the men who was in the cover picture they used after the bombings, while 60 Minutes was forced to apologize for a source deliberately lied about his experience in Benghazi.

The struggle between accuracy and velocity is still ongoing, and something that Columbia Journalism Review addressed back in 2008:

“This magazine has long argued that doing journalism well is a difficult job, and that it usually requires more, not less, time between the birth of a story idea and its publication. Speed and quantity are integral to the Internet’s competitive advantage, but they aren’t the sum of it. And it isn’t at all clear to us that it is always better to simply be in the conversation, for better or worse, than to wait until you have something worth saying.”

Now that velocity has reached near instantaneous levels, there is no going back to the days when the speed of a horse determined when news was heard. With this new ability comes a responsibility as well to ensure that if a journalist is to say something for the sake of velocity, they should ensure that is something worth saying.

Sources:

http://www.cjr.org/editorial/a_question_of_velocity.php

http://www.poynter.org/2013/the-best-and-worst-media-errors-and-corrections-in-2013/233613/

Marie Taglioni is known as being one of the most influential ballerinas in history. Her astounding talent and graceful dancing set her apart from most other dancers of her time. Taglioni’s debut was the brilliant La Sulphide which was made with her in mind, at least the Italian version did.

http://www.dancespirit.com/uncategorized/crazy-moments-in-pointe-shoe-history/

Taglioni danced during the romantic era of the mid 1800s. This was the time of urbanization in Europe and opera houses were on the rise to meet the need of the upper and middle class want of the arts. Ballet was entering the romantic period where ballerinas were faced with fantastical worlds where good and evil were always at war.

One of the main reason that Taglioni was so popular was because news of her performances could travel quickly throughout Europe. The Italian dancer was popular in France, England, Spain, and many other European countries. The new found love in arts dominated European news and one of the most spectacular story in the dance world during this time was the soup that was made in celebration of Marie Taglioni.

Taglioni used pointe shoes, which was not a new fad, however, it was still an impressive feat, much like it is today! People were fascinated with Taglioni, obsessed even. Fans in Russia were considered to be particularly intense in their devotion to the dancer. It is said that

“A group of her fans even ate a pair of her ballet shoes after her last performance in 1842.”

http://www.nederlandsmuziekinstituut.nl/en/collections/web-presentations/taglioni/1-opening-a-box

I know that you’ve got to be thinking that was a disgusting thing to do; and, as a former dancer who did pointe, I completely agree that pointe shoe soup is a gross and disgusting thought!

What does this have to do with news? The romantic period of this time, combined with the ability for news to spread quickly allowed for people to become enthralled with Marie Baglioni’s talent and career. News allowed for Taglioni to become internationally famous in just a few years. The spread of news made it possible for her career to spread throughout Europe and it became possible for fans to follow her career and even get their hands on her pointe shoes so they could make a soup out of them.

There are a handful of criminal cases that have a left a lasting impact on our nation. The cases that gained attention and popularity did not do so only because of the severity of the crimes, but it was also due to the amount of media coverage they received.

cnn.com

One of the greatest known criminal cases was the trial of American serial killer Ted Bundy.

His Florida trial, in which he was found guilty of the murders of Florida University students, was the first to be televised nationally in the United States, making it a pretty big deal in the world of journalism. It is one of the most-watched television trials in history and has made a lasting impression on the realm of criminal cases.

The trial was covered by over 250 reporters from 5 continents.

Due to his gruesome crimes and shocking personality, Bundy quickly became the major subject of the media. It was said that the media had a love affair with Bundy, due to the endless supply of headlines and stories his heinous crimes and large personality provided them with.

Another aspect of the reporting of Bundy was the fact that he defied the traditional stereotype of a serial killer, leaving the media to shape a newer stereotype. He was described by reporters as intelligent, handsome, articulate, charming, complex, and passionate. These are all attributes that normally would not have been associated with someone who viciously murdered over 30 people at that time.

But with his televised trial allowing his crimes and character to move from the court room to one’s living room, Bundy became a well-known personality. 

And despite his horrific acts, after his televised legal proceeding he was called “mesmerizing,” received thousands of letters from female fans, and even landed himself a wife.

Can he partially thank the media for this? I’d say yes.