Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons™
Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 2 of 2
Full-Text Articles in Criminology and Criminal Justice
Challenging The Media-Incarceration Complex Through Media Education, Bill Yousman
Challenging The Media-Incarceration Complex Through Media Education, Bill Yousman
Communication, Media & The Arts Faculty Publications
Focusing on prime-time dramatic television as the most prevalent source of fictional images of violence, crime, and incarceration, in this chapter I address the distorted narratives and images that saturate popular television dramas. I also draw upon interviews I conducted with ex-prisoners to show how media representations of imprisonment, though inaccurate and misleading, shape the perceptions even of those who have themselves been incarcerated.
Forensic Science, Wrongful Convictions, And American Prosecutor Discretion, Dennis J. Stevens
Forensic Science, Wrongful Convictions, And American Prosecutor Discretion, Dennis J. Stevens
Criminal Justice Faculty Publications
A hot controversy exists about the reliability of forensic science as reported by prime-time drama television series in bringing violent criminals to justice. This exploratory research will show that neither forensics or its fictionalised (CSI Effect) accounts, nor substantial evidence secured by police investigators, shape prosecutor decisions to charge a suspect with a crime, which can often result in freeing guilty suspects and convicting innocent individuals. In the summer of 2006, 444 American prosecutors responded to a survey. The findings reveal that judges, juries, and defence lawyers are influenced more by prime-time American drama forensic accounts than by the substantial …