The Impact Of The O. J. Simpson Trial

The ‘trial of the century’ changed many Americans’ views on race. While race is the most notable impact and influence associated with the Simpson trial, the highly popularized case brought more transformations than creating a major race controversy. The trials multi-faceted ideas and themes, including media coverage, criminology, views on justice, and domestic abuse, impacted American culture as well. The O.J. Simpson trial had a long-term impact that went further than racial tensions to ultimately change the media, change perception of the justice system, promote better job performance, and to raise awareness of domestic abuse. The O.J. Simpson trial shaped how the media functioned due to its wide reach and popularity which served as a catalyst …show more content…
Simpson negatively impacted the public understanding of the justice system while positively impacting its efficiency by inspiring better job performance and awareness for domestic violence. The public involvement with the trial dramatically changed public perception of the justice system and how it works. For example, the jury’s decision was widely protested against and celebrated, causing those who disagreed with the verdict to be angered and distraught. The reaction of those who did not agree was deep rooted in the idea that the jury should reach a verdict that accurately represents what the vast majority would do. However, the jury is not a democracy. The jury reaches a verdict based only on evidence provided to them during the trial. Additionally, the trial aggravated a vast misunderstanding of the defense counsel’s role, a problem present before the case. The case aggravated this misunderstanding through the overplayed idea that the defense played the race card from the bottom of the deck. The public’s reaction to this idea further confused the defense counsel’s function. The defense is meant to argue on behalf of the defendant, in this case, O.J. Simpson, and ensure the protections provided through the constitutions of federal and state governments to the defendant. In the Simpson case, the defense fulfilled their role completely by arguing for Simpson and providing a narrative that explains his alleged innocence while protecting him under the law. However, many people allowed their beliefs and bias to inspire the idea that the defense manipulated the story and lied to get Simpson