Introduction Capital punishment has been a topic of much debate for many years with very differing points of view. Much of the research done about capital punishment is based on the public opinions, making it an issue close to peoples morals and idealistic thought. The news media then caters to the leaning of the public’s morals. In dealing with capital punishment, the news media tends to focus on three different popular mentalities; the ‘eye for an eye’ mentality, punishment should fit the crime mentality, and the declaring it inhumane treatment of individuals mentality. By focusing on these three views, the media has been able to help inform the public according to the prevailing view of the individual case. In recent years, the media
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The media focused less on the crimes committed by the people on death row and more on their stories and how capital punishment was carried out. The news media also covered how flawed the system was and how people that were innocent were put on death row without a fair trial. This change in media coverage “has highlighted problems in the death penalty’s application” as written in the Washington Post (2013). In an editorial done in the New York Times, they looked into the American justice system and capital punishment in a piece called “The Innocent on Death Row”. It looked at a the case of Henry Lee McCollum and Leon Brown, who were convicted and put on death row after being arrested for the rape, beating and murder of a young girl in 1983. It was later found, 30 years later, that there was no solid evidence proving the two men and committed the crime. At the end of the editorial, The New York Times makes the statement that this case is like many others and that “for this reason alone, the death penalty must end”. By writing about a case involving the murder of a young girl and looking at how long these men had unjustly been on death row, the New York Times makes the stance that capital punishment is not as efficient as the American public once perceived. They are thus forcing people to really look into why capital punishment is still a viable option in the United States and how corrupt it …show more content…
The media is run as a business and therefore looks for the best way to sell a story and high profile cases seeking the death penalty are great news. As written in Fear Factor: The Role of Media in Covering and Shaping the Death Penalty by Susan Bandes, the media “focuses on the investigation, and the trial and replay gory details of the crime” creating a villain and hero situation (pg. 578). Creating a hero and villain scenario allows the media to subtly decide that this person is deserving of the death penalty. The most prominent example of this is in the case of Casey Anthony and the coverage done by Nancy Grace at
The media focused less on the crimes committed by the people on death row and more on their stories and how capital punishment was carried out. The news media also covered how flawed the system was and how people that were innocent were put on death row without a fair trial. This change in media coverage “has highlighted problems in the death penalty’s application” as written in the Washington Post (2013). In an editorial done in the New York Times, they looked into the American justice system and capital punishment in a piece called “The Innocent on Death Row”. It looked at a the case of Henry Lee McCollum and Leon Brown, who were convicted and put on death row after being arrested for the rape, beating and murder of a young girl in 1983. It was later found, 30 years later, that there was no solid evidence proving the two men and committed the crime. At the end of the editorial, The New York Times makes the statement that this case is like many others and that “for this reason alone, the death penalty must end”. By writing about a case involving the murder of a young girl and looking at how long these men had unjustly been on death row, the New York Times makes the stance that capital punishment is not as efficient as the American public once perceived. They are thus forcing people to really look into why capital punishment is still a viable option in the United States and how corrupt it …show more content…
The media is run as a business and therefore looks for the best way to sell a story and high profile cases seeking the death penalty are great news. As written in Fear Factor: The Role of Media in Covering and Shaping the Death Penalty by Susan Bandes, the media “focuses on the investigation, and the trial and replay gory details of the crime” creating a villain and hero situation (pg. 578). Creating a hero and villain scenario allows the media to subtly decide that this person is deserving of the death penalty. The most prominent example of this is in the case of Casey Anthony and the coverage done by Nancy Grace at