"If It Bleeds, It Leads" Society's Loss Of Respect For Police Media Coverage & Effects On Law Enforcement

Abstract

This study investigates public perceptions of police officers through two main lenses: police officer interviews and media coverage analyses. Through interviews with retired police lieutenants and current NYPD officers, I conclude that police today feel a significant loss of respect from the communities they serve and in media coverage where they feel unfairly portrayed in mainly negative stories. These attitudes have developed over the past thirty years with key technological advancements that have significantly changed law enforcement and police-citizen relations. The media analyses suggest more “positive” than “negative” coverage exists of police when searching for the phrases, “save” or “brutality”. Further analysis finds that the public inquires for negative events, while rarely searching for positive events involving police. This leads to the argument that it is the public who probes for “bleeding” stories, and the media is catering to that request, while often manipulating information, leading to a misinformed public.