In the book Stephen Arpkon writes about a guy who showed a tape of police brutality to the media after getting ignored by the police: “So he took the footage to the KTLA television station, which broadcast the whole tape and turned it into a focal point for years of frustration between the African Americans of Los Angeles and what they considered the routinely heavy-handed tactics of the police” (page 107). This shows how powerful the media can be compared to the police. It is through the media that word gets out and public opinion arises. We see politics and oppression from the media. This example above is similar to Spike Lee’s film showing police brutality and bringing up race. The police did not do justice for killing the black man but the media and the public rose up to the occasion. This is significant because times are changing and the media is becoming a powerful force.
I completely agree. The use of media and technology are opening new windows that exploit the good and the bad of society. I find it interesting that videos, like the one mentioned in the book, keep reappearing in the media. I do not mean they are being replayed, but similar videos are constantly being surfaced and shown. Unfortunately, nobody seems to be learning how easy it is for someone to record your actions and how quickly things can spread. We do not seem to be learning from others mistakes, and this is going to just keep providing new material for the media to show.