Mass Media In Criminal Justice

Introduction

The media plays a very important role in the entire criminal justice system. Most people go through their life having little or none direct contact with any law enforcement personnel, but they still think they have a genuine understanding of who the police are what they are about. They get this idea from what they see and here through the media, so it is crucial for law enforcement to have good, solid relations with all media outlets. . "Media Power" represents the extent to which individuals or groups influence the content of media messages relevant to their interests. As mass media are the primary image builders in contemporary society, an ability to shape the contents of media has become central to impression management
Their job is to deal with all the media relations through the agency they work for. When questions come up about cases or how the police department is going to handle a certain situation, that question is answered by the PIO. Diane Poulton is the public information officer for the Lake County Prosecutor's Office in Indiana. Two years ago she founded the Lake County Public Information Officers Association, which she currently co-chairs. Her initial goal was to improve communications among PIO's in the 18 police jurisdictions in her area. Poulton said, "I wanted us to get to know each other, maybe find some programs to get some positive public relations, and also start a dialogue with the media to discuss our concerns and theirs." To learn more about the media and build relationships with reporters and their bosses, the association took tours of several local newsrooms. In addition, the association has invited reporters and editors of the Hammond Times and the Merrillville Post Tribune to a luncheon at its meeting this June to get acquainted and air mutual concerns. Poulton says, "It's getting to know the people we're involved with so we can enhance our communications with each other. We're just seeking a better working relationship within the group and with the media." (Winning Media
They managed to flee with one of their children; but four other children, ranging in age from 6 to 23, remained inside as hostages. Shirley Gordon was also in the house, hiding in a basement storage space. Unaware that she was hiding in the basement, Jimmy Gordon demanded to the police to talk to his wife. The negotiator, Senior Police Officer Kelly Rasmussen, knew the woman was inside because the Clarks had told her. The situation was especially tense because Gordon was armed with that shotgun and had told the negotiator early on that he was going to kill his wife and himself. As the incident was unfolding, all three major TV stations in Des Moines were interrupting normal programming with live broadcasts from the scene. They were updated by PIO Sergeant Bruce Elrod. Elrod had worked hard to earn the trust and respect of the media. It was a relationship that would be tested that afternoon. Police knew Jimmy Gordon was watching news reports of the incident on TV he'd said as much to negotiator Rasmussen. That made Elrod's job particularly dicey: How, could he feed the animals enough without giving them too much? They wanted to know what Jimmy Gordon was demanding, and how the DMPD was going to handle the situation. Elrod knew he could stall reporters for a while, but not for long. That's when he made the tough decision to lie to