According to an article from the popular news source the Guardian, “Young Black men again faced the highest rate of police killings in 2016.” This news was no shock to come, as the increase in police brutality has continued to contribute to where the rate it is at today. This article points out that racial disparities are a contributing factor to the heightened killings by police. Black men can be noted to have a 9 times higher chance of being killed by police than any other race in America (Swaine & McCarthy, 2017). According to the FBI, this makes this number almost three times what is deemed as justifiable homicides committed by police annually (Swaine & McCarthy, 2017). According to the article, The Obama Administration attempted to make changes to address the use of deadly force by police during his presidential run, but was blockaded by the Republic-controlled congress (Swaine & McCarthy, 2017).
The presidential party eventually got switched over to the Trump Administration who didn’t do much to enforce ethical practices among police departments to reduce police brutality. When he got elected he employed Jeff Sessions as the US attorney general. However, Sessions has openly expressed his disposition against groups such as Black Lives Matter who criticize police (Swaine & McCarthy, 2017). Additionally, the department of justice tried to implement a penalty and taxation on funding given to police departments that failed to provide reports on police related killings. This tactic was not taken seriously as Trump insisted that these corporations would still receive funding with no “strings attached” (Swaine & McCarthy, 2017).
This lack of interest the government has taken on the issue of police brutality has caused outrage among many people. How can one take the Trump Administration seriously when they were appointed by him and have similar views as him too. This places a burden on activists and lawmakers who are fighting to bring about change. The media has not covered much of the statistics in regards to the alarming rate of police brutality against minorities. They have instead chosen to focus on major high profile killings that have had an impact. The media has an obligation to be the watchdog of the government scrutinizing their actions and questioning their motives. This type of real coverage would force the government and citizens to address the issues at hand through the appropriate legislation, investigation, peaceful protests, and other methods to make change.
Chapter 7 of Media Politics: A Citizen’s Guide by Iyengar explains the role of going public and governing through the use of media. Many presidents have used their platform and connection to the public to get things accomplished such as bills for healthcare. However, Trump has used his platform to do the exact opposite by enticing the public to respond in a negative manner to mass media news outlets. Trump strongly disagrees with the media and its coverage, often times encouraging people to not rely on certain news outlets. He has falsely presented and image that any news source that scrutinizes his actions for the worst are considered “fake news” sources (Samuels, 2019). He believes the media is against him and “are truly the enemy of the people” (Samuels, 2019). These types of remarks from the current President makes the actions of the government skeptical in the eyes of society. This administration is against anyone questioning and scrutinizing their actions which raises red flags. The public should be able to be concerned and debriefed in an objective way through mass media sources. This will allow for real issues to be addressed such as police brutality, when all the facts are presented in the correct light.
Swaine, J., & McCarthy, C. (2017, January 08). Young black men again faced highest rate of US police killings in 2016. Retrieved April 1, 2019, from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jan/08/the-counted-police-killings-2016-young-black-men
Samuels, B. (2019, April 05). Trump ramps up rhetoric on media, calls press ‘the enemy of the people’. Retrieved April 1, 2019, from https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/437610-trump-calls-press-the-enemy-of-the-people?fbclid=IwAR0PPtmV9DDI3uKHCoycIaUSxBv6J72gJNH7NGbeCZHQKy5Rzsh4f3uThzA
Politics 