The Mass Media and the New Matthew Shepard Case

Paper Summary:

This paper uses the example of the media coverage of the Matthew Shepard murder to illustrate how the media exploit crimes such as the one committed against Shepard in order to sell more papers and magazines and bring in higher television ratings. The paper describes the way the media reported biased information about the murder and that this information was repeated on the television over and over and over until it slowly obscured and transformed the actual facts of the crime. The paper concludes that the media are unable to present unbiased reporting or true insight, for the very nature of the business relies completely on exploitation and disinformation in order to maintain the status quo.

From the Paper:

"According to political commentator Patrick J. Buchanan (Internet Brigade, 1998), the scenario put together following the murder of Matthew Shepard started when the victim "confided to Mr. McKinney and Mr. Henderson (his alleged killers) that he was gay" which then led to Shepard being "deceived" by his comrades "into leaving (the Fireside Lounge)" and traveling by car to a remote site somewhere in the vast expanses of Wyoming. Upon reaching a field, Henderson "struck Mr. Shepard in the head with a pistol," and then tied him up with a rope, whereby robbing and torturing Shepard "while beating him with the butt of (the) pistol." McKinney and Henderson then tied Shepard to a fence post and left him to perish in the cold. Shepard was discovered some sixteen hours later still tied to the fence post and apparently dead for at least the same length of time. As if this crime was not enough to satisfy the general public, the media coverage (newspapers, television and radio) which followed the murder was highly extensive and was discussed by various media "talking heads" for months."

More papers on The Mass Media and the New Matthew Shepard Case:

• Book Review # 125961 : "Mass Media and the News"
• Essay # 33880 : "The Mass Media and Social Construction"

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