An Ethnographic Study: The Anna Nicole Smith Hearing Essay by Quality Writers

This paper explains that an ethnographic analysis of an event and its presentation should consider the nature of the event itself, the nature of the targeted audience, and the characteristics of the commentary that becomes part of the presentation as well as how the different elements interact. The author points out that televising this hearing alone suggests certain cultural forces at work. The paper relates that "tabloid celebrity" characterizes the culture that kept track of Smith's activities and influenced the way this hearing was covered by all the news media. The paper relates that the popularity of reality-television influenced the news outlets to use the hearing to attract a large audience. The paper further relates that the courtroom has its own culture embedded within the larger culture and that when courtroom proceedings are telecast on television, the two cultures come together and may conflict. The paper concludes that the court often claims not to be influenced by the circus outside, but in this case, the circus outside was greatly influenced by the circus inside.