The courts are distorted indirectly through the media, which presents the judicial system as soft on crime, easy on criminals, and due process-laden institutions.

True/False

TRUE

Explanation:

Regular viewers of crime shows are more likely to fear crime. Although there are a few limitations with regard to the measures of media consumption. First, the type of crime show that the respondent is viewing is unknown. There are numerous types of crime shows that may focus on different aspects of the criminal justice system. For example, crime shows may focus on police, courts, private investigators, defense lawyers and sometimes even the criminals. In addition, some shows are more realistic, while others routinely portray violence, and consistently misinform viewers about the nature of the criminal justice system and criminality. It would be prudent to know which dramas the respondents are viewing. Second, employing television hours watched is problematic, since there is no way of determining what type of programs the respondent is viewing. There are a number of different programs that may or may not address criminal justice issues and address them in substantially different ways. Finally, examining newspapers as the primary source of crime news suggests that only newspapers influence respondents. It would be naive to suggest that respondents are not affected by a number of sources; for example, respondents who receive their primary crime news from newspapers may also be affected by presentations of crime from other sources such as films, television and/or personal experiences

True.

Explanation:

Courts are indirectly influenced by the media. The media influences and mitigates a disparity across the political orientation of districts. This is more or less aggravated by the media presence in a district, town, small city, etc, given that the coverage of cases that are in court can be made to influence a particular outcome by, for example, a newspaper coverage of the case. Many times, as the exercise briefly explains, a way to influence the court could be to present the judge or the court of law itself as soft, slow, "easy" on criminals, etc.