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This capstone project needs to relate to the field of Public Administration. The idea is to analyze an issue and reflect upon relevant theory and scholarly literature to make recommendations to improve conditions that deepen the commitment to social justice.
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ISSUE:
The capstone must analyze the impact media has on public perception of law enforcement. For example, the media?s tendency to villianize law enforcement in an effort to sell newspapers (as though positive public interest stories are ?old news?). In the book, Reinventing Government (by Osbourne and Gaebler), the phenomenon is described as: ?Hostage to the media, the average citizen does not realize that today local governments are the site of revolutionary change. Deadline-pressed media reporters fall back on their standard lens, which relies on conflict to tell a story, focusing on heroes and villains, rather than innovation and change.? Although not law enforcement per se, the media?s persuasive tactics are evident in the recent Trayvon Martin shooting:
The Associated Press reported that the most widely used photos?showing Martin as a “baby-faced boy” and Zimmerman as a “beefy-looking figure”?were outdated and “may have helped shape initial public perceptions of the deadly shooting.?(http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2012/03/30/national/a124959D75.DTL&tsp=1). ?
NBC News ran a segment with Zimmerman’s 9-1-1 call which removed part of Zimmerman’s statement and the dispatcher’s question. NBC then merged Zimmerman’s answer into dispatcher into the previous statement. On the recording played by NBC, Zimmerman was heard saying, “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. He looks black.” In the original 9-1-1 recording, Zimmerman said: “This guy looks like he’s up to no good. Or he’s on drugs or something. It’s raining and he’s just walking around, looking about.” The 9-1-1 operator then asked: “OK, and this guy, is he black, white or Hispanic?” Zimmerman answered, “He looks black.?
The Washington Post wrote that NBC’s alteration “would more readily paint Zimmerman as a racial profiler. In reality’s version, Zimmerman simply answered a question about the race of the person whom he was reporting to the police. Nothing prejudicial at all in responding to such an inquiry…?it’s a falsehood with repercussions…?To portray that exchange in a way that wrongs Zimmerman is high editorial malpractice?? (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/erik-wemple/post/nbc-to-do-internal-investigation-on-zimmerman-segment/2012/03/31/gIQAc4HhnS_blog.html).
In this case, the media also accused Sanford Police of racial bias for not arresting a ?white man? who shot an ?unarmed black teen? ? the truth was that Zimmerman was also a minority (Hispanic), but that was apparently not as appealing in the headlines.
This is just a recent example of the media?s selective publication or production of stories to increase public interest. The paper should relate this to the media?s effect on public perception toward law enforcement. Does this perception cause distrust toward law enforcement? What are the repercussions of distrust? Is the public less likely to report crimes to police? Are youth less likely to idolize police? Could the negative image of law enforcement discourage those who would have aspired to become a police officer ? thereby lowering the quality of applicants? Does it encourage police officers to seek employment elsewhere?
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In The Classics of Public Administration, it is claimed that ?the American people are disenchanted not so much with their institutions as with the people who run them; in particular, they note, the trustworthiness of people in public life has been called into question. Out of this sort of awareness have come examinations of the ideal personal characteristics or ?image? of the public administrator. For example, the 1988 meeting of the American society for Public Administration featured a symposium on the image of the public administrator and a panel dealing with the life stories of several ?exemplary? public servants. The sense of need for this dialogue can be traced to the argument made by the framers of the Constitution, that men [sic] of virtue would be attracted to public life by the possibility of winning public honor and fame, a motivation not only considered noble at the time but perhaps even heroic? John Keegan (1987) argues that heroic leadership is a public performance, which validates a hero?s authority through the display of virtue? Given this, it is understandable that public administration should be seeking an exemplary ? even heroic ? image.? (pg. 480).
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I am seeking to show evidence of the media?s negative influence on public perception. The paper should analyze media techniques to gain popularity (eye-catching headlines, selective publication, etc), the effect those techniques have on public perception, the repercussions of that perception, and recommendations to address it. Although the paper needs to be objective (and therefore bias should be managed), I am seeking to analyze the reality of an under addressed issue (or at least under-reported since that would be the obligation of the media ? the offenders themselves). While there should certainly be studies regarding media tactics for political or policy persuasion, the paper should relate this manipulation of public perception towards law enforcement. Also the law enforcement agencies the paper would preferably relate to would be either law enforcement agencies within Broward County Florida (Broward Sheriff?s Office, Pembroke Pines Police, etc) or within the tri-county area (Broward County, Miami Dade County, Palm Beach County).
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FORMAT:
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Abstract/Executive Summary: Provides a summary of the report. In less than 2 pages, it summarizes the Project, including the issue or problem examined, the method of inquiry, and your conclusions and recommendations.
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Table of Contents: Provides the organization of the report. Lists the major section and subsection headings of your report and the pages on which these subjects can be found.
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Introduction/Issue or Problem Statement: States the issue or problem, the context in which the issue or problem lays and why it is important.
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Literature Review: Uses research techniques to locate the issue or problem you are addressing with similar issues/problems and resolutions. It connects your research to a larger body of experience and grounds you work in the current knowledge of the field. Note: Your literature review should reflect an order (i.e. chronological, subject matter, etc). It should tell a story. It should not be an arbitrary summary of articles.
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Methodology: Describes what you did and how you did it. The methods section describes all the steps and processes by which you determined the resolution to the issue or problem.
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Findings: Report what you found. This section methodically lists the information you found to be true or un-true in an organized format, which allows the reader to consider the outcomes of your research.
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Discussion, Recommendations, Conclusions: The final chapter is you interpretation of the data where you make recommendations based upon your interpretation of the findings. In this section, you draw conclusions, make recommendations, and reflect on the process of your investigation. You would also state the limitations of your data and conclusions in this section.
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References: In APA style, list all references which were consulted in the research.
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Appendix: Research data, tools, explanatory notes and lists are organized as appendices, and do not count toward the 35-page minimum.
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ONE OF THE REQUIRED REFERENCES:
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Jay M. Shafritz and Albert C. Hyde, Classics of Public Administration, Fifth Edition.
Boston: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning, 2008
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Pg 480: The Model of the Ideal Public Servant: ?Because of the decade-long epidemic of bureaucrat-bashing characterizing the public conversation, public administration has been preoccupied with restoring the public servant to a position of societal respect??
Pg. 414: Street-Level Bureaucracy: The Critical Role of Street-Level Bureaucrats: ?As providers of public order, street-level bureaucrats are the focus of political controversy. They are constantly torn by the demands of service recipients to improve effectiveness and responsiveness and by the demands of citizen groups to improve the efficacy and efficiency of government services??
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