Reflection on Michael Brown: Bias and Undeniable Influence of Social Media

Michael Brown an 18 year old black male was shot dead by police officer, Darren Wilson on August 9th in Ferguson, Mo. The facts about the shooting are continuing to be reported on even two months after incident. Since the event occurred, it has been known that Dorian Johnson was with Brown when the shooting occurred . Johnson gave a different report than the police about the shooting. Other eyewitnesses gave contradicting accounts of the shooting as well. Most of the facts are purely what people are saying due to the fact Wilson’s cop car did not have a dashcam.

The autopsy shows that Brown was shot at least six times which were all at his front, two at his head according to Yahoo news.

People have compared Brown’s death to the ones of Trayvon Martin, Emmett Till, and several others who may not have gotten as much deserved media attention.

From Emmett till to Michael Brown the media coverage changed exponentially due to the fact of instantaneous information. Now within minutes people can learn about events through media.

Police brutality has been a much discussed issue by citizens and police force for a long time. There is a small line between restricting arrest and reacting naturally to applied force. A lot of people affected by such brutality feel as if its directed toward people of color.

The bias and beliefs in the Michael Brown shooting have been present on multiple news stations and discussed in many classes here at UHS. People show what they believe to be true of the shooting and Michael Brown through social media and news outlets. One side of the extreme of how he is portrayed is as a young man headed to college others show him as a thug who listened to rap music about killing people.

Michael Brown’s shooting has had a big affect on Social Media. On Twitter, #Ferguson and #iftheygunnedmedown was trending worldwide. The hashtags gave people a voice on the subject that could be heard worldwide. The #iftheygunnedmedown showed people showing two pictures of themselves. 241,000 approximate tweets were used with the #iftheygunnedmedown according to Topsy. One for instance would be a graduation picture the other with them with alcohol, guns, or an opposing representation.The pictures are supposed to represent the ones the media published of Michael Brown. One of Brown using a hand sign which was interpreted to mark him as a “thug”, another of his graduation picture. These pictures represent the bias people felt was displayed through media. People had things to say about the event and had several platforms to showcase how they felt to the world.

Benjamin Crump, the same lawyer who represented Trayvon Martin has been representing Michael Brown according to CNN.

Cameras won’t be allowed in the courtroom. The hearing will be closed to the public which Brown’s family doesn’t agree with according to CNN. The Jurors will come from St. Louis County, Missouri according to CNN. This process could take weeks or even months before a final ruling is decided.

During the protests and riots journalists were there recording and showing the world what was happening through media outlets like twitter. During the protests tear gas was sprayed at citizens after being told to leave the premises. A lot of the protests however were peaceful most of the looting was from people out of town. During the protests people would shout,” Hands Up! Don’t Shoot,” and other things to showcase their voice.

People have different opinions on the shooting. Teacher’s Aide and Coach Carlon Butler said, “A black young male is accused of something not shown in the court of law. Officer took it upon himself to be the judge, jury, and execution. I think it became national news because the media hypes it up. I think the protests have been great support. All nationalities have protested about this shooting. Media has put black and white race on it. I don’t know all the facts, so I’m not leaning one way or the other. I don’t pick sides until I know all the facts.”

A different perspective comes from Derick Ashford, Chicago police officer,“It appears to be one thing but you don ’t know until you peel back the facts and realize the evidence. Ferguson is an interesting town. It may be bias but I really want to see the problem in Ferguson. Unfortunately things like this happen. As far as a police officer i’m only human. If I make a mistake i’m in front of T.V. The cutback and money for the city…they can’t afford to go to training again. I’m not adequately trained to be a police officer of chicago. It’s controversial because his constitutional rights seem to be violated. It’s definitely segregated there are 53 officers and 5 are black. 73% of people are African-American yet 12% voted for the Mayor. How can I have representation with no voice? The community is 73% black what is wrong with that picture?”

Brian Schmitt, teacher at UHS , “The Michael Brown shooting has become so infused with the national rhetoric on race and law enforcement that it’s difficult to make a reasoned judgment. That being said, I don’t believe any officer would be justified in shooting someone who is unarmed and surrendering. Even if the officer felt he was being threatened, if the facts stand that Michael Brown had been shot from behind with his hands in the air, then the officer’s irresponsibility is to blame. It seems that once a story similar to this gets recognition, the media explodes with coverage. This doesn’t mean the coverage isn’t justified; it needs to be covered. We may have nationally known examples like Trayvon Martin and Eric Garner, but I can guarantee there are many cases that never get reported or covered. This is more than just a primarily black issue; other racial cultures, especially the Hispanic and Latino population, face just as much racial prejudice. I think its worse that some media networks are criticizing this story as a distraction from real problems. But this is a real problem, and its irresponsible for popular voices to criticize or ignore it.”

A black teenage boy being killed by the police is not some new phenomenon. Michael Brown’s death is one of the unfortunate many. Brown’s shooting definitely made waves on all media forms. The result of such coverage displaying different perspectives and facts shown. People of all ages, races, and cultural backgrounds know about the shooting and have things to say about it. The facts about the shooting are still developing and the public is waiting to find out that nature of any charges being brought against the police officer involved.