Case Study: The Rodney King Case
Evidence of Video�s Importance to the News
Overview:
The Rodney King incident can provide unique insight into the news establishment and its reliance on visual images, specifically video. This case study should prove to be especially valuable because it was shot by amateur photographer George Holliday, rather than a commercial video photographer. This fact is an example of the potentially revolutionary social implications of the technology of the private camcorder and its widespread use. Perhaps more importantly, this case can be used to illustrate the power and importance that members of our society assign to visual images as opposed to oral or written accounts. Despite its shortcomings, the low-quality video tape was the sole source of motivation for a society that came to view the Rodney King beating as a symbol of the underlying racism that existed in our nation, a motivation which culminated in the worst riots the United States has seen this century.
Details of Case:
After leading Los Angeles city police on a high speed automobile chase at speeds in excess of 100 miles an hour, 27 policemen caught up to Rodney King, a black man, stopped and detained him, and in the process proceeded to beat him excessively with metal batons. From his Lake View Terrace apartment in Los Angeles, George Holliday captured the incident on his new camcorder. After selling his footage to a local television station, the videotape circulated and an edited 81 second clip of Holliday�s eight minute long original version was soon shown repeatedly on every major broadcast television station in America (Tomasulo 74). Holliday�s tape incited outrage at the Los Angeles Police officers who were involved, and became a symbol of the still existent racism in the country. One reason for this could have resulted from the coincidence that Rodney King�s last name was the same as famed civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., a fact which could have played on individuals� subconscious beliefs and influenced their interpretation of the video clip. Because the incident was captured visually, four Los Angeles Police Officers were charged with crimes for their brutality, and the case captured the public�s attention throughout the lengthy trial. After a trial that relied heavily on both sides using Holliday�s video as evidence for their argument, a jury acquitted the four police officers and incited vicious riots in the streets of Los Angeles. In all, 55 people died, 2,300 were injured, 1,110 buildings were damaged or destroyed, and an estimated $1 billion in damages was done (KCBS web site).
