Virtual faculty presentation on conflicting news coverage of police use of force

The University of Southern Indiana College of Liberal Arts will host its fourth and final virtual Faculty Colloquium presentation of the Spring Semester, "Law and disorder: Assessing conflicting news coverage of police use of force," by Dr. Jason Callahan, Associate Professor of Criminal Justice, at 3 p.m. Friday, April 29. The public can attend by going to USI.edu/lafc to find the webinar link. 

The 2020 publicized deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor have increased social attention to incidents of police use of force in the United States. The spotlight of these events has created a divisive outlook on police tactics. Further, the current political climate has accentuated opposing viewpoints which highlight  the need for police reform or a steadfast stance on law and order.  

It is widely disputed whether heightened media reporting can influence individuals. This study uses historical tweets from the official Twitter handles of CNN and Fox News beginning March 25, 2020 and ending November 3, 2020. A content analysis of this sample was conducted to develop thematic messages from each news provider. Results indicate that both news sources use political ideologies to characterize the same reported events.  

Callahan's presentation is part of the Spring 2022 Liberal Arts Faculty Colloquium. Each Fall and Spring Semester, USI faculty members from the College of Liberal Arts present individual, free public lectures featuring their current research. To see the current lineup of speakers for this semester, visit USI.edu/lafc. 

These virtual colloquia will be live streamed to the USI College of Liberal Arts Facebook page and recorded. For more information, contact Dr. Quentin Maynard, Assistant Professor of Social Work and Colloquium Director, at qrmaynard@usi.edu or call 812-465-1003.