The’CSI Effect’ and the affect of mass media on police and forensic courses

The’CSI Effect’ and the affect of mass media on police and forensic courses

In both the UK and US, the past year has seen an unprecedented increase in enrolments on university courses due to the global economic crisis and the eagerness for many to gain new skills and ultimately make themselves more employable. It is perhaps unsurprising that forensic science and police officer degree courses are increasing in popularity and being offered by a wider variety of institutions, but it seems that new interest in these courses could be due to other trends also.
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nAlthough the global economic crisis has no doubt affected the popularity of these courses, two significant television events which took place in the first half of the 2000s may be seen to have kick-started the widespread interest: News coverage of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation in 2000.
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nThe 9/11 terrorist attacks were one of the most widely publicized events in history, with the first television report occurring less than two minutes after the first of two planes crashed into the North Tower. By the time the second plane crashed into the South Tower less than 15 minutes later, live news broadcasts were watching the scene worldwide – and millions of viewers witnessed the collapse of the towers. The aftermath of the event saw the US government’s response with a War on Terrorism and an overhaul of airport security to minimize the risk of such devastating scenarios in the future.
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nFollowing 9/11, terrorism as a subject of study has become a cornerstone of criminal justice and police courses – and its place at the forefront of both the UK and US consciousness throughout the 2000s has seen many individuals enrolling in order to learn about the many facets of terrorism and how it can be deterred in the 21st Century.
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nHowever, it is the popularity of television show CSI: Crime Scene Investigation that can be seen to have had an even further-reaching effect on academia – and beyond. Since its launch in 2000, the ‘CSI Effect’ has come to refer to the show’s influence on many aspects of real life, perhaps the most startling being the 32.4 percent increase in undergraduates studying forensic or archaeological science in the UK (according to The Guardian) in 2007.
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nThe emergence of the ‘CSI Effect’ has not only caused many institutions and police departments to warn of the glamorization of the career choice on television, and to highlight the differences between its on-screen and real-life traits, but it is also said to have had an influence on jurors, the use of forensics as evidence, and even criminals themselves who are said to have learned tricks from the program.
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Posted Date: 2010-01-08 11:27:46