Uploaded December 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Police press releases are not reliable sources of information, and there are lots of possible visions for "police reform." Here's what I've learned as a journalist about how we might do a better job reporting on the extremely complex topic of policing.
Thank you to my Patreon patrons: Melissa Daston and Alexis Simonow
Chapters:
0:00 The Rojas Sisters
7:48 Part 1: Time
12:31 Part 2: Closeness to Communities
21:46 Part 3: Telling Powerful People They're Wrong
28:26 Part 4: Abolitionist Solutions
Sources:
The View from Somewhere: lewispants.com (Lots of ideas in this video come from "How Black Lives Matter Changed the News," "The Half Truth about Lynching," and "Public Media and the Limits of Diversity")
Police Chief David Brown on protesters: fox4news.com/news/dallas-police-chief-to-protestors-were-hiring
My profile of the Rojas Sisters: news.stlpublicradio.org/show/st-louis-on-the-air/2018-01-22/i-didnt-know-we-had-spanish-speaking-officers-meet-st-louis-police-officers-the-rojas-sisters
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart on his opioid podcast: wbez.org/stories/cook-county-sheriff-tom-dart-pivots-to-podcasting-to-fight-opioid-abuse/e93983c3-74fb-4323-a038-b54b375a9c1a
Ida B. Wells' map of lynchings: docsteach.org/activities/student/analyzing-a-map-about-lynching
Ida B. Wells, "Lynching, Our National Crime," 1909: blackpast.org/african-american-history/1909-ida-b-wells-awful-slaughter
Invisible Institute's Citizen Police Data Project: cpdp.co
Outlier Media: outliermedia.org
City Bureau Documenters: citybureau.org/documenters
WYSO Community Voices: wyso.org/shows/community-voices
Minneapolis Police press release on George Floyd: web.archive.org/web/20210331182901/https://www.insidempd.com/2020/05/26/man-dies-after-medical-incident-during-police-interaction
Chip Mitchell, "Reflections on a Week of Protests and Unrest," Curious City, 2020: wbez.org/stories/reflections-on-a-week-of-protests-and-unrest/a6d6e604-4145-4904-90d1-051d11de6879
8toabolition: 8toabolition.com
Black Lives Matter's BREATHE Act: breatheact.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/The-BREATHE-Act-PDF_FINAL3-1.pdf
Mothers Against Senseless Killings (MASK): ontheblock.org
Music:
Thinking Music by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4522-thinking-music
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Trio for Piano, Cello, and Clarinet by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4547-trio-for-piano-cello-and-clarinet
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Past Sadness by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5024-past-sadness
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Suonatore di Liuto by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4440-suonatore-di-liuto
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Hi! I'm Char. I make video essays about media criticism, literature, and queerness. Let's take some crazy cultural objects and figure out what they mean.
Police press releases are not reliable sources of information, and there are lots of possible visions for "police reform." Here's what I've learned as a journalist about how we might do a better job reporting on the extremely complex topic of policing.
Thank you to my Patreon patrons: Melissa Daston and Alexis Simonow
Chapters:
0:00 The Rojas Sisters
7:48 Part 1: Time
12:31 Part 2: Closeness to Communities
21:46 Part 3: Telling Powerful People They're Wrong
28:26 Part 4: Abolitionist Solutions
Sources:
The View from Somewhere: lewispants.com (Lots of ideas in this video come from "How Black Lives Matter Changed the News," "The Half Truth about Lynching," and "Public Media and the Limits of Diversity")
Police Chief David Brown on protesters: fox4news.com/news/dallas-police-chief-to-protestors-were-hiring
My profile of the Rojas Sisters: news.stlpublicradio.org/show/st-louis-on-the-air/2018-01-22/i-didnt-know-we-had-spanish-speaking-officers-meet-st-louis-police-officers-the-rojas-sisters
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart on his opioid podcast: wbez.org/stories/cook-county-sheriff-tom-dart-pivots-to-podcasting-to-fight-opioid-abuse/e93983c3-74fb-4323-a038-b54b375a9c1a
Ida B. Wells' map of lynchings: docsteach.org/activities/student/analyzing-a-map-about-lynching
Ida B. Wells, "Lynching, Our National Crime," 1909: blackpast.org/african-american-history/1909-ida-b-wells-awful-slaughter
Invisible Institute's Citizen Police Data Project: cpdp.co
Outlier Media: outliermedia.org
City Bureau Documenters: citybureau.org/documenters
WYSO Community Voices: wyso.org/shows/community-voices
Minneapolis Police press release on George Floyd: web.archive.org/web/20210331182901/https://www.insidempd.com/2020/05/26/man-dies-after-medical-incident-during-police-interaction
Chip Mitchell, "Reflections on a Week of Protests and Unrest," Curious City, 2020: wbez.org/stories/reflections-on-a-week-of-protests-and-unrest/a6d6e604-4145-4904-90d1-051d11de6879
8toabolition: 8toabolition.com
Black Lives Matter's BREATHE Act: breatheact.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/The-BREATHE-Act-PDF_FINAL3-1.pdf
Mothers Against Senseless Killings (MASK): ontheblock.org
Music:
Thinking Music by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4522-thinking-music
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Trio for Piano, Cello, and Clarinet by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4547-trio-for-piano-cello-and-clarinet
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Past Sadness by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/5024-past-sadness
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Suonatore di Liuto by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4440-suonatore-di-liuto
License: filmmusic.io/standard-license
Hi! I'm Char. I make video essays about media criticism, literature, and queerness. Let's take some crazy cultural objects and figure out what they mean.
