Why Does The Media Ignore Straightforward Police Executions?

Chris | InformationLiberation
Nov. 24, 2014

The news is in, Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson will not be indicted in the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

There's so much to say about this case.

First and foremost, the media loves focusing on marginal cases like this, as opposed to straightforward police executions such as the murder of 20-year-old Jonathan Cuevas, a young man who was shot in the back after running away from a deputy attempting to stop him for jaywalking. The deputy shot Cuevas multiple times as he ran, then approached him as he lay dying on the street and executed him with what his lawyer described as "a coup de grace kill shot."

The execution was similar to what some witnesses alleged happened to Michael Brown, yet it was caught on video for all to see.

Cuevas case could have gone mega-viral and enraged the entire nation, instead it was basically completely ignored, and the family later won an $875,000 settlement as the police chose to pay the family off with taxpayer cash rather than risk trial. As opposed to this case with Michael Brown, the cops knew they would lose.

There's hundreds of cases just like Cuevas', we cover them regularly, yet they get no media attention. Why is Michael Brown's case so special?

I can't answer for certain, but I believe, just as the case with Trayvon Martin, it was focused on because it was marginal, it was unclear what happened, therefore it holds some sort of mystique which can trigger debate, huge comment threads and general interest. Straightforward executions are not debatable, don't generate inflammatory racial tension, and don't trigger debate and people fighting with one another, therefore they get ignored.

It's unfortunate but the public goes along with it and eats it up with a spoon, the average person doesn't want to see police as executioners with badges because acknowledging they live in a police state makes them feel uncomfortable and scared. The mystery and intrigue of a drama-esque murder-mystery is preferable to that of watching a plain execution.
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Chris runs the website InformationLiberation.com, you can read more of his articles here. Follow infolib on twitter.