I listened to The Romanticization of True Crime and its Effects podcast by Matthew, Christina, Cate, and Maddy. First of all, the history of true crime is SO interesting. I had no idea about the pamphlets being used to scare people into behaving - such an intriguing origin story. I also was drawn to the conversation about "safe danger" again. It makes me wonder about how much of my interest in things like this, interests that lead me to get a Criminology degree, are because of it.... #so339

Sometimes I wonder if just some of the effort and resources put into putting gang members into the criminal justice system was funneled into helping the living circumstances of the youth who have no choice but to find security within gangs if that would help minimize these issues from a proactive approach rather than reactive. #so339

The concept of looking at how NYPD interacts with Twitter and users is very interesting to me. This study says it is used as a "one-way channel geared more toward information and influence than genuine engagement," as well as a space for "public expression" to paint their officers in a certain light. I think the idea of law enforcement getting a say in how they are perceived outside of the high-intensity moments of the jobs can be beneficial. (Cheng reading) #so339

It's interesting to me how this idea of law enforcement officers needing to legitimize their actions has come into play as technology has developed. I know there was a section in this reading about how officers feel mistreated by media, but I wonder what other ways this need to prove themselves and their actions affects their roles and mental states in this line of work. (Cheng reading) #so339

Reading about the different realities of how we perceive media, such as the fact that we view blurry images/videos as less truthful, was intriguing to me. It's clear that we all put a lot of stake into what media show us, but we don't take time to understand the psychological processes that influence our mindsets. (Cheng reading) #SO339

Studies like this and my general understanding that technology is going to be utilized more in our criminal justice system make me wonder what implications this has for anyone who chooses to stay "off the grid" (and if that's even going to be an option as tech continues to develop). Is the focus on tech going to make it easier for criminals who separate themselves from it to fly under the radar? (Lane reading) #so339

In the call to action portion of the conclusion, the idea of scrubbing social media profiles to take out anything that might harm someone's reputation in their adult years sounds easy and effective, I just hope it isn't futile as screenshots and other factors are virtually uncontrollable. #so339

AJ's words in the Conclusion about Stuart not caring about his existence if it weren't for drill music were stunning. While reading this book I was in frequent awe of the dedication and effort that Stuart put in to build relationships with these boys, but AJ was completely right that if not for drill music, this book wouldn't exist. #so339

The line "The pending murder charge was just what the aspiring driller needed to convince audiences of his street authenticity" in the Conclusion is absolutely wild to me. I find it extremely hard to comprehend finding the silver-lining in a murder charge, but this forces me to reflect on how often this book has made me step outside of my typical understanding of how the media impacts criminality and those involved in the system. #so339