‘A Time to Kill’ is a movie that depicts the racial tensions between the white and black Americans in the past. The movie revolves around the life of Jake Brigance, a lawyer, and Carl Lee Hailey, as he struggles with the law and racism after seeking justice for his raped 10-year old daughter. As Carl Lee approaches Brigance for help with his case, they both face the challenge of blurring the lines between the white and black Americans and helping Carl Lee escape the long arms of the law. In the movie, racism, negligence of one side of the story, and objectivity are applied. These three theories will be further discussed in detail in this movie analysis. Firstly, racism is portrayed strongly in the movie. Racism occurs due to stereotypes related to racial issues. Stereotyping is the process “involving the expression of an exaggerated belief about a group that serves to qualify or justify the conduct towards that group of those who hold and express that belief” (Long, Wall 107). Stereotypes can be positive or …show more content…
Negative stereotyping leads to racism as it causes racial groups to have bad impressions of others and feel they are of a higher rank. Agenda setting, specifically framing, also causes the negligence of one side of the story as a selection of an issue or story is made. By doing so, the audience will know what to think about and thus, the agenda setter is able to frame the audience’s mindsets and change their opinions. As a result, other important matters are neglected. It is also important to remain objective like the jury in ‘A Time to Kill’ as objectivity is a form of media practice. By remaining objective means to possess values such as equality, fairness and honesty. These theories are continuously portrayed by the media and affecting the public thus, it is important to understand these theories in