How Did The Media Affect Martin Luther King Jr

Two days following Turn Around Tuesday, the media once again affected Martin Luther King Jr. and the SCLC. On March 11, 1965, Reverend Reed, an outside supporter of the march from Selma, died from a head injury inflicted on him by a white segregationist. The death of Rev. Reed, unlike Jimmy Lee Jackson caused an outcry from the nation. Marchers would take up signs similar to the ones displayed in the universal news real that read we march with Selma remember Rev Reed. . However, this outraged many black supporters. According to Bevel, “it was sickening that it took a white death to wake the nation up.” King used this tragic situation to pull support and focus back towards the movement. The eyewitness Richard G. Leonard describes how Martin Luther King turned the focus back to the movement by asking the audience “who really killed Reed” making the point clear that it was not one particular group but the whole nation that had a hand in Rev. Reeds death. The eulogy that King gave displayed his ability to use media to shift focus from one event to another. At the end of the eulogy, Martin Luther King led the audience in chorus of We Shall Overcome.

On March 15, 1965, Lyndon B. Johnson addressed a joint session of Congress about a voting rights bill. During his speech, Johnson mentioned the death of Rev. Reed and the violence of bloody Sunday. In summary, the speech addressed how the nation has lived in ignorance for too long and to deny a person the right to vote based on the color of their skin is unconstitutional. President Johnson’s speech spoke right to the heart of the civil right leader and the movement. Jean Jackson was present in the room at the time King watched President Johnson address. She said, “Martin was speechless and weeping with joy.” Even though this was a personal gain for King, the Battle for civil rights