The Importance Of News Media In Little Rock

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For many people school is something they take for granted, but for Elizabeth Eckford it wasn’t that easy. When Elizabeth got to Central there was a large mob of protesters trying to keep her from entering Central. Even though she felt helpless there was a large group of news reporters who captured the event. Benjamin Fine who was a New York news reporter said, “It’s one of these almost incredible things, to see normal people, many of them-most of them-churchgoers, and if you’d get them in their homes, they would be the kindest, nicest people, but in a mob group, something happens when that group gets together” (LRG 1957 7). The news reporters showed the world how bad Little Rock had gotten which made many people aware of the events in Little Rock. Even though the news could show many people the events happening, they didn’t always report the news …show more content…

The news media played an important role in illuminating the events happening in Little Rock, but they occasionally misinformed people of the actual events that were happening. The news media brought to light the struggles in Little Rock. First of all, the news media reported on an image of Hazel Bryan yelling at Elizabeth Eckford. In Little Rock Girl the author says, “Elizabeth, hoping to get the same education that her white peers were getting, and Hazel, determined to keep her from getting it” (LRG 1957 6-7). When the news media reported on this picture it showed the rest of the world that many people in Little Rock were against integration and they would heckle the Little Rock Nine, so they wouldn’t want to go to Central. The news media also captured many people’s reactions to the Little Rock Nine going into Central. Benjamin Fine who