About the Documentary
Try to imagine two filmmakers taking their video cameras in hand to film the hoopla around a celebrity trial... the trial of none other than legendary pop star Michael Jackson. Even though Barry Shaw and Dana Gedrick knew this was no oridnary celebrity trial, it would prove to be far from anything the pair of them had expected to encounter.
For starters, they had not anticipated the fierce extent to which the fans' compassion would influence journalists and media covering the trial, nor had they forseen the extent to which the media's personal feelings and biases would enter into what would be presented to the public. The result was for Barry and Dana to realize that such strong personal feelings on the part of the media all but precluded the hope of presuming innocence.
Try to imagine, as well, that you are a staunch and devoted fan of a man despised by much of the world. Imagine that you are only a few against so many who've already condemned the defendant in their hearts. Your view may appear extreme to many, though to you, the fan, it is precisely the opposite; it is the others' views that are extreme.
It is true that opinions can obscure facts, but in this case, it is almost a given that media coverage would play a part in distorting facts to the point where a fair trial becomse almost impossible... especially when the accused has already been deemed guilty by a majority of the population. In Barry Shaw's opinion, there was something inherently wrong with using a high publicized child molestation trial to increase media ratiings. For Dana Gedrick, mother of three sons, it was more about keeping her personal feelings out of her work.
Together, the two filmmakers came up with the idea of turning the cameras around on the media.
While we all know that it is impossible to remain uninfluenced by what goes on around us, media coverage and personal opinions have the potential to shroud facts, and in the minds of some individuals, totally obliterate them. It was for these reasons that Barry and Dana decided to focus on the media's influence in the trial of Michael Jackson and allow their film to demonstrate just how impossible it is to remain untouched by that which we witness or become a part of.
