The introduction of the Innocence Project in this episode is
a very interesting addition. We have Enright stand staunchly on the side of
Adnan's innocence, and she points out the various things that should make Adnan
innocent, foremost being the forensic evidence and how it does not seem to add
up properly. Another interesting factor that she brings in (and one I've
personally wondered when/how it will be addressed) is the racial bias issue.
From the very first episode, I've had worries about Adnan's case, simply
because Muslims are still receiving unfair distrust from the public. It may be
likely that Adnan's conviction may have possibly been, in part, due to an
unfair prejudice that a Muslim would be likely to commit a violent act. This is
also in conjunction with another fact noted by Enright, that jurors who
see the defendant automatically assume that he/she is guilty for something. It
is very surprising that these have not been addressed in Koenig's episodes so
far, but are one of the first set of points to be brought up by Enright when she looks
over the case. Enright seems from the beginning to believe that Adnan is
innocent, and her firm belief, along with the rest of Innocent Project,
all who express their own disbelief that
Adnan was convicted over so little compelling material, has an infectious
effect on the audience.
I also found Enright's claim of starting with assuming the
client is innocent and working the case out from there to be an interesting
method. It seems that the prosecution did exactly the opposite in this case.
While it may seem as if that is their goal, the standard for the justice system
is innocent until proven guilty, which seems to be exactly what
Enright's method embraces. If her method finds that there are already serious
flaws in the prosecution case against Adnan, serious issues in how he was
proven guilty, then it therefore raises serious questions as to how thorough
the prosecution's case against Adnan was, and how much did they actually prove
their case, and not rely on a witness like Jay who changes his story too often,
or on bias, or on selective evidence. I appreciate how Koenig plays the devil's
advocate for each side, poking holes in the prosecution case in the previous
episode and doing the same for the defense in this episode. I doubt it is for
entertainment value -- it is simply an attempt to ensure that all the flaws are
ironed out from each side, and to see which side can present a stronger case in
the end, which is, of course, the ultimate goal of Serial, to reinvestigate the
case of Adnan.
The issue of racial bias is something that caught my attention as well. Although Enright classifies it from the beginning of her analysis as a significant factor in this case, it receives a startlingly low amount of attention from Koenig. Why doesn't she devote more time to this obvious potential source of conflict? Do you think she fears that she might alienate a portion of her fanbase by tackling such a controversial topic?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theawl.com/2014/11/serial-and-white-reporter-privilege
I decided to do some research on the subject to see what others have made of it. Unsurprisingly, there's an incredible amount of material that covers the issue of race in Serial. The link I have attached above confronts Koenig and criticizes her "white reporter privilege". Since Koenig is the protagonist of the program, her lack of objectivity and faulty coverage of the racial dynamics at play have influenced listeners and propagated her stereotypical views. The article states that Serial is, at its heart, an immigrant story. Adnan is the child of Pakistani immigrants while Hae's parents came over from Korea. Koenig has demonized their parents by portraying them as "overbearing" and "out of touch". She infuses them with typical "immigrant parent" characteristics without ever bringing them on the show to explain matters from their own perspectives. In essence, she is being highly criticized in the article for "stomping around communities that she clearly does not understand".
The article makes the argument that Koenig brushes over the issue of race in order to make Adnan and Hae more "relatable" as individuals. That is to say, Koenig wishes to eliminate race and make them as "white" as she can in order to appeal to a mass audience. As a result, Koenig casually disqualifies one of the main questions surrounding the case of Adnan Syed: that his indictment and conviction might have been a product of his "faith" and the "color of his skin". Could it be possible that the mostly African-American jury identified more with Jay, Adnan's African-American friend? Why doesn't Koenig ask more questions in this vain?
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ReplyDeleteFinally-the issue of race. It's been lying dormant, just beneath the surface, manifesting only in casual references-until this episode. This episode concerns the issue of RACE, and how Koenig simplifies it extensively. Especially given Enright's perception of the race bias as significant, Koenig paints Adnaan and Hae as typical "white-washed" individuals with the stereotypical misunderstanding and hyper reactive immigrant parents. Not only does this cloud an accurate reading of the case, but it also propagates misconceptions that, quite honestly, we have all too much of nowadays. Given the minorities involved in this case-Pakistani, Korean, and even African-American(Jae), it is of paramount importance to consider these as factors in the case rather than consign them to a state of triviality. Particularly as Serial is reaching an enormous viewership, Koenig is somewhat obligated to represent this vital aspect more clearly and meticulously.
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