In Southern California right now, there’s a woman driving “erratically” in what looks to be a Honda Element…in reaction to which development, cable news seems to be, unsurprisingly, in its own element. Tune in to Fox and MSNBC (though not, as far as I’ve seen, CNN) for coverage of what MSNBC has deemed—after some air-filling speculation as to the actual speed of the car being pursued—a “moderate-speed car chase.” Which includes: discussion of the fact that the driver is female, a cultural history of evasive car maneuvers, and incredibly well-informed speculation as to how the chase will end.
Oh! And, on Fox, a phone interview with…Low-Speed Chase Expert Mark Fuhrman.
Update, 9:49am: Fuhrman, discussing the driver’s gender on Fox, just explained to Megyn Kelly that women often resemble teenagers in their driving in these situations. Because, you know, they tend to get overwhelmed and therefore extra-erratic.
Update II, 9:52am: It’s over! Police cars have cornered the driver at an intersection near Rancho Santa Margarita. A Fox commentator sums up the scene, wittily: “Life in the fast lane in Southern California has now come to a slow, and grinding, halt.” A few moments later—after Megyn Kelly has praised the California Highway Patrol for “keeping the public safe” during the chase—he brings it all to a close: “On a Good Friday, it ended for them…quite well.”

It's a win-win gig for the cops and local TV and local viewers too, I guess. It's a version of a rabbit hunt for the masses. There used to be strict rules and standards for the cops about car pursuits, but now they've rigged the game by inventing the "assault on a police officer" charge to justify the chase because simply evading possible arrest for ...maybe nothing was nixed when a couple of these ended badly. So the prey is some kind of slightly- to very-unsavory person, so there are no moral qualms about what is going to ensue.
So the cops get their adrenaline rush and get some TV adulation for their heroics and the local TV broadcasts get their ratings-flogging evening side-show to distract us all from global economic meltdowns and bowing and teleprompters. And it ends with the rabbit cowering on the ground, alive, one hopes, (when the rabbit dies it spoils the dinner hour) while everyone watches the spectacle and feels better about themselves and morally superior. My God, Mark Fuhrman as the Car Chase Analyst. O irony! Hmmm.
Whether that is “keeping the public safe” is another question entirely.
#1 Posted by Tom, CJR on Sat 11 Apr 2009 at 09:21 AM