Only a few days into the Robert Pickton trial, and reports say that this trial (the first of at least two) will last about a year. This made me reminisce (not fondly) about trials in the past that become media circuses, and dominate news agencies while other stories fall by the wayside. There is no denying that the crimes he allegedly committed were horrific, and that it will be one of the biggest murder cases in our country's history. Where I have a problem is the amount of coverage it is bound to get. We can only hope that it does not follow the pattern of media-fuelled trials of the past: Michael Jackson, Paul Bernardo and OJ Simpson are some pertinent recent examples. During the time these trials were going on, one could seldom pick up a newspaper, magazine or watch the news without being fed a daily update of a new witness, a new piece of evidence or a new gruesome detail.
The point is that these trials are turned into entertainment events and turn those involved into celebrities. (Johnny Cochrane, Kato Calen, Michael Jackson's lawyer with the crazy white hair, Karla Homolka, etc.)
Although I believe that a general knowledge of these cases (the crime, the verdict) is worthwhile news, the minute details of every facet should come out later in a book or something, so news agencies can focus on other news without giving these criminals more attention than they deserve.