c
c 



  started in 2000 and since then, it has spawned ten series and two spin
offs ʹ c
and c
.c
, has been acclaimed as the most popular TV show in the
world (BBC News). Its vast popularity and effect on public opinion mean that the way c
represents
policing is of great importance and consequently, the show has generated a lot of scholarly debate.
In the following essay, I will critically discuss the arguments surrounding c
representation of
policing.

Cohan (2008) states that the show͛s distinctive style ͞contributes greatly to show c
portrays
science and crime͟ (pg.50). He describes two main definitive features of c
style - the trademark
͚CSI shots͛ and the show͛s unique use of colour separations. The highly stylised ͚CSI shots͛ use an
array of special effects like models, CGI effects and snap zooms to create a point of view that is
unique to c
. They unflinchingly take the audience on a trip inside the victim͛s wounds and bodies,
allowing us to see crime as no other TV show portrays it. Apart from being visually stunning, Cohan
states these shots are also used because they draw on ͞the realist connotations of a visual
technology in medicine͟ (pg.57). The ͚CSI shots͛ use the content of TV medical documentaries as a
point of reference, to legitimise the myths surrounding the authenticity of science through visuality.
As well as playing on visual science͛s realist connotations, the ͚CSI shots͛ also allow for the
͚objectification of the body͛, permitting the show to drive its narrative through the findings of the
autopsy. Cohan notes however, that this investment in the authenticity of visual science is actually
used paradoxically in CSI ʹ a paradox many critics are quick to point out. The supposed objectivity of
its methods is mired in mediation, created by the show͛s excessive stylisation. This conflict plays
throughout c
(insert a relevant example here of time compression). Cohan states that this
representation of ͞science as something to be look as well as a viewpoint to be looked through͟
(pg.69), can also be seen in the shows stylised colour design. As well as each spin off having its own
primary colour scheme, separations of colour are used throughout each scene to visually represent
and more importantly, distinguish, science and crime. As early as the credits sequence, blue is
associated with the CSI͛s peaceful and sad nocturnal world, while red is associated with the horrific
crimes they investigate. (possibly another example here) Although this formula is not strictly
adhered to, it serves as another way in which c
weaves through its fundamental paradox of
creating an authentic representation of crime investigation, through such stylised and mediated
methods.

So how does c
maintain this formula, where ͞the style reinforces what the investigative narratives
dramatise, namely, the unimpeachable value of scientific vision͟ (pg.57), in spite of this paradox?
Jermyn (2007) argues that this is achieved through the show͛s ͚objectification of the body͛, which
Cohan touches on. She notes that c
 depiction of the corpse is one of a mute witness, who must
be made to tell their story by the pathologist. (example of Grissom in episode 2). By using the corpse
in this manner, c
promotes an important part of its representation of policing - its recurring theme
of disinterest in motive or the criminal mind, instead reading only the scientific evidence. She states
that the role the corpse plays in c
͞contributes to a conservative ideological impulse in the
programme, which promotes a belief in an absolutist, definitive approach to ͚solving͛ criminal
behaviour͟ (pg.82). In other words, by simplifying criminality into the process of reading and
͚solving͛ the corpse, c
further plays on our own rooted impulses about infallible medical science to
achieve a sense of ͚case-closed͛ criminal detective work, despite its anti-realist style. Jermyn also
notes the ͚objectification of the body͛ in c
plays on another of the audience͛s impulses ʹ their
fascination with the mysteries and grossness of the human body. The show invites the audience to
͞take a ride throughout the breathtaking spectacle of the body, its inner space, its visceral
pleasures͟ (pg.88), as well as contributing to c
 truth claims and sense of authenticity. Although
Jermyn does not mention this, it could be argued that this point would make the body a further
extension of the paradox Cohan identifies, rather than an anchor of authenticity. Nevertheless,
Jermyn concludes that it is not really this conflict of realism and spectacle that is important when
looking at c
, but the show͛s consistent implication that science will always catch and convict the
criminal, dismissing the areas of context or motive, which has the most important effects on
audience͛s perceptions and expectations of police work ʹ a point I will come back to.

Harrington (2007) argues this tendency of c
͞to reiterate the reassuring ideological message and
the glorification of the man of science͟ (pg.366), is one of the many features it shares with one of
the world͛s oldest examples of detective fiction ʹ Doyle͛s Sherlock Holmes stories. She states that
while the Holmes stories used the symbol of the ͚man of science͛ to counteract growing
dissatisfaction with the empire in the 19th Century, c
uses the same formulas to create myths that
reassure its viewers in a time of post 9/11 national instability, that ͞individual identity, as well as
national identity, can be fixed and scientifically assured͟ (pg.366). While shows like deal with the
issues of terrorism more explicitly, Harrington states that in c
, the individual crimes its antagonists
commit stand in for larger threats posed to the national identity of America. Just as the Holmes
stories that preceded it, the show works to counter audience͛s fears that these threats will go
unpunished and showcases science as an infallible and inescapable truth telling device, which
America can and will effectively use to bring its enemies (both on the inside and the outside) to
justice. Harrington also argues that the paradoxical tendency of c
to idealise ͞science and reason
in a sensational, fantastic narrative͟ (p.368) which both Jermyn and Cohan describe, also has its
roots in the Holmes stories. She uses the example the of the Holmes story ͚The Speckled Band͛,
which contains many investigative impossibilities and inaccuracies. Despite this, the story is still
enjoyed and hardly questioned by the viewer, because of the veil that the story͛s main themes of
rationality and scientific procedure create ʹ a feature already identified in c
. (Possible example
here where something is too far). Harrington states that both c
and the Holmes stories are
satisfying ͞not by chronicling reason, but by presenting the reader with a seductive, sensational
fake͟ (pg.370). A similar embellishment she states the two texts share is the use of the all-round
police detective character. In real life, a forensic scientist͛s job is specialised and limited to the lab,
while most of the questioning and confrontation falls to police detectives. In c
however, just about
everything except the actual arrest is done by the CSI team. This extension of duty is similar to
Holmes, who as a detective, did his own additional forensic analysis. She does however concede
that CSI uses a different relationship structure in its narrative,using a familial group of detectives
lead by an older paternal figure instead of the widely used Holmes and Watson template. However, I
would argue that this is still evident throughout the series to a certain extent and this could not be
better illustrated than by episode two͛s opening scenes. When Nick observes Grissom examining a
crime scene, waiting for the victim͛s body to ͚speak to him͛, the almost omnipotent Grissom and
͚less brilliant͛ Nick, operate under a strikingly similar partnership to Holmes and Watson. She points
out that the ͞conception of the body as a scientific text to be read͟ (pg.379) which Jermyn (2007)
also states is central to c
, also has its roots in Holmes
As I have already mentioned, CSI͛s representation of policing is having a profound impact on wider
society ʹ labelled the ͚CSI effect͛. As a real life CSI team manager, Workman (2006) has a unique
outlook on the ͚CSI effect͛ and states that it can be split into three parts. The first part concerns the
raised expectations of jurors regarding the amount of physical evidence needed to secure
convictions. Eyewitness testimonies are disregarded more easily and ͞jurors now place an unrealistic
burden on the prosecution to provide physical evidence͟ (pg.23). It seems Grissom͛s philosophy of
(example) ignoring everything but scientific fact, has rubbed off on audiences. The second and third
parts concern how c
misrepresents how forensic work is carried out in real life, both in terms of its
time compression and some of the techniques used. Although he concedes CSI does a lot of research
to be as ͚realist͛ as possible, the fact is in real life, forensic procedures can be long and tedious, so
c
must improvise to function as an entertaining show. (example of procedure)These factors
function to create yet another paradox in the shows representation of policing. On the one hand, the
show has increased the awareness and appreciation of the forensic profession beyond measure. But
at the same time, it simplifies and misrepresents the job and police work as a whole, resulting in
unrealistic expectations of a profession which has very limited resources. However, Workman does
not see the results of the ͚CSI effect͛ as entirely negative. In fact, he feels by showcasing ͞some of
the potential capabilities of a fully equipped, fully staffed forensic laboratory͟ (pg.36), c
has
brought to public attention these shortcomings of the current judicial system, resulting in increased
pressure to do something about it. By educating the public in the field of forensics, victims now
know to leave a crime scene exactly as it is and can play their part in catching the criminal. Although
this education increases pressure on forensic scientists, he feels their abilities and efficiency are
increasing as a result. However, I feel the fatal flaw in this argument is that although the ͚CSI effect͛
may have these positive effects, the inability of the overstretched forensic industry Workman
identified to meet this demand, will result in many guilty criminals, who would have otherwise been
convicted, walking free.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/5231334.stm

csi an unauthorised look book on ebrary has a brilliant article