Mass media as one of the main mechanisms of forming a police officer image

Introduction. Social and economical changes in our country have influenced both law enforcement agencies and the citizens who estimate their service. Effective professional performance of the police largely depends on the level of citizens’ trust and police/public interaction. The relevance of the problem is connected with the officers’ self-assessment, professional self-consciousness and citizens’ attitude toward law enforcement agencies. Materials and Methods. Under analysis are 60 Russian portals (30 official accounts of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs and 30 materials posted by users in social networks “VKontakte”, Instagram) and 30 videos on YouTube; as for American portals, 30 videos on YouTube, 200 images, 674 comments in Instagram were studied. The methods employed are statistical analysis, modeling and comparative analysis. Results and Discussion. Today an image is not only a brand but also a socially important phenomenon. The paper examines the image of law enforcement agencies broadcasted by mass media. Using TV serials, movies, Internet sites, newspapers and magazines the authors identify a typical image of a police officer in the Russian Federation and the USA. The provided statistical data reflects the modern state of building an image in mass consciousness, citizen’s legal culture and elements conducive to form a new image of a police officer. The mechanisms of constructing a social stereotype of law enforcement bodies are revealed. Thus, in seeking for the higher rating of the accounts and programmes their creators and administrators demonstrate negative sides of police officers’ work. Official accounts of the departments counterbalance the formed negative attitudes of data users as they show everyday work of the police. Conclusions. There is no comprehensive system of creating an image on the national level. The image of a police officer is not distinct, there are no positive orientations, but negative stereotypes such as abuse of power, unhealthy habits, corruption. Active cooperation of mass media and police officers can solve one of the most crucial questions faced by the law enforcement bodies, that is to form a positive image of a law enforcement officer.