ABSTRACT
The police have long used the authority and the commonly affirmed belief in the legitimacy of their office to control the narrative that is provided to the public regarding their activities. This has historically been accomplished with the support of middle- and working-class whites, while being viewed skeptically by many residents of communities of color. Social and political movements such as Black Lives Matter and other activist organizations that have emerged in the second decade of the twenty-first century have challenged and interrogated these narratives, so much so that the law enforcement narrative and the police public reporting of events in which they are involved are no longer unquestionably accepted as truthful. The emergence of a counter-narrative has proved vexing for the police and their supporters.
