ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the courts interact with three of those aspects—public opinion, interest groups, and the media. It chapter explores the relationship between the courts and the media, including the issues of judicial silence, the Supreme Court beat, and the influence of well-respected journalists on the courts and on public behavior. Academic studies of the interactions between American courts and the press tend to conclude that the media do not do a good job of communicating complicated legal issues to the public, often putting journalistic concerns above legal ones. Interest groups also see the clear need to lobby the media, because journalists not only interpret court rulings but also help determine what stories are printed or aired and which are not. Interest groups can file test cases in both state and trial courts and they can also sponsor cases in the appellate courts.
