C.S.I – Myth vs. Reality

Jennifer Weaver L. Leggo Law Monday April 19, 2010 C. S. I – Myth vs. Reality Crime Scene Investigation is a series that followers investigators that use evidence to solve murders. The show is very popular due to its courageous matter and popular characters. However, despite CSI’s popularity it has been heavily criticized for realism to actual crime solving. CSI portrays an inaccurate, to say the least, image of how police solve crimes. To begin with, CSI has depicted many manifestations to people who watch it. Two main things noticed in the episode watched are the myth of crime scene investigating and DNA testing.
The show does a really good job “hollywooding” the field of forensic science. One clear myth of the show is it’s characters and how attractive they are. Forensic scientists are more likely to look like fat men with glasses rather than sexy women who wear camisoles to a crime scene, as seen in the show. In addition, the show depicts solving a case as easy and not time consuming, when in reality the majority of these cases would take months or even years to solve. Moreover, when collecting evidence and DNA in the show, it shows DNA results returning in a matter or hours when it would normally take years.
This false interpretation contributes to viewers manifestation of DNA testing in real cases; thinking that its an easy process. The only reality of the show found was when one of the investigators collected a finger print, however, even that was glamorized because a print would never come out so clear, as it did in the show. Overall, the show itself is a good show, it is very entertaining, from its graphics to the acting, however, its realism is non-existent and it exemplifies the forensic field falsely.