Protecting against the Ferguson Effect: do legitimacy and pro-policing news matter?

ABSTRACT The Ferguson Effect is the argument that negative publicity on policing will cause officers to engage in de-policing. We explore this premise by examining the roles of legitimacy and media awareness in terms of police ability to protect against the negative impacts of such publicity. Officers from a midsize police agency in California were surveyed regarding media consumption and awareness, as well as perceptions of legitimacy. These factors were examined as to their ability to influence officer responses to post-Ferguson publicity. Officer awareness of pro-policing news coverage was related to lessened impact of negative publicity, but perceptions of media unfairness and awareness of negative policing news exerted a greater, and negative, influence. Media consumption and social media use were not found to be related to the impact of post-Ferguson coverage, but more nuanced measurement is warranted to capture the full range of news and social media interaction that officers have. Perceptions that the community viewed them with less legitimacy heightened impact of negative publicity as well, consistent with findings on officer concerns related to the effect of high-profile incidents on the public.