Police and the media are mutually dependent for their function in society -- police need the media to illustrate the difficulties of policing and the crimes with which they deal, and the media need the police to provide them with stories. Many police officers believe that the media portrayal of them heavily influences public perception, but this is very difficult to prove. A police constable cited several nationally important incidents to support his claim that the media conspire to affect public perceptions of the police, but the claim was biased and the incidents too recent to draw long-term, objective conclusions. The media acknowledge that bad news is usually better for business than good news. When the media cover newsworthy events such as strikes, lockouts, and protest marchs, audiences -- except for those actually involved in such events -- tend to empathize with the police. 8 references