In a new installment of her "Black in America" documentary news series, award-winning journalist Soledad O'Brien will use graphic videos and incisive interviews to show how the lives of young men are fractured by aggressive policing. Her documentary film, Black & Blue, takes us into the lives of men frisked without cause as many as 100 times, and the police officers who insist they're just fighting crime. "BLACK in America: BLACK & BLUE - Soledad O'Brien Reports" Premieres tonight, November 18 at 9 PM ET on CNN.
As O'Brien reports with Co-Directors Ross Tuttle and Steve Maing, the NYPD reported made more than 5 million stops between 2002 and 2013. Of those stopped, more than 80 percent were African American or Latino, and 88 percent of the stops did not result in arrests, summons, or evidence of any crime.
"What is so shocking is that this police practice was used around the country - and in some places still is - with the theory that police were stopping criminals," said O'Brien. "It's shocking that the city where this was popularized was stopping so many innocent people."
Black & Blue will portray the personal stories of the men affected by those aggressive policing tactics, many of whom were able to document the confrontations in shocking videos. It also shares the perspective of real NYPD police officers who alternatively believe in the "stop and frisk" tactic and confess that it was not about fighting crime but fulfilling arrest quotas established by senior officials. "Everything is numbers based...Summonses must be written; the arrests must be made...," says one officer, his identity concealed for protection.
In a sit down interview with New York Police Commissioner William Bratton, O'Brien will ask why a new mayor with a mandate to transform policing would appoint the same police commissioner that initiated these policing tactics years ago. "I've been a cop for 44 years...So, I can understand some of the attitudes and beliefs," NYPD Commissioner William Bratton tells O'Brien.
The one-hour Black in America special, BLACK & BLUE, is produced by O'Brien's Starfish Media Group. The special will premiere tonight, Nov.18 at 9:00pm, with encores at 12:00am, and again on Sunday, Nov. 23 at 7:00pm. All times are Eastern on CNN/U.S.
About Starfish Media Group
Starfish Media Group is an integrated media production company and distributor, dedicated to uncovering and producing empowering stories. SMG takes a challenging look at often divisive issues of race, class, wealth, opportunity, poverty through personal stories. Founded by award-winning journalist and multifaceted broadcaster Soledad O'Brien, Starfish Media Group uniquely resonates with today's diverse global audience through impactful topics that define our time.
About CNN
CNN Worldwide is a portfolio of two dozen news and information services across cable, satellite, radio, wireless devices and the Internet in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. Domestically,
CNN reaches more individuals on television, the web and mobile devices than any other cable TV news organization in the United States; internationally,
CNN is the most widely distributed news channel reaching more than 271 million households abroad; and
CNN Digital is a top network for online news, mobile news and social media. Additionally,
CNN Newsource is the world's most extensively utilized news service partnering with hundreds of local and international news organizations around the world.
CNN is division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner Company.
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