The Role of the Media in Their Trial and Similar Cases

The infamous “Central Park Five” was a case that made headlines around the world. On the eve of the 19th of April,1989, a young white woman jogging through Central Park, New York, was brutally attacked, raped and left unconscious. Following a vicious media storm, five black and brown teens were swiftly charged with her rape after being coerced into falsely confessing - Raymond Santana, 14; Kevin Richardson, 14; Antron McCray, 15; Yusef Salaam, 15; and Korey Wise, 16.

Thirteen years later in 2002, they were exonerated after a prison inmate confessed to the crime. Today, they are known as the “Exonerated Five”. Their inspirational story is told in the Emmy Award-winning Netflix series, “When They See Us”.

In this special podcast, we are joined by one of the exonerated five, Dr Yusef Salaam. Dr Salaam is an author, motivational speaker and a current Boardman of the Innocence Project.

In this conversation he speaks about his life behind prison, his relationship with his faith and how he has been able to grow from his experience.

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