Abstract as per original application
(English/Chinese): |
Whether to allow live broadcasts of trials has been an important policy question in many countries across the globe. The issue has become especially salient during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the necessity for online trials has inevitably ushered in more openness to courtrooms. This study plans to use rigorous field experiments in real courts to investigate whether live broadcasts of trials affect i) trial participants’ behavior and ii) judicial decision outcomes.
In the current age of mass media, live broadcasts of proceedings appear to be a natural step toward judicial transparency. Many believe that live broadcasting can educate the public about the judicial system and hold judges and attorneys more accountable for their actions. On the other hand, there are concerns that cameras influence the behavior of trial participants and judicial decisions. Opponents, including several U.S. Supreme Court Justices, fear that live broadcasting of trials can distract trial participants, influence trial outcomes, and thereby deny litigants fair trials.
Previous research, including research led by the U.S. Supreme Court, has tried to study these questions from different angles. But these studies mainly used surveys and simulated trials, and thus lacked rigor and generalizability.
In this study, I will collaborate with courts in China to conduct randomized experiments in real trials to examine the effects of cameras in the courtroom. I will randomly assign each court’s trials to be live broadcast or not. In both the control group (where trials are not live broadcast) and the treatment group (trials are live broadcast on the internet), I will retrieve videos of the proceedings and other case information, such as judicial decisions, judges’ demographic background, etc.
Using algorithms to retrieve information from the videos, I will test whether live broadcasts influence judges, lawyers, parties and witnesses in terms of 1) speech features, including the rate of speech (average speaking speed) and fundamental frequencies (i.e., pitches), and 2) speech contents, including legalese used, interjections, pauses. This information will help to illustrate whether live broadcasts affect behaviors in court, such as making participants more nervous, cautious, or calm. I will also test whether live broadcasts influence judges’ decisions.
The lessons learned from our experiments will inform judicial policy making regarding cameras in the courtroom across the globe.
在全球范围内，是否允许对庭审进行直播一直是一个重要的政策问题。在疫情期间，全球法院都采用了线上开庭，客观上增加了人们对庭审公开的认同和需求，也使得庭审是否应该直播的问题变得尤为突出。本研究计划通过在真实法庭进行严谨的现场实验，分析直播是否会影响庭审参与者的行为和司法决策的结果，进而研究直播是否有助于提高司法公正。
在大众媒体时代，庭审现场直播似乎是推进司法透明的自然举措。许多人认为，现场直播可以向公众普法，并使得法官和律师在庭审中更为审慎。然而，也有人担心直播会影响庭审参与者的行为和司法决策。包括美国最高法院的一些大法官在内的反对者认为，庭审现场的直播会分散庭审参与者的注意力，对审判结果产生不当影响，削弱审判的公正性。
以美国最高法院为主导的先前研究尝试从不同角度研究这些问题。但这些研究主要使用田野调查和模拟实验的方式，因此缺乏严谨性和普适性。
在本研究中，我将与法院合作，在真实庭审中进行实验，研究庭审直播的影响。研究将随机决定庭审是否进行现场直播。在对照组（不进行现场直播的庭审）和实验组（进行现场直播的庭审）中，研究将获取庭审过程的视频和其他案件信息，如司法决定、法官的背景信息等。
通过使用算法从视频中提取信息，这一研究将检验现场直播是否会影响法官、律师、当事人和证人的1) 语言特征，包括语速（平均说话速度）和基频（即音高），以及2) 说话内容，包括使用的法律术语、插话和停顿。这些信息将有助于说明现场直播是否会影响庭审参与者的行为，例如使其更为紧张、谨慎或冷静。研究还将分析直播是否会影响法官的决策。
研究将为全球范围内有关庭审直播的司法政策制定提供参考依据。
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