“911, what’s your emergency?” explores how reported crimes are shared in a time when everyone is looking at their phones.
I grew up in rural America in the 1970s. Our local newspaper, The Tri-County Times, was published weekly, and the “Off the Police Blotter” column was always a highlight. For 20¢, the community learned about cows escaping their confines, a motorist losing a hubcap after hitting a dangerous pothole, or even a piano falling out of a pickup and shattering all over Main Street.
Now, in 2021, I live in Los Angeles. The physical newspaper has been replaced by digital versions I read on my iPhone, iPad, or iMac, and I even get alerts on my Apple Watch. In late 2019, I installed the Citizen app. This app delivers real-time alerts of incidents reported in my vicinity, along with user-generated videos and comments.
Shocked by how much was happening within a few miles of my Hollywood home, I began taking screenshots of the more humorous and eyebrow-raising reports, later documenting the scenes of the crimes. The result is a less-than-glamorous – sometimes hilarious – collection of 100% real happenings in Los Angeles.
