The Supreme Court

The supreme court is known to many as one of the most powerful courts in the world, with the job of interpreting the constitution. This powerful job is split between only nine judges with the ability to serve for life. The decisions made by these nine court judges can completely change the outlook of the entire country as seen in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case or the Brown v. Board case. However, this information was not my biggest takeaway from the supreme court lecture instead, my biggest takeaway was the importance of marketing in the supreme court.

The supreme court is marketed to the public as sophisticated and rational while maintaining the idea of being accessible and empathic to the public. As seen in the picture above each one of the court justices is dressed in their robes and they all seem to be elderly. Their attire conveys the professionalism of the justices while they stand in order of seniority representing the exclusivity of the court. However, the justices are all smiling and they are also made up of different genders, races, and overall physical characteristics. Their smiles make them seem empathic and their ranging characteristics show they represent different groups of people. 

Another example of how the supreme court is marketed is the building itself. In recent news, the security fence put around the court has been removed due to recent discourse surrounding Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. I feel this is because the tall gates did fit the supreme court's marketing image. The building itself is meant to be seen as grand yet they removed the gates to make it seem as if the building is still visible and attainable to the public. 

I believe the reason marketing is so important to the supreme court is because the court justices are not directly chosen by the people but instead by the president. While the power of the court is dependent on the trust of the public the court is not chosen by the people yet instead marketed to the people. 

https://www.supremecourt.gov/visiting/exhibitions/GroupPhotoExhibit/Default.aspx

https://www.scotusblog.com/2022/08/security-fencing-around-court-is-removed-but-building-remains-closed-to-public/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWRoXYRsaeo