ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Trial by media

Trial by media is when people form opinion about someone before all of the facts are known about a situation. Sometimes the media reports about a person’s involvement in something before the person has had their day in court. This can cause people to make judgments about someone’s guilt or innocence before a court has ruled on it. This can be unfair because often only one side of the story is presented and people may not have all the facts.