The public on trial: how the perceived significance of media exposure shapes interest, knowledge and opinion in a murder case

True crime content attracts widespread public interest, yet the extent to which perceived significance of exposure shapes people's perceptions of suspects and institutional performance remains understudied. This study offers a pioneering examination of how the perceived significance of exposure to both social and mass media influences public opinion regarding crime cases. I focus on the high-profile case of Roman Zadorov, who was convicted of murdering Tair Rada in 2006 in Katzrin, Israel, imprisoned for over a decade, and ultimately acquitted. Using a nationally representative survey of 500 participants, I investigated how perceived significance of exposure relates to levels of interest, knowledge, opinions, and trust in institutional actors such as the police, prosecutors, and courts. The analysis reveals that social media and mass media exert mutual influence: the more people are exposed to one, the greater their interest in the case. This heightened interest leads to increased knowledge and more critical opinions about Zadorov’s guilt and the functioning of the police, the prosecutors, and the courts. The study’s structural model demonstrates a sequence whereby perceived significance of exposure fuels interest, which in turn enhances knowledge and shapes opinions. To the best of my knowledge, this research is the first to test this full pathway, offering new insight into the powerful role of media in forming public perceptions of institutions and justice.