Malcolm Gladwell on Why U.S. Cities Are Under-Policed
The author compares policing levels in American cities to those in other countries.
Malcolm Gladwell sat down on Jimmy Kimmel Live to discuss his new book, The American Way of Killing, walking through his argument that American cities are under-policed when compared to their counterparts abroad. Gladwell used the conversation to lay out data and reasoning behind that claim, giving Kimmel's audience a look at the research underpinning his latest work.
During the appearance, Gladwell pointed to Baltimore as a specific example of a city that has managed to bring down its rates of shootings, murders and arrests, detailing what changed there as part of his broader discussion of policing policy. He also addressed the topic of assault rifle bans, adding another policy-focused thread to the interview.
The conversation centered almost entirely on the themes of Gladwell's new book, with Kimmel pressing him on the specifics of his findings around policing levels in the United States. Gladwell's responses framed under-policing as a central issue in his analysis of crime and violence in American cities.
Gladwell's appearance gave viewers an extended look at the arguments laid out in The American Way of Killing, from international comparisons of policing to the Baltimore case study he cited as evidence that shifts in policy can produce measurable drops in violent crime.
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