Ruth Herz Judge Playing Judge Ruth Herz: Reflections on the Performance of Judicial Authority

Leslie J. Moran; Beverley Skeggs; Ruth Herz

doi:10.14453/ltc.572

article

Ruth Herz Judge Playing Judge Ruth Herz: Reflections on the Performance of Judicial Authority

Authors: Leslie J. Moran (Birkbeck College, London, UK) , Beverley Skeggs (Goldsmiths College, London, UK) , Ruth Herz (University of Oxford, UK)

Abstract

Between 2001 and 2005, ‘Judge Ruth Herz’ appeared in a popular German daytime reality television court show, Das Jugendgericht (The Youth Court). German reality television court shows, of which there are several (Machura 2009), draw heavily on a US format. A key dimension of this format, and central to its reality effect, is the use of real judges to perform the role of judge in the show (Christie 1999; Kleinhans and Morris 2004; Kohm, 2006; Lorenzo-Dus 2008). The best known US example is Judge Judy, in which the title role is performed by Judith Sheindlin, an ex-New York family court judge. The Youth Court follows this model.

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How to Cite: Moran, L. J. , Skeggs, B. & Herz, R. (2010) “Ruth Herz Judge Playing Judge Ruth Herz: Reflections on the Performance of Judicial Authority”, Law Text Culture. 14(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.14453/ltc.572