Race Against Prime Time is an insightful analysis of the news coverage of the riots in Miami, Florida following the acquittal of four white police officers accused of beating to death a Black man, Arthur McDuffie. At issue is the racism implicit in the media's choices of what to cover, when and how. The trial and events preceding the riots went virtually unreported nationally. However, the riots, in which businesses were damaged and whites injured and killed, were considered of national interest. As the networks scrambled to fill the "gap" in their coverage, they turned to the "usual" sources-police reports, local experts and local news coverage-and as a result, perpetuated the "usual" explanations. However, in reducing the information to fit the standard news format, analysis was ignored in favor of "black and white" explanations which eclipsed the Black community's viewpoints. The riots made for "good" tv-action-filled visuals, and a conflict that was easily contained within dominant ideology. Sensational images of "violent" Blacks and "victimized" whites dominated the coverage, even though injuries to Blacks by whites were more frequent. Through interviews with tv reporters and producers, Black residents in Liberty City, and clips of newscasts, a portrait of institutionalized racism emerges, whereby the white media's control of the public image of Blacks has effects beyond the tv frame. -Kathy Geritz