Outside the southern district courthouse in Manhattan, at least a hundred members of the media gathered on Monday as the high-profile racketeering and sex-trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs begins.
Passersby could see dozens of cameras and crew members; perhaps surprisingly, there were few, if any, demonstrations or protests. Rows of cameras in front of the courthouse on both sides of the street could be seen pointed at the entrance.
The playground directly across the street from the court was packed with laughing children enjoying some of the first warm weatherNew YorkCity has seen in several months.
Paris Scott, a 34-year-old media professional from Media 88 who had traveled from Washington DC to cover the Webby Awards, had heard about the start of the trial and decided to come to the courthouse.
“I just kind of want to catch the vibe,” Scott said. “I’m super new to this type of media. I’m used to more family function-type coverage, but I’m moving into the way of celebrity clientele. So I was like, you know, this will probably just be the best time to come here.”
Tre Miles, a close friend of Scott’s, also came up from DC to support his friend and was outside the courthouse.
“I grew up listening to Diddy, my parents have fond memories of Diddy,” said Miles. “I think if Diddy invited me to a party, I’m gonna take him up on that invitation.”
Some onlookers, with clear differing opinions about Combs, were even yelling back and forth at one another outside.
“Diddy is not guilty!” a man yelled at the crowd.
“Yes he is!” another man yelled back.
Scott says she’s unsure what the jury will decide and is “going to be on the edge of my seat watching it every day, keeping up with it every day, hopefully reporting back to my audience every day.
“This is huge. Back when it all went down, when they took him in handcuffs out of the hotel, I was like, ‘Wait, it’s really happening,’” she added.
Among the media circus surrounding the court were journalists from Fox News and Entertainment Tonight as well as independent outlets and social media livestreamers. The crowd is emblematic of the increasingly common sea of expensive television equipment mixed with smartphones buzzing with live comments from people watching on platforms such as Instagram and Twitch.
Combs’s publicist, Holly Baird, thanked reporters outside the courthouse just before the trial began, telling people to “be kind”. She emphasized that she wanted “no pushing, no shoving, none of that kind of stuff”.
Baird’s requests were quickly ignored. As soon as the jury was excused for its first lunch break of the trial just before noon, those outside were immediately in position at the front entrance to greet any of Combs’s family members and/or friends.
His family exited through the side door, probably in an attempt to avoid the cameras, to no avail.
Fellow reporters, camerapeople and livestreamers promptly rushed over, shouting questions and completely surrounding Combs’s mother, Janice Combs, as well as other family members in attendance. The family kept their heads down and did not respond to the frenzy. Security guided them to a black van, which drove them away.
An identical scenario played out 30 minutes later when the family returned at the end of the lunch break. Once inside the courthouse, the group outside settled once again.
Judge Arun Subramanian has said the trial will run for eight weeks, suggesting the hubbub downtown is only likely to continue.