The Challenge
Pineapple Street Studios needed support in documenting, labeling, quantifying, and analyzing data from more than 30 seasons of the reality TV show COPS.
The production team required structured insights to better understand recurring patterns and issues, and to inform the show’s evolving narrative.
My Role
I worked as a researcher and content analyst, responsible for:
Reviewing and documenting episodes across multiple seasons.
Designing taxonomy and labeling systems to categorize data.
Providing feedback on narrative themes and production decisions.
Managing the organization and delivery of large volumes of qualitative data.
Process & Approach
Data Collection — Reviewed episodes systematically, capturing actions, behaviors, and recurring details.
Taxonomy Development — Created a labeling system to categorize and structure data across 30+ seasons.
Analysis + Synthesis — Identified key themes and trends, translating them into actionable insights.
Narrative Feedback — Shared findings with producers to shape editorial direction and contextual framing.
Project Management — Coordinated data tracking and delivery to ensure consistency across a large-scale, long-term research effort.
Outcomes
Produced detailed documentation of actions, events, and themes across episodes.
Identified recurring issues and patterns that shaped production and editorial direction.
Delivered structured datasets and narrative insights that informed storytelling.
Supported the creative team in aligning production with broader cultural and narrative contexts.
Deliverables
Data collection framework + taxonomy
Labeled + categorized episode datasets
Narrative feedback + trend reports
Research documentation archive
