And they succeeded to an extent unparalleled in American history. Trials are supposed to be taken quite seriously by everyone involved, and the lawyers are supposed to focus their persuasive powers on the judge and the jury, not the peanut gallery. At several key moments during the trial as portrayed in Inherit the Wind, the lawyer characters based on Clarence Darrow and William Jennings Bryan actually turn their backs on the judge and jury, and address remarks directly to the appreciative courtroom audience, which cheers, hisses, and provides a cacophony of catcalls. Real lawyers would never do that. With respect to Bryan, he was probably right.
Television cameras can have that effect.
Witnesses may testify as if they're performing a gig. Lawyers may trade cheap shots to provide sound bites for the evening news. The judge may delay his most dramatic rulings until prime time. Some of the most amusing moments in Inherit the Wind depict media coverage of a trial in the age before television. The judge is frequently interrupted by explosions of flash powder.