How the O.J. Simpson murder case changed trials forever WPXI [Video]

O.J. Simpson died of cancer at the age of 76, his family announced on Thursday. Despite incredible fame and success from his football career, Simpson will be more remembered for his involvement in what is considered one of the most famous murder trials in U.S. history, in which he was found not guilty of the 1994 murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman.

The Simpson trial and its lead-up — including the infamous Ford Bronco chase down the 405 Freeway in Southern California — was a major turning point in news sensationalism and televised courtroom trials.

The trial had elements of racial divides, sex, celebrity and murder — a combination that made Time magazine dub it “the Godzilla of tabloid stories.”

A turning point for sensationalized, televised trials

The first criminal trial to be nationally televised was Ted Bundy’s conviction in 1979for the murder of two sorority sisters in Tallahassee, Fla. In 1981, the Supreme …