3. Media and Crime
3.1 Theoretical Perspectives on the Relationship Between Crime, Media, and the Public
Dr. Chantal Faucher
It is not possible for the media to tell us about everything that happens in the world, the details of every crime committed, the harm done to every victim, the behaviour of every law enforcement officer, the decisions of every court, or the rehabilitation of every offender. There is necessarily a selection process, a filtering of the range of stories available to determine which ones are “news.” Theorists from different perspectives argue that the stories that become news normally carry one or more features called news values or newsworthiness criteria (see Figure 3.1).
Therefore, even if we adhere to the belief that news reporters are impartial and objective truth-tellers, we must still accept that there will always be parts of the story that are left out and some stories that are never told. The question here is: Who decides on which stories to tell and how to tell them? The theoretical perspectives discussed in this section offer different views of the filtering process that leads to the creation of crime news content.
Market Model
The market model suggests that the basis for deciding which stories become crime news is market demand. What does the public want to see/hear/read about? What interests them? This model is premised on the idea that media are a business, and their focus is on profitability. For media to be profitable in a competitive marketplace, they must publish the stories that will attract the largest audience to maximise advertising revenue (Buckler, 2015; Manning, 2001; Surette, 2015). Proponents of this theory suggest that if media content is dominated by stories about violence, sex, money, and celebrities, it is due to audience preference. There is, therefore, no need for media regulation that requires media businesses to report information that may be less entertaining, but serves public interests.
Public Sphere/ Social Responsibility Model
While the market model suggests the media give the public what it wants, the related social responsibility model argues that the media should give the public what it needs. Media are one of the main pedagogical tools through which the population can become informed about the events and issues taking place in society. In the public sphere/social responsibility model, the media have a responsibility to serve the interests of democracy (Manning, 2001). The media benefit from certain protections in carrying out their duties; for instance, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the freedom of the press and other communication media (section 2. (b)). However, because the media are also seen as a public resource, media industry regulations and codes of ethics (such as those set out by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council) are in place to ensure a diversity of content that is not necessarily solely based on popularity (as the market model suggests) (Buc