1.9. Media Coverage of Crimes
Shanell Sanchez and Kate McLean
In the “background knowledge check” that began this chapter, did you answer this question correctly?: “True or False – Violent crime in the United States has reached historical highs since national reporting began.” You might be forgiven if you got this question wrong – research has shown that entertainment and news media create an image that we are living in an ever more dangerous world. [1] It can be easy to become fearful after watching too much news if we let ourselves lose sight of the fact (see the graph charting national crime data below.)
Public knowledge of crime and justice is derived largely from the media. Research has examined the impact of media consumption on fear of crime, punitive attitudes, and perceived police effectiveness. Studies have found that the more crime-related media an individual consumes, the more fearful of crime they are. [2] [3] However, we also are attracted stories about crime and victims when we choose to consume media. In other words, the media is aware of our preference for these topics, and thus reports on them more. Glassner (2009) describes what he calls the ‘ideal crime story’ for journalists to report. He notes that society likes to read about innocent victims, likable people, and perpetrators who are without remorse. [4]
Our society is fascinated with crime and justice, to the point that we spend hours watching films, reading books, listening to podcasts, and consuming TV broadcasts that keep us constantly engaged in crime “talk.” Perhaps what we do not always realize is that the mass media plays an important role in the construction of criminals, criminality, and the criminal justice system. Our understanding and perceptions of victims, criminals, deviants, and police are largely determined by their portrayal in the mass media. [5]
Again, the majority of public knowledge about crime and justice is derived from the media. [6] [7] [8] Since Gallup polls began asking whether crime had increased in 1989, a majority of Americans have usually said there is more crime than there was the year before. There is only one year where people did not estimate an increase in crime – in 2002, following 9/11. [9]
Despite dramatic decreases in U.S. violent and property crime rates since the 1980s, most voters say crime has gotten worse during that span, a perception that is dramatically at odds with the data. [10] Research has also shown that there are stark differences in perceptions of crime across political party lines. For example, in the 2016 elections, almost eight-in-ten voters who supported President Donald Trump (78%) believed crime was increasing, compared to less than 40% of voters for Democrat Hillary Clinton. [11] All of this is at odds with official data reports that will get discussed in more detail in the next chapter.
Research by the Pew Research Center has found that most Americans get their news from social media, despite having concerns ab