The media have been criticised (especially by the government) for over-representing crime. A study of newspaper reports (cited in Hewitt) shows that 26% of newspaper reports were about murder whereas the official crime statistics were only 0.2%. 3% of reports were on rape; however the figures were only 0.4%. Robbery and assaults were also over represented. However reports of burglary, theft and car theft were under-represented. However it could be seen that as these are now fairly common crimes, the public has lost interest in hearing about it. It has also been found that the media mis-represent the image of victims and offenders. According to the official statistics, the most likely victim of a violent crime is likely to be a poor, young, black males, however they figure predominantly in the media as perpetrators of violent crime. News reports also exaggerate the risks posed to higher-status, white females as victims of crime. Another finding is that the majority of stories in the media are about criminal incidents as opposed to an analysis of crime patterns or the causes of crime. Garofolo states that “crime stories in newspapers consist primarily of brief accounts of discreet events, with few details and very little background material. There are few attempts to discuss causes of, or remedies for crime or to put the problem of crime into a larger perspective.” Sherizen adds to this; “Mass media provides citizens with a public awareness or crime… based upon an information-rich and knowledge poor foundation… Anyone interested in learning about crime from the mass media is treated to examples, incidents and scandals but at such a level of description that it is impossible for them to develop an analytical comprehension of crime.” The media, especially films, began to associate mental illness with violence until it became a cliché. The stereotype of a homicidal maniac as being mentally ill is prevalent in such horror films as Psycho, Silence of the lambs, Halloween, Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street. Many people believe that these types of films spawn criminal behaviour and copycat crimes.
One question we must ask ourselves is, is there a causal relationship between exposure to media and the public perception of crime? Simon (1966) studied the effects of newspaper sensationalism on mock juries. One group were presented with a tabloid newspaper style sensationalised version of the offence whilst the second group were presented with an account of the crime as it would appear in a broadsheet newspaper. Before the trial the jurors were asked about the guilt of the defendant. The first group believed unanimously that the defendant was guilty whist the second group had no opinion. After the two groups had heard a tape recording of the ‘trial’ the view shifted so that all believed the defendant was innocent. This study shows how the public can be swayed simply by one account of an event. The public can also be swayed on their perception of crime by which newspaper they read. Each newspaper has its own political stance which would either support or oppose the government’s efforts against crime. Newspapers such as The Sun, Daily Star, Daily Express and The Times were all Conservative supporters whereas The Daily Mirror, Guardian and The Financial Times were all supporting Labour ( based on support in the 1992 General Election) Evidence of this type of political support is still evident in major news issues today, for example The Sun’s reporting of the war in Iraq showed the Prime Minister as a puppet that was being controlled by America and even set up a petition against the war and still seem very anti-Labour in their reporting. Cohen (1972, 1980) studied the ‘mods’ and ‘rockers’ in the 1960’s. Each group were distinctive in the way they dressed, their taste in music and their chosen mode of transport. The media portrayed these groups as social delinquents who terrorised seaside towns, the groups then began to act like delinquents Cohen believed this was what he termed ‘labelling theory,’ the groups had been given a label and were now acting according to that label. The court systems responded to this media fuelled panic by increasing punishments and inventory of charges for each members of these groups. The media blamed the groups for poor visitors to seaside towns that year, which of course had nothing to do with the abysmal weather of that year.
The effect of these representations in the media is that it can divide society and provide labels for certain groups. The poor working class are seen to be criminals and another contemporary issue in today’s society is terrorism. Muslim’s are complaining to the Government and the media that they are now being labelled as terrorists. The media play on the fact that Al Queda are from a Muslim country and therefore all Muslim’s are terrorist. This is obviously not true but this is the way the media are portraying them. The media seems to have normalised criminal behaviour by sensationalising such rare crimes such as murder and rape so that more common crimes such as theft and assault seem commonplace and ‘boring.’
It is clear that the media plays an important role I the portrayal of crime to the public and influences their thoughts on who is deviant and what to think about crime. However the mis-representation of certain crimes can fuel public fear. People now hear about murders and rapes near everyday as opposed to being made aware of the real crimes that are more likely to affect them in their everyday lives such as car theft. The media is also blamed for being a cause of crime. Although there may be some people who will listen to a certain piece of music or watch a particular film which may inspire them to go out ad commit a crime, there are a significant majority of those who do not. The media should not be blamed for an individual’s actions, a violent film or piece of music may trigger something inside of them that makes them go out and kill but it is not actually the media that make them kill, it is down to individual differences. In conclusion, the media presentation of crime is important as it is through the media that the general public learn about crime and create their own views and perceptions of crime and criminals.
References.
Kidd-Hewitt, D. and Osbourne, R. (eds.) Crime and the Media. London. Pluto.
Maguire, M., Morgan, R. and Reiner, R. 1997. The Oxford Handbook of Criminology. Oxford. Oxford University Press.
Schlesinger, P. and Tumber, H. 1994. Reporting Crime: The Media Politics of Criminal Justice. Oxford. Clarendon Press.