Media and Crime

• Williams and Dickinson (1993) estimate that 30% of newspaper coverage was of crime and Ericson's study (1991) found 45-70% of Canadian media outlets content was based around crime
• This coverage does not always provide a valid picture of crime, police or even criminals
• Comparing media coverage to official statistics


  There are some surprising findings
• Police success


  • Exaggerated - known as the police efficiency fallacy
• In reality most crime goes unsolved - Smith (2013) less than a quarter of burglaries lead to charging of an offender
• Risk of victimisation


  • Exaggerated - especially to women, upper classes and white people
• Criminals and victims portrayed


  • As older and more middle class - this is not the case when you compare to official stats
• Criminals


  • Portrayed as planning their actions - known as the ingenuity fallacy, most crime is opportunistic, people act on impulse, perhaps taking less than a minute to commit an act, rather than it being premeditated
• Extraordinary crimes


  • Overplayed and ordinary crimes are underplayed - known as the dramatic fallacy
• Crime stories often focus on murder and rape, but these crimes are usually the result of quarrels or fighting (Felson 2014)
• Williams and Dickinson (1993) estimate that 30% of newspaper coverage was of crime and Ericson's study (1991) found 45-70% of Canadian media outlets content was based around crime
• Violent and sexual crime are over represented - there is evidence to suggest that reporting of rape has increased by a quarter and the media provide a distorted view of rape being carried out by crazed strangers, when in reality it is much more likely that the victim will know the perpetrator
• This coverage does not always provide a valid picture of crime, police or even criminals
• Crime is distorted by the media
• Comparing media coverage to official statistics


  There are some surprising findings
• News


  A social construction as some potential stories are selected and others rejected, news is not discovered but manufactured
• Police success is exaggerated


  Known as the police efficiency fallacy
• Most news stories mentioned non-violent crime but this form of crime is less likely to be reported in today's society
• In reality most crime goes unsolved - Smith (2013) less than a quarter of burglaries lead to charging of an offender
• New crimes identified


  • Road rage
  • Identity theft
  • Trolling
  • Stealthing
  • Drink spiking
• The risk of victimisation is exaggerated

  Especially to women, upper classes and white people
• Reporters may look for an angle or spin to make a regular storyline look or sound more interesting
• The media portray criminals and victims as older and more middle class- this is not the case when you compare to official stats
• Certain times of the year are quieter in terms of political news, for example, in the UK the period when politicians go on holiday is called the "silly season" because less is happening and newspapers look for or create stories
• The Sun newspaper in July 2003 claimed that asylum seekers were stealing the Queens swans to barbecue! Medic (2013) established there was no evidence for this and the story was subsequently retracted
• The suggestion that criminals plan their actions

  Known as the ingenuity fallacy, most crime is opportunistic, people act on impulse, perhaps taking less than a minute to commit an act, rather than it being premeditated
• News stories are likely to be biased
• Extraordinary crimes are overplayed and ordinary crimes are underplayed


  Known as the dramatic fallacy
• Crime stories often focus on murder and rape, but these crimes are usually the result of quarrels or fighting (Felson 2014)
• News values


  • Risk - victim centred stories that promote fear
  • Violence - especially spectacular or eye-catching acts
  • Simplification - make the story black or white
  • Novelty or unexpectedness - give the story a new angle
  • Immediacy - breaking news
  • Dramatisation - excitement and action
  • Higher Status - celebrities attract more attention
  • Personalisation - human interest stories
• If a story meets these news values then it is more likely to be reported and as crime and deviance is abnormal or unexpected so criminal acts are more likely to be newsworthy
• Violent and sexual crime are over represented - there is evidence to suggest that reporting of rape has increased by a quarter and the media provide a distorted view of rape being carried out by crazed strangers, when in reality it is much more likely that the victim will know the perpetrator
• Fictional representation of crime


  • Opposite of official crime statistics and very similar to news coverage of crime
• Crime is distorted by the media
• Drug and sex crime is overrepresented, real life murders mainly result from brawls or domestic disputes but this is rare in fictional representations
• News is a social construction

  Some potential stories are selected and others rejected, as Cohen argues news is not discovered but manufactured
• Fictional villains are usually middle class white men and fictional cops usually catch the criminal
• Chibnall (1977) found that most news stories mentioned non-violent crime but Reiner et al. found that this form of crime is less likely to be reported in today's society
• A recent surge in reality television would seem to suggest that victims have become more central and there is an increasing tendency to portray the police as brutal or corrupt
• New crimes that have formed the basis of news reporting

  • Road rage
  • Identity theft
  • Trolling
  • Stealthing
  • Drink spiking