Media’s Presentation Of Crime

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Media’s Presentation of Crime

There are several genres of media which cover and report crimes. Over several years, media has advanced to adopt significant changes as per the variations in the patterns of criminality and the consequent response of the criminal justice system. The reporting has entirely changed and incorporated fundamental reporting based on drug, terrorism, fraud, child, rape, mugging and sex. However, media has been criticized for exaggerating and over presenting the crime. A wide range of stories in media is largely influenced by the criminal incidents as opposed to the analysis of crime patterns or the causes CITATION Cou14 \l 1033 (Courtauld). Irrefutably, the media plays an instrumental role in setting agenda pertinent to deviance and crime. The mass media can never report each instance that occurs and several media persons are selective to choose to prefer and report fabricated incidents.

Moreover, people are inclined to establishing opinions about deviance and crime about the information they receive on media. The strategy of media to set agenda is manifested in the perception of the public. For instance, the media presentation explicitly influences the beliefs of people pertinent to crime irrespective of whether or not the impressions are true. Several researchers have stipulated that the media coverage of crime is filtered via the sense of journalist to make the event or news newsworthy. The audience desires to listen to interesting or exciting news regardless of the news is true. It implies media personnel is likely to incorporate the elements in a crime as a story which make it exciting. In the context of crime, the news events must be dramatic enough or significant to be in the news. Nowadays, crime becomes prominent when it is portrayed as severe, unpredictable and random to introduce a moral panic which terrifies the public. People are often reliant on the reports published in media regardless of the validity of news. For instance, the war on terror implied initially many people felt every person in the United Kingdom (UK) was at risk CITATION Bro15 \l 1033 (Brown). Violent events accompanied by the film, mobile phone or CCTV footage are newsworthy and enable the media to offer a dramatic and visual impact for the audience.

Besides, each kind of media advances to reflect violent crime in an exaggerated manner. The demonstration of crime is opposite to that reflected by the statistics on crime. These media representations create a distorted perception of crime in the public, accelerate the fear of crime and exaggerate the threat. The moral entrepreneurs can utilize the media to put significant pressure on the stakeholders to address the problem. Consequently, an adverse labelling of the attitude and variation in law takes place. A critical appraisal of the matter reveals that society exhibits an exaggerated reaction to the events under the influence of media. The accuracy of these reports is also a contentious debate. Honored and dignified personnel are often threatened as the public facilitates the rumors and news thoroughly. Nowadays, empirical evidence reflects media personnel and journalist often target specific individuals based on widespread prejudices and political victimization.

To conclude, the media presents the crime in a rather contentious manner to exaggerate the issue and make the event newsworthy. It manifests several adverse impacts on society among which the change in perception is the dominant factor. A critical appraisal of the contemporary state of affairs further highlights the inaccuracy of reports, prejudice and targeting a political entity have become pervasive. The bottom line is that the consequences of reporting fabricated news are detrimental as they induce fear in public and present a forged presentation of crime and reality.

Work cited

BIBLIOGRAPHY Brown, Brittni. Is the Media Altering Our Perceptions of Crime? 11 March 2015. 16 April 2019. <https://intpolicydigest.org/2015/03/11/is-the-media-altering-our-perceptions-of-crime/>.

Courtauld, Alice. How the media controls our perceptions of crime. 8 November 2014. 16 April 2019. <https://www.shoutoutuk.org/2014/11/08/how-the-media-controls-our-perceptions-of-crime/>.