10.2.4

Media & Crime

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News Values

A large amount of news coverage is dedicated to crime and deviance, however the media offers us a distorted view of crime.

Distorting crime

Distorting crime

  • A large amount of news coverage is dedicated to crime and deviance, however the media offers us a distorted view of crime:
    • It over represents violent and sexual crime.
    • It over exaggerates police success.
    • It over exaggerates the intelligence of offenders.
__Cohen and Young__

Cohen and Young

  • Cohen and Young claim that the news is manufactured and therefore is not a reliable source when shaping our views of crime.
  • They claim that the news is a social construct as journalists will carefully select their news stories based on the following criteria, known as news values.
News values

News values

  1. Immediacy:
    • It is seen as ‘breaking news’ and therefore attractive.
  2. Dramatisation:
    • It is exciting and potentially dangerous – usually violent.
  3. Personalisation:
    • It is easy to relate to e.g. it generates human interest.
News values cont.

News values cont.

  1. High-status victims or offenders:
    • E.g. celebrities etc. 
  2. Simplification:
    • It is easy to understand.
  3. Novelty:
    • Is it unique?    

The Influence of Media on Crime

It is argued that the media can influence crime to occur through the following factors.

Imitation and arousal

Imitation and arousal

  • Imitation:
    • Encouraging ‘copycat’ behaviour. 
  • Arousal:
    • Excitement caused by the media to commit crime e.g. murders or sexual assault.
Desensitisation and transmission

Desensitisation and transmission

  • Desensitisation:
    • As the media is full of shocking images, people begin to see brutality and violence as normal. 
  • Transmitting criminal techniques:
    • Exposing how people committed the crime.
Consumerism

Consumerism

  • By promoting the desire for consumerist items:
    • Often too expensive to buy on an average income by glamorising offending.

Moral Panic

Cohen argues a moral panic can occur when the media generate an over-reaction within the public to a specific perceived problem.

Aims of moral panics

Aims of moral panics

  • Moral panics usually aim to do the following: 
    • Identify a group as a threat to societal values; known as ‘folk devils’. 
    • To give folk devils increased exposure and exaggerate their level of deviance.
    • To encourage moral entrepreneurs from all areas of society to openly condemn their behaviour in the media such as politicians, police officers, judges and celebrities, all for their own benefit.
Mods and rockers

Mods and rockers

  • Cohen’s study focussed on the conflict between the ‘mods’ and ‘rockers’ in the 1960’s as an example of how influential a moral panic can be on the public’s perception of crime.
  • Initially, the mods and rockers were two groups of young people that co-existed within the 1960’s.
‘Day of Terror’

‘Day of Terror’

  • Cohen notes that a clear distinction was made between the groups in the media in 1964 when a minor ‘scuffle’ was widely reported in the national media.
  • Rather than reporting this as a scuffle, headlines instead read ‘Day of Terror’.
Criminalisation

Criminalisation

  • The moral panic on the mods and rockers began to spiral out of control as public fear increased, the police felt under more pressure to act.
  • A crackdown on both groups took place in which both were ‘criminalised’ by society which only led to further marginalisation.
Media and crime

Media and crime

  • This can be linked to the following approaches:
    • The hypodermic syringe approach.
      • (Supported by studies such as Bandura et al.)
    • Catharsis.
      • (Supported by studies such as Fesbach and Sanger.)
    • Sensitisation.
      • (Supported by studies such as Young.)
Jump to other topics
1

Theory & Methods

1.1

Sociological Theories

1.1.1Marxism1.1.2Feminism1.1.3Social Action Theories
1.2

Sociological Methods

1.2.1Types of Data1.2.2Positivism & Interpretivism1.2.3Research Design1.2.4Research Considerations1.2.5Values in Research1.2.6Modernity & Post-Modernity1.2.7Sociology as a Science1.2.8Sociology & Social Policy1.2.9End of Topic Test - Sociology Methods & Theories
1.3

Sources of Data

1.3.1Introduction1.3.2Experiments1.3.3Surveys1.3.4Longitudinal Studies1.3.5Questionnaires1.3.6Types of Questionnaires1.3.7Interviews1.3.8Observation1.3.9Case Studies1.3.10Documents1.3.11Official Statistics1.3.12End of Topic Test - Sources of Data
2

Education with Methods in Context

2.1

Role & Function of the Education System

2.1.1Introduction2.1.2Functionalist Theories2.1.3Marxist & Feminist Theories2.1.4The New Right
2.2

Educational Achievement

2.2.1Social Class: Internal Factors2.2.2Social Class: External Factors2.2.3Social Class: Attitudes to Education2.2.4Social Class: Difference in Achievement2.2.5Gender2.2.6Ethnicity
2.3

Relationships & Processes Within Schools

2.3.1Processes2.3.2Labelling2.3.3Categorisations2.3.4Student Experience2.3.5End of Topic Test -Education with Methods
2.4

Educational Policies

2.4.1Equality2.4.2Privatisation2.4.3Marketisation2.4.4Government Policies by Party2.4.5Globalisation2.4.6End of Topic Test- Educational Policies2.4.7Practice Exam Question - Social Policies
3

Option 1: Culture & Identity

3.1

Conceptions of Culture

3.1.1Culture3.1.2Mass Culture3.1.3Popular Culture3.1.4Global Culture3.1.5End of Topic Test - Culture and Identity
3.2

Identity & Socialisation

3.2.1Identities3.2.2Socialisation3.2.3Secondary Socialisation3.2.4Theories of Socialisation3.2.5End of Topic Test - Identity3.2.6Practice Exam Question - Socialisation & Equality
3.3

Social Identity

3.3.1Social Class3.3.2Upper & Middle Class3.3.3Working & Underclass3.3.4Social Class Evaluation3.3.5Gender3.3.6Changing Gender Identities3.3.7Ethnicity3.3.8Age3.3.9Disability3.3.10Nationality3.3.11End of Topic Test - Social Identity
3.4

Production, Consumption & Globalisation

3.4.1Production & Consumption3.4.2Globalisation3.4.3Evaluation3.4.4End of Topic Test - Production
4

Option 1: Families & Households

4.1

Families & Households

4.1.1Definitions4.1.2Functionalist & New Right Perspectives4.1.3Marxist & Feminist Perspectives4.1.4Postmodernist Perspective4.1.5End of Topic Test - Families & Households4.1.6Practice Exam Question - Function of Family
4.2

Changing Patterns

4.2.1Marriage4.2.2Divorce4.2.3LAT Relationships4.2.4Child-Bearing4.2.5Lone Parenthood4.2.6Diversity4.2.7The Sociology of Personal Life4.2.8Government Policies Post-WW24.2.9End of Topic Test - Changing Patterns
4.3

The Symmetrical Family

4.3.1The Symmetrical Family4.3.2Evaluation
4.4

Children & Childhood

4.4.1Childhood4.4.2Childhood in the UK4.4.3Childhood as a Social Construct4.4.4The Disappearance of Childhood4.4.5Child Abuse4.4.6Domestic Violence4.4.7End of Topic Test - Family & Childhood
4.5

Demographic Trends UK

4.5.1Introduction4.5.2Birth Rates4.5.3Death Rates4.5.4The Ageing Population4.5.5Studies on the Ageing Population4.5.6Migration4.5.7Globalisation4.5.8End of Topic Test - Demographics UK
5

Option 1: Health

5.1

Social Constructions

5.1.1The Body5.1.2Health, Illness & Disease5.1.3Disability5.1.4Models of Health & Illness5.1.5End of Topic Test - Social Constructions
5.2

Social Distribution of Healthcare

5.2.1Social Class5.2.2Gender5.2.3Ethnicity5.2.4Regional
5.3

Provision & Access to Healthcare

5.3.1The NHS5.3.2Inequalities in Provision5.3.3Sociological Explanations5.3.4Inequalities in Access5.3.5Inequalities in Access 25.3.6End of Topic Test - Distribution Health
5.4

Mental Health

5.4.1The Biomedical Approach5.4.2Social Patterns5.4.3Social Constructionist Approach
5.5

The Globalised Health Industry

5.5.1The Functionalist Approach5.5.2The Postmodernist Approach5.5.3The Globalised Health Industry5.5.4End of Topic Test - Mental Health & Globalisation
6

Option 1: Work, Poverty & Welfare

6.1

Poverty & Wealth

6.1.1Types of Poverty6.1.2Types of Poverty 26.1.3Distribution of Wealth UK6.1.4Sociological Theories6.1.5Sociological Theories 26.1.6Distribution of Poverty UK6.1.7End of Topic Test - Poverty & Wealth
6.2

Welfare

6.2.1The Welfare State6.2.2Theoretical Approaches to Welfare
6.3

Labour Process

6.3.1Nature of Work6.3.2Technology & Control6.3.3Work & Life6.3.4The Effects of Globalisation6.3.5Globalisation & Worklessness6.3.6End of Topic Test - Welfare & Labour
7

Option 2: Beliefs in Society

7.1

Ideology, Science & Religion

7.1.1Types of Religion7.1.2Ideology & Belief Systems7.1.3Social Stability & Religion7.1.4Social Change & Religion7.1.5End of Topic Test - Ideology, Science & Religion
7.2

Religious Movements

7.2.1Religious Organisations7.2.2New Religious Movements7.2.3New Age Movements7.2.4Practice Exam Question - Growth of NRMs
7.3

Society & Religion

7.3.1Social Groups & Religion7.3.2Gender & Religion7.3.3End of Topic Test- Religious Movements & Society
7.4

Contemporary Religion

7.4.1Secularisation UK7.4.2Against Secularisation7.4.3Secularisation US7.4.4Fundamentalism7.4.5Economic Development & Religion7.4.6End of Topic - Contemporary Religion
8

Option 2: Global Development

8.1

Development, Underdevelopment & Global Inequality

8.1.1Development8.1.2Underdevelopment & Global Inequality
8.2

Globalisation & Global Organisations

8.2.1Globalisation8.2.2Transnational Corporations & International Agency8.2.3Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs)
8.3

Aid, Trade, Industrialisation, Urbanisation

8.3.1Development: Aid & Trade8.3.2Development: Industrialisation & Urbanisation8.3.3Development: Environment & War
9

Option 2: The Media

9.1

Contemporary Media

9.1.1New Media9.1.2Control of the Media9.1.3Sociological Approaches: New Media9.1.4Globalisation9.1.5News Selection9.1.6Moral Panics9.1.7End of Topic Test - Contemporary Media
9.2

Media Representations

9.2.1Age9.2.2Social Class & Ethnicity9.2.3Gender9.2.4Sexuality & Disability9.2.5Practice Exam Questions - Presentation of Women
9.3

Audiences

9.3.1Media Theories9.3.2Media Theories 29.3.3Media Representations & Audiences
10

Crime & Deviance

10.1

Crime & Society

10.1.1Functionalism10.1.2Subcultural Theory10.1.3Marxism10.1.4Realism10.1.5Other Approaches10.1.6End of Topic Test - Crime & Society10.1.7Practice Exam Questions - Social Construction
10.2

Social Distribution of Crime

10.2.1Ethnicity10.2.2Gender10.2.3Globalisation & Crime10.2.4Media & Crime10.2.5Types of Crimes10.2.6End of Topic Test - Social Distribution of Crime
10.3

Prevention & Punishment

10.3.1Surveillance10.3.2Prevention10.3.3Punishment10.3.4Victimology10.3.5End of Topic Test - Prevention & Punishment

Practice questions on Media & Crime

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  1. 1
    Ways the media distorts crime: Fill in the list
  2. 2
    Aims of moral panics:Fill in the list
  3. 3
    __Cohen’s__ study:True / false
  4. 4
    __Cohen’s__ study:Fill in the list
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