The Effects Of Street Crime

It is commonly accepted that our perception of any social phenomenon is directed to a large extent by the media, including newspapers, television programs and the internet (Williams, 2012). Chadee (2001) conducted research, attempting to reveal the effect that media has on people, and discovered that the primary source of information on crime had been both television and newspaper reports (Jones, 2009). This encourages the notion that media influences what people perceive to be criminal trends (Jones, 2009). It is observed that media coverage can arouse fear and insecurity by sensationalizing and exaggerating crime, in an attempt to achieve popularity and secure material gains (Marsh and Melville, 2011). In this respect, “the media does distort

This can be seen in the reporting of street crime where elderly people tend to attract more media attention. Nevertheless, the real victims of street crime are youths that are most likely to be mugged and deprived of valuable commodities, such as mobile phones (Greer, 2007). This representation of crime can be misleading for the audience, as it promotes the notion that youths are more likely to be offenders and less likely to be victims (Greer, 2007). However, it is argued that there are circumstances in which youth receive the status of victim, but these cases may concern a serious injury or death (Greer, 2007). Moreover, child abuse has been increasingly reported in the media, although only in situations when the child has been abused by an authority member, such as a teacher (Greer, 2007). Grubin (1998) contrasted this with the reality, where child sexual abuse is more often committed within the house by someone familiar to the child. Yet, as Kitzinger added later, “images of familial abuse” are rarely present in the media (Greer, 2007, p.

Research was conducted analyzing different types of media. Williams and Dickinson observed in 1989 that the tabloid press included more crime than the quality newspapers: The Sun allocated 30 per cent for crime news, while The Guardian made up only 5 per cent (Jones, 2009). Schlesinger et al. (1995) discovered that tabloid papers, television programs and local bulletins over-reported violent crime (Williams, 2012). Moreover, research carried out by Cumberbatch (1995) indicated that stories related to death made up “53 per cent of all crime reports on Sky News and over 40 per cent on most BBC Radio stations” (Jones, 2009, p. 59). Fictional accounts, like television, cinema and videos, also impact people’s perception of crime, as they depict victims, offenders and enforcement agencies in a sensationalized manner, making “for a good drama”, but distorting the reality (Williams, 2012, p. 59). The police are portrayed in a good light either by depicting their success in resolving crime in reality programmes, like Crimewatch (Mayr and Machin, 2012), or by avoiding criticism (Williams, 2012). Additionally, Hall et al. (1978) advocated that the police image is mostly misleading and fallacious (Williams, 2012). Finally, many books, movies and television series have immensely illustrated violent fictional crime and imagery has become a fundamental part of these illustrations (Newburn,