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Media Constructions of Crime

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  • VINCENT F. SACCO

Abstract

The news media are a vital part of the process by which individuals' private troubles with crime—as victims or offenders—are transformed into public issues. The social construction of crime problems may be understood as reflecting the types of relationships that link news agencies to their sources, and the organizational constraints that structure the news-gathering process. The ways in which the news media collect, sort, and contextualize crime reports help to shape public consciousness regarding which conditions need to be seen as urgent problems, what kinds of problems they represent, and, by implication, how they should be resolved. While much attention has been focused on the ways in which media attention to crime influences the fear of crime, it is likely that the most significant effects of media reporting are broadly ideological rather than narrowly attitudinal. By restricting the terms of discussion, the news media facilitate the marginalization of competing views regarding crime and its solution.

Suggested Citation

  • Vincent F. Sacco, 1995. "Media Constructions of Crime," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 539(1), pages 141-154, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:anname:v:539:y:1995:i:1:p:141-154
    DOI: 10.1177/0002716295539001011
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Newman, Graeme R., 1990. "Popular culture and criminal justice: A preliminary analysis," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 18(3), pages 261-274.
    2. Marsh, Harry L., 1991. "A comparative analysis of crime coverage in newspapers in the United States and other countries from 1960-1989: A review of the literature," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 19(1), pages 67-79.
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