Sign In
Not register? Register Now!
Essay Available:
Pages:
2 pages/≈550 words
Sources:
4 Sources
Style:
APA
Subject:
Social Sciences
Type:
Essay
Language:
English (U.S.)
Document:
MS Word
Date:
Total cost:
$ 9.72
Topic:

Research Assignment Paper: Media and Public Opinion on Crime

Essay Instructions:

Media and Public Opinion

In the annual American Time Use Survey, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2010) found that Americans spend over a 1,000 hours a year watching television. This amount of time represents more than half of the average person's available leisure time. This statistic is significant when you think about the fact that most of the information the public receives about crime and criminal justice comes through television. It is easy to think about how television and other mass media might influence the opinions and attitudes of the public about crime and criminal justice. As you prepare for this Discussion, consider whether media influences perceptions of crime and criminal justice or not. Also, think about the degree to which media influences the perception of race, gender, social class, and age relative to criminals.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2010). American time use survey summary–2009 results. Retrieved from http://www(dot)bls(dot)gov/news.release/atus.nr0.htm

With these thoughts in mind:

Post by Day 4 an explanation of whether media influences public perception about crime and criminal justice. Then, explain whether media might influence the perception of criminals related to race, gender, social class, and age and explain how. Support your response with references to the Learning Resources

Essay Sample Content Preview:

Media and Public Opinion
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Media and Public Opinion
Given the fact that majority of the population is accessed to media coverage of most of the crime taking place throughout the world, there is little doubt that the coverage of crime will influence the perception of the public towards criminal acts and the justice system (Doyle, 2016). Research indicates that when the crime that is being covered in the news bulletins is reported from within the nation, the public will develop fear and feel insecure as they would interpret to mean that they are not safe because crime is taking place outside their doors. Since hardly a day passes without a news article deliberating on crime, the public is made to perceive crime as part of daily life although some of them will feel victimized (Doyle, 2016). Research shows that most of the people in urban areas feel victimized when they view crime cases that occur within their areas of residents.
When the public is taken through the scenes of crime showing how police deal with criminals, brutality in it, assaults and burglaries, the public tend to view crime as a bad thing whose consequences are no more than death (Entman & Gross). Parents will advise their children to stay away from crime, and even the public learns to keep off from crime to avoid the consequences. Further lessons are derived from the judicial system and the sentences that the criminals face. For example in some countries where capital punishment is still applicable, the public will learn that crime directly leads to death and will reduce incidences of crime as they will equate it with the loss of life for both the victim as well as the perpetrator.
Also, media contributes to stereotypes in criminal cases depicting African Americans and Latinos as major culprits of crime and thus introducing the notion of racism in crime. Media associates people of color with dangerous behavior traits and undesired values that are always a leading course to crime (Bjornstrom, Kaufman, Peterson, & Slater, 2010). Media portrays the ...
Updated on
Get the Whole Paper!
Not exactly what you need?
Do you need a custom essay? Order right now:
Order

You Might Also Like Other Topics Related to hate crime: