Fictional crimes shows and there effect on how the public perceive crime.

In today’s society its seems that the general population seem to have a fascination with fictional crime shows. This is evident through shows like law and order, CSI, Criminal Minds, City Homicide and Underbelly to name a few.

The question that arises from these fictional crime shows is what effect are these shows creating about crime and the criminal justice system? Are these shows creating the right perception about crime in that if you commit murder for example you will be caught and fairly prosecuted under the law or are they glamorising crime and criminals like the underbelly franchise?

 
I will start with American crime shows like Law and Order and CSI. These shows I believe are positive forms of fictional crime shows as they highlight criminal cases which usually involve a person/s who commit a crime like murder and police use many tactics such as forensic science and asking witnesses to find out who committed the crime. Usually the majority of the time the criminal will be caught and then prosecuted. This is a positive aspect of crime and justice and will influence the public watching that crime doesn’t pay.

An issue does arise with this kind of fictional crime show however, as people watching perhaps are mislead into believing that the criminal justice system and especially enforcement by police is that effective. Most times crimes will go unsolved and people will get away with robbery, assault and even murder. Even when they are caught the justice system may fail in effectively prosecuting them due to lack of evidence or the defendant may have a good legal representation. (OJ Simpson case comes to mind)

While other times an innocent person will be convicted of crime they did not commit. The criminal justice system is not perfect like most things in this world people can make mistakes even in the court of law. The main point I’m trying to establish is that these crime shows are a good indicator about how the police use forensic science to catch criminals and how the justice system works but in saying that the public watching have to realise that the law isn’t always as effective and smooth and unfortunately unless people have some background knowledge about the criminal justice system they may think that the crime shows they watch are similar to how it works in the real world.

On the other hand a show that has received much attention of late about crime, police and corruption within the legal system enforcement is the Underbelly franchise. Underbelly is I would say the opposite of shows like Law and Order that portray more of the police side. Underbelly focuses more on the criminal’s side and how they become rich and powerful through the selling and dealing of drugs which ultimately leads to their demise. Murder, drugs and sex plays a significant role in underbelly franchise. It can be argued that Underbelly in fact glamourise crime. An example of this is how they all drive nice cars and live in nice homes. Although each series is said to be based on true events one wonders how much is reality and how much is actually fiction. That’s really beside the point the main argument I’m illustrating is how shows like Underbelly make criminals look good. Underbelly may give people ideas how to commit crimes and perhaps get away with it especially young people who can be easily influenced into a life of crime if they have abusive parents and limited education. The latest Underbelly the Golden Mile highlights the lead character John ibraham like some kind of hero despite the fact that he may have dealt drugs although he has never been charged of any serious offence. In summary I think underbelly can give out the wrong message about organised crime.