The Media and Victims of Crime

In today’s media there seems to be great emphasis on the victims of crime. The question that arises from this is why do the media focus and over-represent some victims compared to other victims of similar crimes. As I have stated in past blogs the general public have a keen interest in crime and that is why the media report crime stories because of their newsworthiness but apart from the crime itself people seem to have just as much interest for the victim of the crime.

A victim of a crime especially serious assault or rape deserves to make a statement to the media about their thoughts and feelings to the crime that they have become a victim of. The issue that arises is that some victims are given more attention then others which can sometimes be unfair to other people with almost exact similarities of victimisation.

There are various reasons why some individuals of vicmtimsation will be covered by the media compared to others. For example I believe gender, age and race are major factors that contribute to whether a person will receive media attention of the crime that has been committed against them. It has been highlighted that an ideal victim is someone who is venerable, defenceless, innocent and deserves compassion from others. Ideal victims that come to mind are little girls, or elderly women as both have the gender factor of being a female the age factor of being to young or old to defend themselves and are vulnerable to perpetrators and usually these victims are Caucasian. 

Another factor may be the crime itself. If the crime is serious or unusual then the victim is likely to get more media attention. Unusual or out of the ordinary creates newsworthiness and this is what the media are looking for when they report victims of crime.

When looking through the newspaper to find an article about victims I came across a story involving two young women that are alleged victims of sexual assault by their stepfather who has been granted bail. They highlighted that they got off the train at Mt Druitt station and saw their stepfather but they were not informed that he had been granted bail. As 21 year old Kristie Hawkins said “We got off the train and there he was on the platform. She further added “No one should have this sort of thing happen to them” These quotes reinforce how victims are portrayed as innocent who deserve peoples compassion about the situation that they find themselves in.

In summary victims should be entitled to make statements about their feelings and emotions but the media should not manipulate what stories should and should not be reported. Everyone despite their age, gender or race should be given as much priority as the next victim. Obviously some stories of victimisation will be reported more then others but the media should at times vary a story about a victim of crime by reporting that young men, elderly men and people of different backgrounds who are innocent can also be victims of serious crimes.

Media and Prison: The Unknown

In today’s contemporary media it is almost impossible to turn on the television or open a newspaper without finding a story relating to crime. While crime and criminals play a significant contribution to news there seems to be less focus on prisons. In fact only 17% percent of crime and justice stories involve correctional institutions (Chermak). Therefore the purpose of this blog is to examine why such an important institution such as a prison which keeps people who are considered to be a threat to society out of news attention compared with other crime agencies such as the police and the courts

Prisons are responsible institutions that keep individuals who have committed crimes out of society. They have been placed in prison as a punishment for their actions. Their crimes can vary for example from theft to assault to murder. As a consequence of their actions by being placed into a prison it is hoped that the person is rehabilitated and therefore once released if ever from prison will be deterred from re-offending. 

Therefore it is rather simple to understand the purpose of a prison and what it hopes to accomplish but the bigger problem is to uncover why prisons do not receive as much media attention and the consequences that this may create for prisons. With such a lack of media focus people get the incorrect perception about prisons and therefore believe the stereotypes that are created about prisons.

Some of the reasons why the media do not report on prisons is because of the lack of newsworthiness (Jewkes, 2004) that prisons have. Prisons are not that exciting as they involve routine of the same thing everyday. Even if the media did want to report on prisons, access is very limited to the media as prisons are usually a closed institution.

The problem with this lack of media attention is that although actual prison stories are not being reported, prison television shows like prison break, America’s hardest prisoners and prison movies like Shawshank Redemption are creating a misperception that may be misleading or provide only a fictional or exaggerated side of what a real prison and prisoners may be like.

While prison stories are limited I was able to come across one story relating to prison and the infamous serial killer Ivan Milat. The article talks about the conditions of prison as it states “Supermax, with its stainless steel walls and clinical surfaces, looks as much intensive care ward as prison”. This creates a description of what the prison looks like. In addition the author reveals “the current facility has 146 cameras and 40 alarms” reinforcing that prisons have high security and that society is safe from these criminals who are locked up in supermax prison. Furthermore Robert Lang a prisoner, who has done nine years, said the “guards were not there to belittle inmates” redirecting away from the stereotype that guards bash prisoners

In summary prisons I believe will always be less reported then other crime agencies like the police or courts. However I do think that the media should try incorporate more stories about prison life because I think people do have a general interest in the prison system and prisoners which is evident through how popular shows like Priosn break and America’s hardest prisoners are.

Reference List

Jewkes, Y, (2004), ‘Media and Crime’, Sage Publications, London

 Daily Telegraph -Inside Ivan Milat jail - the lowest circle of hell

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/inside-ivan-milat-jail-the-lowest-circle-of-hell/story-e6freuzr-1225925693066

Lecture 5 of Crime, Politics and the Media (CRIM2027)