ABSTRACT
Much of the news featured on television revolves around issues of conflict. Frequently this takes the form of political conflicts, industrial disputes, or arguments about the economy. From time to time, the news may be dominated by more emotionally arousing items, such as crime, violent civil disturbances, terrorism or war. Surveys of public opinion about the news have indicated that people often claim to want more of certain kinds of news and less of others (Wober, 1978). One issue which members of the public have been exercised about is the coverage given by news broadcasts to real life violent incidents. Opinions about whether and how the news on television should cover violent events vary with the type of story, the nature of the treatment it gives to the events concerned, and the types of people who are involved.
