ABSTRACT

Introduction Thus far we have looked at elements of the history of crime and punishment, how we measure crime, and what the media tell us about crime. Here we turn our attention to the politics of crime and its control. That we do so is another reminder that crime, and the study of crime, occurs within a social and political context. What we think about crime, and what we think we know about crime, is in part a refl ection of the times in which we live. As we will see – continually – the ways in which we respond to crime are also very much a refl ection of the nature of the contemporary world. Indeed, the work of a number of very distinguished criminologists has focused on using crime and responses to it as a means of understanding the nature of our social order. In what follows we look at how politicians talk about crime and punishment, how they use crime and punishment to convey political messages, and how this has changed over time. Once again, the primary focus will be on the UK, but we will also look at the recent history – by which I mean the last half-century – of the politics of crime and its control in America.