ABSTRACT
This chapter will address media constructions and representations of paedophilia in modern society, based on the existing literature and current reporting. It will first examine what the media actually is, and this will allow for a discussion of the role and impact of the media on the public. In doing so, the psychology of media influence will be addressed, therefore examining why the media has the impact it does on public opinion and how it can help shape individual attitudes. This will then tie into ideas around the social construction of reality, particularly with regard to social issues, examining paedophilia as a socially sensitive and traumatic topic. The chapter will then address how the media, especially the press, has reported and discussed paedophilia, looking at the language and ideas used with regard to paedophiles and dangerous child sexual offenders, and asking how close to reality these practices are. This will finally lead into a discussion of the social responsibility, morality and ethics of the media, and whether they achieve this in their reporting and presentation of stories concerning paedophilia. In discussing the UK press coverage of paedophilia, the chapter will focus on The News of the World’s Sarah Payne campaign; this will not only demonstrate how the press used this case to raise the profile of paedophilia, cementing it as a moral panic, but will also allow for a discussion concerning media sensitivity and ethics. In closing, the chapter will bring these various strands together to demonstrate the impact of the media’s representation of paedophilia on the public and how by changing their approach the media could help change the public perception and social construction of paedophilia towards a more realistic representation that could help in child protection.
