ABSTRACT
Perceptions of sex crime have shaped and directed sex offender policy. In America, sex offenses are depicted as on the rise and committed by stranger recidivists, for example. Offenders with prior sex crime convictions are portrayed as driven to reoffend and inherently unreformable. As a result, new policies, overwhelmingly punitive in nature, now guide sexual offending management. Criminologists have identified the media as contributing to these prevalent and, at times, distorted views. This chapter explores scholarship centered on this theme and a critical assessment of this body of knowledge. Specifically, it first traces the historical portrayal of sex crime and offenders, then moves toward highlighting the effects of this coverage on shaping contemporary attitudes, and finally turns to identifying future research needs.
