ABSTRACT
The role of the media in informing public opinion and influencing citizen reaction to crime issues is central to understanding the framing of crime policy. With round-the-clock, up-to-the-minute news, the television viewer not only learns about local crimes but also sees victims, offenders, and crime news from around the nation and the world. Increased technology and changes in local and national media environments have significantly altered the portrayal of crime in America. The growth of cable stations, the live broadcast of court proceedings, and the changing societal mores governing what is appropriate media coverage, coupled with changes in programming that rely heavily on news stations, magazines, talk shows, and re-enactments of real-life crime dramas, have all affected the public’s perception of the crime problem. Most studies of criminology and criminal justice include some review of the basic ideas or schools of thought regarding crime and punishment.
