LAW
Is the amount of attention paid to crime by the mass media excessive?
No
Yes
Crime is news. Reporting of it is often sensational, given that reporters are competing with eachother for readers, viewers and listeners. If they presented just the facts, it would not have the same impact. That said, television is generally more restrained in its reporting of such events, whilst some newspapers are recognisably more sensationlist than others. It is imperative that readers recognise this fact and accept it, lest they regard such news as unadulterated fact.
Yes
I feel like it's the non-lawyer side of me that wants to answser: my Dad was leading creative executive at CBS TV in its glory days; I myself am a writer as well as a lawyer; and I consume (some) mass media like everyone else. On that basis, and not on the basis of my legal studies or experience, my answer would be no. Crime and criminals have always been interesting. Crime stories, at their best, reaffirm the moral universe: there's a moral law, somebody breaks it, and something has to be done. People have always loved such stories.
As a lawyer who is frequently approached by the media to comment on cases, I do not feel that our coverage is excessive but I do feel that it is often one-sides or misinformed.
For obvious and very legitimate reasons, crime is a topic that deserves to be covered extensively by the media. HOWEVER, the media need to responsibly contribute to the debate by being careful not to fall prey to sensationalism. Crime is on the decline in Canada and the United States. Particularly in Canada, the notion that our cities are infested with dangerous criminals is a media myth. Getting "tough on crime" is an expedient political promise but it doesn't really accomplish anything substantive.
Par for the course, I would have thought.
Yes, as is the way in which attention is paid. The result has been an ever-increasing and irrational fear in this country of one being the victim of a violent crime even though criminal activity has consistently been decreasing.
no
Yes.
No, unless the question refers to the fictional dramas broadcast as entertainment.
It is important for the public to be kept informed of serious offending and to be provided with suitable advice about safeguarding themselves. It also allows the public to engage in debate. This was recently highlighted over the case of the Norfok farmer (Tony Martin) who shot two intruders, killing one and injuring the other. The public were outraged over his treatment and sought to have the law of self defence re-defined. Martin was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. Subsquently, in 2009, Munir Hussain was given a 30 month sentence for attacking a burglar after pursuing him out of his house. That sentence was reduced on appeal to a year suspended for two years.
What the public view as reasonable force is not always the same as that viewed by the law, although it has to be said that it was a jury in each case that convicted the defendants.
An attempt to follow up the publicly stated concerns (shared by the then Home Secretary, Jack Straw) was made through s.76 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 which defines what is reasonable force for purposes of self-defence.
So, public opinion does have the power to drive change in the law. And the media plays its part in bringing cases to public attention.   | | |
There is a feeling of overexposure, yes.
i do not think so.
No but maybe the media could try and cover a more balanced range of stories.
To a certain extent. The mass media, in my opinion, appears to only follow the unique stories, including crimes. Though, the fault of modern day media is the desire to drive traffic to their media sites. The traffic is driven by the unique (and ofter outlandish) publication of information. Even to the extent that quality of verified factual reporting has certainly decreased and the desire to be first to report outweighs the desire to be accurate in the Twitter-age.
It may seem it as it is the most interesting area of law. |
| 1 |
<< PREVIOUS NEXT >>
| |
|
99700 interviews created
INVITE YOUR FRIENDS