AC1.4 Describe the different types of media and their representation of crime 6 marks
Factual or Fictional:
1. Newspaper:
Factual
Tabloid/broadsheet (e.g. The Times)
Tabloid – easily accessible
Broadsheet – not everyone can access them, middle class people, subscription
Very brief description of the difference
Research suggests... Williamson and Wickes; Ditton and Dutty 25% of television is dedicated
to violent/sexual crimes; overreporting; 3% of all crime violent/sexual
News values: dramatisation; violence; used by newspapers to select crime stories
Surrette – law of opposites, representation of crime in media is the opposite of official
statistics
Language and images
The representation of crime in newspapers is generally factual, especially in broadsheet newspapers
such as The Times, as they focus more on factual information and are generally seen as more
reliable. Not everyone can access them, as they require a subscription and are more targeted
towards middle class people, lending them more reliability. However, in tabloids, crime stories are
usually a mix of fact and fictional entertainment, as crime stories usually take up a lot more space in
tabloids compared to broadsheet newspapers. Tabloids often sensationalise crime stories, as they
are more accessible and want to sell more. The types of crimes that are represented in the
newspapers are often violent and sexual in nature. Research suggests that 46% media reports focus
on violent sexual crimes, whereas only 3% of all crime in official statistics are violent or sexual. News
values are the criteria that journalists and editors use to decide whether a story is newsworthy
enough to make it into the paper. These values include dramatisation, violence and risk. If a story
can be told in terms of these values, it has a better chance of making the news. Newspapers use
these news values to select crime stories that they know are going to sell, however, these kinds of
stories are usually the opposite of those that appear in the official crime statistics. The criminologist
Surette calls this the ‘law of opposites’.
2. Television:
Both fact and fiction
News – violent and sexual; racism in sports up; violence women and girls
Crime fiction – representation
Dramatised real crimes – e.g. Maxine, little boy blue, moor side
Link to typical offenders, victims – unrepresentative
2/3 of crime shows consist of murder, assault, armed robbery
Language and images
The media portrayal of crime on television is either fictional or factual. Factual crime stories often
come in the form of TV news stories. Similar to newspapers, the programmes centre stories they
deem to be newsworthy – often with a strong focus on violent crime. TV news portrays both
offenders and victims as older and more middle-class. However, reality TV shows are an exception:
they concentrate more on stories involving young suspects. Fictional crime often comes in the form
of crime dramas like NCIS, which almost always focus on murder crime. Research suggests that two
Factual or Fictional:
1. Newspaper:
Factual
Tabloid/broadsheet (e.g. The Times)
Tabloid – easily accessible
Broadsheet – not everyone can access them, middle class people, subscription
Very brief description of the difference
Research suggests... Williamson and Wickes; Ditton and Dutty 25% of television is dedicated
to violent/sexual crimes; overreporting; 3% of all crime violent/sexual
News values: dramatisation; violence; used by newspapers to select crime stories
Surrette – law of opposites, representation of crime in media is the opposite of official
statistics
Language and images
The representation of crime in newspapers is generally factual, especially in broadsheet newspapers
such as The Times, as they focus more on factual information and are generally seen as more
reliable. Not everyone can access them, as they require a subscription and are more targeted
towards middle class people, lending them more reliability. However, in tabloids, crime stories are
usually a mix of fact and fictional entertainment, as crime stories usually take up a lot more space in
tabloids compared to broadsheet newspapers. Tabloids often sensationalise crime stories, as they
are more accessible and want to sell more. The types of crimes that are represented in the
newspapers are often violent and sexual in nature. Research suggests that 46% media reports focus
on violent sexual crimes, whereas only 3% of all crime in official statistics are violent or sexual. News
values are the criteria that journalists and editors use to decide whether a story is newsworthy
enough to make it into the paper. These values include dramatisation, violence and risk. If a story
can be told in terms of these values, it has a better chance of making the news. Newspapers use
these news values to select crime stories that they know are going to sell, however, these kinds of
stories are usually the opposite of those that appear in the official crime statistics. The criminologist
Surette calls this the ‘law of opposites’.
2. Television:
Both fact and fiction
News – violent and sexual; racism in sports up; violence women and girls
Crime fiction – representation
Dramatised real crimes – e.g. Maxine, little boy blue, moor side
Link to typical offenders, victims – unrepresentative
2/3 of crime shows consist of murder, assault, armed robbery
Language and images
The media portrayal of crime on television is either fictional or factual. Factual crime stories often
come in the form of TV news stories. Similar to newspapers, the programmes centre stories they
deem to be newsworthy – often with a strong focus on violent crime. TV news portrays both
offenders and victims as older and more middle-class. However, reality TV shows are an exception:
they concentrate more on stories involving young suspects. Fictional crime often comes in the form
of crime dramas like NCIS, which almost always focus on murder crime. Research suggests that two
