The Representation Of The Media

CSI, Law and Order, Fox News, Making a Murderer, Nancy Grace and Cops: these shows have large audiences and high ratings, showing that western society is obsessed and mesmerized with crime and criminal activity. Crime and media go hand in hand, as the media frames crime as a major social problem, due to the lack of policy and policing certain behaviors. The media and the criminal justice system go together, like peanut butter and jelly, a sandwich of chaotic fruits and nuts. The media is quite concerned with policing, but much less about the court system, consequences, and the punishment received by the offender, devising misconceptions of the judicial processes. There are several different sociological perspectives pertaining to the media

In today’s vast globalized world, representation is present and has left its impact everywhere, from politics to media to parts of our everyday life. Representation is defined as the description or portrayal of someone or something in a particular way (Oxford University Press, 2016). This has shaped the way people think, talk and view the things around them. Thus, media representation is the portrayal of a group, community, person, event, idea, experience or perspective by the media, regardless of whether it is visual or verbal. Media representation is also a choice made in constructing facets of reality such as people, places, objects and events in media. Such representations exist in a multitude of forms such as print, films and writing. Generally, it would be difficult to showcase every feature of the person or thing, hence, media has been essentialising the representations to suit the views of the majority.

Media reports of crimes, on television and radio news programs and in newspapers are also becoming much more frequent and often more descriptive. People find the narrative ‘common sense’ story of crime portrayed in the media interesting reading, even though they may also be shocked and sickened by it.

In the current society that we live in, there are many things that help shape our perception of sexual identity. In the discussion with the class, there was a consensus that family, media, religion were the major influencers on how we develop our sexual identities and how we view other’s sexual identity. From childhood, most of us are shaped by the view of our parents and often follow the same principles and views at them. Though many people usually divert from this thought process, it still serves as a foundation for our future views and principles, whether we agree with our parents or not. Going through our individual groups discussions, many people in my group felt that a large part of their perception about the LGBT community came from the media and how the community was portrayed in the media. We discussed that in our childhoods we were often presented with gay characters that were often very flamboyant, feminine

Many times, the media is the main cause in contributing and encouraging the creation of crime myths. The mass media have responsibilities to update the public on the activities occurring domestically and internationally. Stories or reports have to grab the attention of viewers and often times this is accomplished through methods of dramatizing and sensationalizing stories. Instead of stating solely fact, mass media reports have become bias opinions, allowing for it to evolve into more of an entertainment business rather than news.

Crime reporting and world terrorism reporting is based loosely on ideological thoughts (Jewkes, Pg.36, 2004) Additionally, media theories state that media outlets have agenda setting topics that can influence public mania, discourse and persuade political ideologies. In addition, the media effect theories focus on the purposeful manipulation of story content, times the story is reported, and what tone the story is reported in. other theories, for example, the mass media society theory which defines the link between crime and media is a

Mass media is infatuated with crime. As a society, we have a great deal of fascination when it comes to crime and deviance. It is hard to turn on the television, watch a movie or open a newspaper or book and not be faced with the central and dominant theme that is crime. In recent years the lines between crime entertainment and crime information have been significantly blurred. The mass media often influences how people see crime, with the bombardment of criminal images and violence, it serves to increase public fear. The public believe crime is on the rise and only getting worse, when in actual fact this in contrast to the official crime statistics. Arguably, our knowledge on crime is influenced and shaped by the media, and there is most definitely evidence to prove this, but to what extent is this true?

There is something about the ideology of a subculture that sparks an interest in me. Maybe it is intriguing due to its members’ originality, courage to stand up for beliefs, or freely expressing their own self- identity. A subculture forms by individuals taking a risk, separating themselves from the mainstream, and forming their own distinctive norms, not caring what the “normal” members of the mainstream society think of them. Or do they care? Maybe that is the exact statement a subculture is making. Maybe these individuals are forming these groups so that people will care. Maybe their rebellious attitude is a final, somewhat desperate approach to getting that response. The images being portrayed in most subcultures are

In his article, Chermak (1998) claims the previous studies completed on the representation of crime in the media contain major breaches in the content examined. Some examples include; how variation in

There has been many times in history where social culture has changed. In fact, social culture is always changing. In the early 1900s to the 1920s, many social changes came into play. The automobile became more and more accessible and convenient as roads were paved. Fashion had changed from layers upon layers and the idea of modesty for women to the bold, daring flapper girl and men wearing suits. After World War II, another social change; furthermore, one to remember occurred- the baby-boom. A new generation was born full of new ideas of fashion, diet, lifestyle, and taste in music. This is the generation that would soon become familiar with the famous quote of Timothy Leary, “Tune out, turn on, and drop out.” This is also the generation that completely disregarded their parent’s traditional beliefs and became members of an era of intense individualism where eccentricity was popular. This eccentricity included the use of Marijuana and psychedelic drugs, vegetarianism diets, birth control, stand-out fashion, and a new taste in music. Many of

This group of youths referred to as hippies developed a whole new "counter-culture," which included a minority of the "fake" hippies who merely saw the "counter-culture" as a fashion rather than something they believed in deeply. The group of hippies proclaimed itself an "alternative society," and favored very simple and communal living which included free experimentation with drugs, free experimentation of sex, and a strong commitment to "peace and love." These political and social changes such as the civil rights movements and the new "counter-culture" had lasting effects on one specific element of the decade: rock and roll music. Rock and roll musicians were not much different from any other Americans in that they were forced to go through the same hardships as the rest of the people, such as racial discrimination and unjust government, or Establishment. The main difference is that many of the "other people" (the people of everyday society) did not have the same opportunity to express their feelings with the world. The frustration with racism and prejudice was blatantly obvious in many acts due to the genre's increasing aggression and hostility. Also, the country's cry for peace and love was exemplified no better than by rock musicians on stage. In their search for something different, the youth and rock musicians attempted to find a path leading them

It is true that media portrayal concerning crime actually relates to the public fear that as well concerns crime. The main focus of this essay is to show how and elaborate if public fear may affect personal behavior or not. Finally, I will share my imminent on if media has to be accountable or not when it comes to the portrayal of crime.

The mass media is a vehicle for delivering information and to entertain. But implications that the media do more harm than good concerning its practices and its effects on the public. The two main categories of mass media are print media and electronic media. Although they overlap in some areas, they differ mostly in the subject matter they cover and in their delivery methods. Research had been conducted in using both these forms to gauge the impact that each one has on the public. Print media tends to be more factual based whereas electronic media tend to focus more on visual aids to help relay the information. The public’s fear of crime has an impact on the public agenda of policy makers. Fear of crime not only affects individual but may

The term “subculture” refers to a group of people who have similarities between them, and these similarities distinguish them significantly from other social groups. The similarities do not mean religious or political affiliation. These groups have different beliefs than the main culture and are youth oriented. These subcultures have their own styles of music, ideology,

Media plays a big role in society these days. Whether it be letting society know what is going on the in the world today or something as simple as updates on current life on social media. The media's role in society not only delivers information of the world but also brings people together through common interests or general talks. In Brian Knappenberger's documentary: Nobody Speak: Trials of Free Press it is seen how media effect lives and how there is a much stronger meaning to what media stands for in society and why media needs to take its stand when it comes to people who want to devour them.