AC 1.5- impact of media representations on the public perception of
crime
Moral panic
One impact of media representation on public perceptions of crime is moral
panic, where media has exaggerated information that exceeds the actual
threat to society, which means the public’s perceptions are fake. Media
amplification is a key factor in misleading information, as it is when the
media exaggerates and distorts information or statistics relating to a crime.
The deviance amplification spiral is where the media labels stigmatisation
and encourages individuals or groups to identify with one labelled group,
leading to self-fulfilling prophecy. In response, the police attempt to step in
and resolve the public’s unnecessary fear. An example of moral panic is the
Mods and Rockers incident in the 1960’s, where the media’s distortion of
statistics caused a moral panic amongst the public, although the two groups
weren’t as much of a threat as it seemed. The media released false
information, predicting serious violence was to occur between the two rival
groups—they were negatively labelled as ‘folk devils’ due to their
motorcycles, hair and clothing. The deviance amplification spiral is closely
linked to the Mods and Rockers incident due to the negative social reactions
and negative labelling.
Changing public concerns
An outcome of media representations of crimes is changing public concerns,
as the media can influence and trigger a change in attitude and concern
about particular groups or crimes; this is based on the media coverage and
whether the labels applied are positive or negative. The public’s reactions
can include behavioural, physical and verbal reactions to these particular
groups or crimes. At different times over the years, the focus of the media
depends on the concerns and attitudes in society, as the media’s main role is
to reflect the concerns of their audience. An example of this occurring is the
murder of Lee Rigby (2013), who was an off-duty soldier attacked and killed
by Islamic terrorists, which caused an Islamophobic reaction in the public.
The responses after this incident were increased threat levels, with 200
Islamophobic incidents reported within a week after Lee Rigby’s murder. The
public physically and verbally acted on these responses, with people petrol-
bombing mosques and verbally assaulting innocent Muslims, who appeared
to be a threat, on the street; these responses were heavily rooted from the
crime
Moral panic
One impact of media representation on public perceptions of crime is moral
panic, where media has exaggerated information that exceeds the actual
threat to society, which means the public’s perceptions are fake. Media
amplification is a key factor in misleading information, as it is when the
media exaggerates and distorts information or statistics relating to a crime.
The deviance amplification spiral is where the media labels stigmatisation
and encourages individuals or groups to identify with one labelled group,
leading to self-fulfilling prophecy. In response, the police attempt to step in
and resolve the public’s unnecessary fear. An example of moral panic is the
Mods and Rockers incident in the 1960’s, where the media’s distortion of
statistics caused a moral panic amongst the public, although the two groups
weren’t as much of a threat as it seemed. The media released false
information, predicting serious violence was to occur between the two rival
groups—they were negatively labelled as ‘folk devils’ due to their
motorcycles, hair and clothing. The deviance amplification spiral is closely
linked to the Mods and Rockers incident due to the negative social reactions
and negative labelling.
Changing public concerns
An outcome of media representations of crimes is changing public concerns,
as the media can influence and trigger a change in attitude and concern
about particular groups or crimes; this is based on the media coverage and
whether the labels applied are positive or negative. The public’s reactions
can include behavioural, physical and verbal reactions to these particular
groups or crimes. At different times over the years, the focus of the media
depends on the concerns and attitudes in society, as the media’s main role is
to reflect the concerns of their audience. An example of this occurring is the
murder of Lee Rigby (2013), who was an off-duty soldier attacked and killed
by Islamic terrorists, which caused an Islamophobic reaction in the public.
The responses after this incident were increased threat levels, with 200
Islamophobic incidents reported within a week after Lee Rigby’s murder. The
public physically and verbally acted on these responses, with people petrol-
bombing mosques and verbally assaulting innocent Muslims, who appeared
to be a threat, on the street; these responses were heavily rooted from the
