Location, Location, Location: Urban & Suburban Crime on Local TV News
Date
2001
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Center for Community Research & Service
Abstract
Even though crime has fallen in the United States in the past six years, public opinion
polls indicate that crime and public safety are the over-riding concerns of citizens in
communities. These polls tell us that a significant majority of our citizens get most of
their information from local television news and, in general, they believe what they are being
shown and told. In short, these newscasts play a pre-eminent role in the social construction
of reality and, by extension, in forming the cognitive maps that citizens use to understand their
communities. This paper examines how the press, particularly local television news, portrays
the urban–suburban dimensions of crime in two major television markets in the U.S. Findings
show that local newscasts in the markets differed significantly along the urban--suburban
dimension of crime coverage. But they were consistent in the message that the city was a
dangerous place. This paper suggests how this type of message in turn influences the shape
of public policy responses.
Description
Keywords
Crime, TV news, Local TV news, Media, Crime, Urban, Suburban, Philadelphia, PA, Baltimore, MD
Citation
Journal of Urban Affairs, Vol 23, Number 3-4, 2001
Yanich, D. (2001). Location, Location, Location: Urban & Suburban Crime on Local TV New. Newark, DE: Center for Community Research & Service; The Graduate School of Urban Affairs & Public Policy; University of Delaware.
Yanich, D. (2001). Location, Location, Location: Urban & Suburban Crime on Local TV New. Newark, DE: Center for Community Research & Service; The Graduate School of Urban Affairs & Public Policy; University of Delaware.