Misconceptions, Mischaracterizations, and Misinformation

With a combination of field experience and criminological research, this book gives insight to the news and drama programming that shapes the way viewers perceive crime and the formation of policy.

Crime in TV, the News, and Film provides a fresh look at the interplay between criminal events and the media outlets that cover them. The authors’ diverse backgrounds— a criminologist researcher, a documentarian and media professor, a police officer, and a criminologist who is a former TV reporter— allow for frank discussion. Combining field experience with criminological research, the book gives insight to the everyday media operations that can produce most people’s views on crime and profoundly influence public opinion— public opinion that often frames public policy.

Viewers of crime dramas and consumers of news will gain a new understanding of the way their programs are produced. Readers will become more aware of the issues and biases that sometimes cloud perceptions of crime and criminals. Finally, both experts and scholars interested in the subject will improve their discernment of media stories and media depictions, shining a light on crime in a hazy field. This book can be used in the classroom for an array of courses in the fields of media and communications, criminology, sociology, and more.