´Tough on Crime, Election Time´

Public policy has been referred to by Colebatch as “anything a government chooses to do or not to do…some things are noticed and attended to; others are not” (Colebatch, 2009). What is emphasised here is the fact that there are only a few issues to be selected for policy attention due to competitiveness alongside the governments’ limitation of resources and time constrains. Thus, the agenda of policy and policy making is heavily influenced by the public demand for policies as it is through peoples believes and experiences that a social issue needs to be responded to by the government to find a solution. Here, the medias role is essential in order to understand the process of setting the agenda on crime.

The law and order debate always gain extra heat in election time, as most politicians (just as the media) knows that issues relating to crime is what captures the general publics’ attention; as expressed elsewhere: “law and order is the bread and butter of a successful election campaign” (McGovern, 2011).

Through this overall fascination with crime and the criminal justice system, it is not strange that election campaigns have been won based on their response to law and order issues. Recently in Australia there has been various policy implementations due to public demand for tougher polices in relation to various issues concerning crime. Such an example is the new legislation in relation to bike gangs that was implemented short after a man was stabbed to death at Sydney airport. The hysteria portrayed in the media, which then translate into public fear of crime, is what comes to make up the policy agenda on crime. Since the majority of the general public form their views and opinions about crime from various media sources, the relationship between media, crime and politics is obvious (Mars & Melville, 2009, McGovern, 2011).

Media misrepresentations that have led to policy implementations that have had, and still have, serious consequences can be seen in relation to juvenile justice and the restriction on bail. Research shows that since 1992 there have been 23 punitive amendments to the NSW Bail Act due to ´though on crime´ laws and policies which have been the main focus to combat youth crime (Crime and Justice Reform Committee, 2010). Consequently, the number of young people in detention and young people remaining in custody on remand has increased. This in turn has led to overcrowding within the detention centres which put young people in significant risk in terms of safety but also in terms of their increased contact with the juvenile justice system itself which have shown to increase recidivism rates. Hence, these practices and policies can be seen as a result of distorting and manipulating perceptions of youth crime portrayed in the media which creates a false depiction, stereotyping, public fear and oversimplification of facts which leads to public demand for tougher policies.

Clearly then, policy responses to law and order concerns are not always implemented based on research, rather strongly influenced by public fear and anxiety over issues relating to crime. I therefore think it is fair to say that politicians, just as well as the media, do what ever they can to attract the biggest audience – and to do so, they know that issues relating to crime and the criminal justice system is what works best to gain peoples attention in times of political election (and always)!

References:

Colebatch, H. K 2009, Policy: third edition, Open University Press, England

Crime and Justice Reform Committee 2010, Bail and young people, Fact Sheet, viewed on the                       7^th of June 2011, http://www.crimeandjustice.org.au/?q=node/13

Marsh, I & Melville, G 2009, Crime, Justice and The Media, Routledge, London and New        York

McGovern, A 2011, ´State of NSW: Setting the agenda on crime in NSW´, The Conversation, viewed on the 9^th of June 2011,

                      http://wimba.edtec.unsw.edu.au/wimba/presentation?action=display_popup&nid                      =5437989.201106090915370440.36155288.18543512.12748268

´Criminalising the Other´

In response to Melissa Cheng´s blog: ´Modern day moral panics´. http://melscrim2027blog.blogspot.com/

Much of what is involved in the studies around media, crime and politics can be linked to what Melissa is discussing in her text. Firstly, the media portrayal of detainees from Willawood detention centre (as well as other detention centres around Australia) is extremely one-sided. Never can you read in the newspaper or hear on the news about the detainees’ conditions in those prison-like facilities. More frankly, never do the media report on the many and various human rights abuses that occur through the process of mandatory detention in Australia. Rather, just as Melissa points out, through different media sources the detainees are constructed as a threat to our society, as someone that shouldn’t be here.

Moreover, Michael Grewcocks latest book (which I recommend to everyone interested in the area of refugees and asylum seekers to read) Border Crimes: Australia’s war on illicit migrants, he talks about Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers as ´illegal immigrants´ - just as they are described in the media – but how this treatment in itself should be regarded as criminal – as state crime. The facts that Grewcock highlights in his book is facts that you would never come across in the media. Thus, and as he concludes, the alienation of, and the construction of the unauthorised migrant as the outsider is the most powerful legitimising process underpinning the implementation of policy responses to migration in Australia (Grewcock, 2009). Here, the links between the media, crime and politics becomes obvious; the sense of a threat to society and the fear for foreigners produced by the media do influence public policy responses.

Secondly, analysing the post 9/11 society that we live in I agree with Melissa that the level of security, defence forces and terrorism laws have gone into overdrive; particularly when considering the panic which have centred around those of Arabic-speaking background.  Here the medias role has been vital in creating extensive concerns amongst the general public (Marsh & Melville, 2009). Poynting et al (2005) states in their text Bin Laden in the Suburbs: Criminalising the Arab Other, that central to moments of moral panic is the creation of a folk devil – where the folk devil is the key focus of moral and social anxieties in the moment of panic (Poynting et al, 2005 in Brown et al, 2006). On the one hand, yes the 9/11 attacks were extremely severe and should not be taken lightly but again, agreeing with Melissa, the media response to the whole situation, alongside the killing of Bin Laden, has created an unnecessary fear and panic due to exaggerated media reportage.  

In summation, both these issues portrayed and related to crime can be viewed as modern day moral panics as they have remained as hot topics throughout media for decades and still have an obvious impact on public policy until this day.  

References:

Brown et al, 2006, Criminal Laws, 4^th edn, The Federation Press, Sydney

Grewcock, M 2009, Border Crimes: Australia’s War on Illicit Migrants, Institute of                   Criminology Press, Sydney

Marsh, I & Melville, G 2009, Crime, Justice and The Media, Routledge, London and New        York

´Don’t believe everything you hear/read´

I think it is worth asking the question weather or not the concept of trying to identify and reduce risk before it becomes a problem is a good way to prevent crime. I mean, how do you predict future criminal behaviour? Again, I think that using young people as an example will successfully illustrate that there are serious concerns about early intervention policies and predicting ´risky behaviour´. Also, I want to reflect over my own media consumption in relation to my views on crime and criminal behaviour. It is interesting to see what a few years studying criminology have done to the way I use media today.

Firstly, I think we can all agree that even though the media has always had an interest in crime and criminal behaviour, there is increasing media reportage around crime and offenders – both in the ´news´ and in terms of TV and reality shows. There also seems to be a particular interest around young people and youth crime.

Research focusing on young people and crime suggests that there is a link between the media reportage and policy responses in relation to youth offenders, and states that notions of risk have been one of the main justifications for various interventions and policy responses in terms of how we respond to young people and criminal behaviour (Cunneen and White, 2006). This so called risk management approach has been dominating responses to youth crime since the 1990´s and has meant that welfare policies have emphasised neo-liberal principles of individualisation, self-realisation and individual responsibility. In turn, this has aimed at making young people responsible for their own future. Yet, and here lies the main contradiction, children and young people in particular are the most governed and regulated group of our society (Ellis & France, 2010). This contradiction further highlights the vital role media plays in constructing the general publics’ views around crime and public policy, as ´tough on crime´ policies are dominating the risk approach to combat crime and criminal behaviour amongst young people. What is particularly striking is the list of supposed ´risk factors´ contributing to criminal behaviour. This list includes well known characteristics such as poor family conditions, low self-control, and low socio-economic circumstances and so forth. These factors have all been linked to ´risky´ behaviour and lay the ground for what has been referred to as the ´preventive state´; where social prevention is based on penal policies (Kemshall et al, 2006).

In short, the main concern with predicting potential, or future, criminal behaviour is that behaviour that is in fact not criminal becomes the focus for intervention and regulation of young people due to the ´threat´ and ´risk´ they pose (McAlister, 2008). Suggestively, here it is also possible to make a linkage to theories such as the labelling theory, when looking at the negative outcomes of a risk management approach in relation to young people and crime and when analysing how these issues are portrayed in the media. It is obvious that the media influence public policy.

Moreover, when reflecting over my own media consumption in relation to my views around crime and criminal behaviour, I have to say, that after studying criminology it has changed quite a lot. Existing research states that 76% of the public form their opinion about crime based on what they read in newspapers and from what they see on television (Marsh & Melville, 2009), and I don’t think I was an exception before coming to university (not saying that me nor anyone else would ever be completely free from being influenced by the media, but at least less influenced when gaining different perspectives). I think most people would agree that it is extremely difficult not to be influenced by the media as it is the leading source of ´information´, and considering the amount of media that surrounds us on a daily basis. Yet, there are different forms of media and I think it is fair to say that one have the option to be selective.

Although, before studying criminology – and before I became familiar with the concept of ´critically analyse´, crime in the media was probably what grabbed my attention the most. Thinking about my prior interest in the media, crime ´news´ always seemed to fascinate me in a way that other news did not do. I assume my views around crime and criminal behaviour was much more stereotyped as well; not knowing any of the underlying factors that contributes to crime, and never would I have thought that crime, and the responses to crime, could be socially constructed.

In conclusion then, I am now much more selective in the forms of media that I actually consume, knowing how media has a tendency to depict crime in a stereotypical and exaggerated manner. Thus, I hope that with a background in criminology I can make a much more informed decision about what I read in the newspaper and see on television – and I know that increased regulation and tougher policies to combat crime is not necessarily the way to go about it. Finally, I guess the expression ´don’t believe everything you hear/read´ does apply to crime and the media!

References:

Cunneen, C & White, R 2007, Juvenile Justice: “Youth and Crime in Australa”, 3^rd edn,            Oxford University Press, Melbourne

Ellis, K & France, A 2010, ´Being judged, being assessed: young people’s perspective of           assessment in youth justice and education´, Children and Society, pp. 1-12

Kemshall, H et al 2006, ´Young people, pathways and crime: beyond risk factors´, The              Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 354-370

Marsh, I & Melville, G 2009, Crime, Justice and The Media, Routledge, London and New        York