The Virginia Press Association invited me to their annual meeting to talk about the future. Specifically, they wanted to talk about how newspapers compete in the world of cyberspace. The weather canceled those plans so I’d like to pass along … Read more
There are some important lessons we’ve learned about how the coverage of violence—especially juvenile violence—influences the way many of us think about teenagers and crime. RELATED ARTICLE “What Numbers Can Tell … Read more
“I went to Vermont and showed Ernie this story, as it appeared in the magazine. I started from the back and showed him the last picture with his mom. She’s playing … Read more
The funeral of a Boston youth. Photo by Stan Grossfeld. There is little doubt that television coverage contributes to the public hysteria about youth crime. In particular, local television news plays … Read more
Pearl High School students pay homage to their fallen classmates during a candlelight memorial service held at Paul Truitt Memorial Baptist Church. Photo by Vickie King/The Clarion-Ledger. Reports of shootings at some inner-city … Read more
Reporting on crime and violence has been a staple in the newspaper diet since before the pennycress. In that time, one by-product of this coverage has remained consistent: readers have been presented with distorted picture of the world. For example, … Read more
In 1995, Jane Ellen Stevens, a science writer, embarked on a collaborative project with Dr. Lori Dorfman, Director of the Berkeley Media Studies Group, a public health research organization, and Dr. Esther Thorson, a statistician and Associate Dean at the … Read more