Media Exercise 
Go about a daily routine, but record every time crime is discussed. Write down every time it happens such 
as watching TV, listening to the news, scrolling through newsfeeds, reading, and more. What was the message? 
Listening to the radio on the way to work? The goal is to record anything heard in the day related to crime and 
attempt to see the messages one may be receiving. Once enough instances get recorded, write a summary of the 
findings. 
The media focus their attention on crimes that will capture viewers attention. The more shocking, upsetting, 
gruesome, and dramatic the case the better! In the above case of Katrina Vetrano, it is shocking that a 
30-year-old woman goes out for a jog and winds up raped and murdered. It is even more shocking that it 
is in the day and then adds to it by a stranger. People will click on this case because it preys upon fears, but 
this causes problems. How do we devise policies that protect people if we get driven by fear? Women are 
more likely to be victimized by people they know, not strangers. However, the media makes it seem like it 
is strangers that are most likely to victimize women. Is this problematic? Yellow journalism is the practice of 
using sensational stories in print media to attract readers and increase profit, and it works, but not without 
problems.
19 
While the media plays an important role in creating fear of crime and myths, they are not the only ones 
that do so. In subsequent chapters, we will talk about the government, politicians, and power-elites. 
20 In the 
next section, we will discuss the wedding cake model in an attempt to understanding how what we most 
commonly see in the news media can distort our understanding of crime frequency and types of crimes. The 
media may report on the stuff that will appear to be interesting, ‘If it bleeds, it leads,’ even if that is the crime 
that is less common. Homicides account for more than a quarter of the crime stories on the evening news, 
but they represent less than 1 percent of all crimes. 
21 In order to get people to read or listen to the story, they 
have to capture our attention. How many people want to read about another marijuana arrest? Not many 
probably! Most of us want to hear the gruesome crimes that keep us up at night; despite them being rare. By 
covering these crimes in-depth, we create fear and distorted reality of crime, criminals, and criminal justice. 
Immigration and Crime Exercise 
The fear of immigrants bringing crime to the United States is popular rhetoric right now, especially among 
politicians 
 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2018/06/22/the-original-source-for-trumps-
claim-of-63000-immigrant-murders-bad-data-from-steve-king-in-2005/?utm_term=.f6a353aa5109. In the 2016 
election, immigration and crime were one of the most perpetuated myths by Republican candidates, such as Donald 
Trump. He demonized media, suggesting they do not also perpetuate this myth https://www.washingtonpost.com/
news/post-politics/wp/2016/08/27/trump-in-undocumented-immigrants-we-are-going-to-get-rid-of-the-
19. Kappeler, V., & Potter, G. (2018). The mythology of crime and criminal justice. (5th ed.). Long Grove: Waveland Press, Inc. 
20. Kappeler, V., & Potter, G. (2018). The mythology of crime and criminal justice (5th ed.). Long Grove: Waveland Press, Inc. 
21. Dorfman, L., & Schiraldi, V. (April 2001). Off Balance: Youth, Race & Crime in the News. Retrieved April 2006, from 
http://www.buildingblocksforyouth.org/media/media.html. 
ALISON S. BURKE, DAVID CARTER, BRIAN FEDOREK, TIFFANY MOREY, LORE RUTZ-BURRI, AND SHANELL
SANCHEZ
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