Practice Questions

Short Answer Questions

1. List three standard narratives that the media draws upon to frame female offending

2. According to Jewkes why is male violence more acceptable in our society than female violence?

3. How are African Americans turned into America’s crime ‘bogey-men’?

4. Explain the difference between spatial and cultural proximity

5. List 7 news values

6. Thousands of children go missing each year. Identify key news values which makes one case newsworthy and another not.


View the following clip of Crime Watch UK and answer the following questions

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls9SClIkkdQ

7. In what ways does Crime Watch UK (and other similar shows in the US) contribute to increased levels of fear?

8. How does Crime Watch UK blur the boundaries between fact and fiction?

Extended Essays (around 1-2 pages in length)

View the following clip

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHL6rVQiGVo

1. With respect to key concepts relating to the media and female offending, analyze how this specific case is dealt with by the media.

(Hints: sexual deviance, physical attractiveness, mad cow, differences between male and female offenders referred to, etc)

2. Jewkes claims that conservative ideologies underpin contemporary news values. What effects does this have on the way crime is represented in the news, and what are the consequences for how ‘we’ view the ‘crime problem’? You may draw on a ‘case’ to illustrate your point.

(Hints: think about the ways in which some stories – such as the one on Natalee Holloway, divert attention away from stories involving corporate, elite interests)

questions!

Postmodern Criminology and CSI

Fact and Fiction

1. What are postmodern criminologists interested in examining?


2. Postmodernists tend to view ‘audiences’ as ‘active and creative meaning makers’; what do they mean by this?


3. Define hyperreality


4. Why are postmodernists interested in the blurriness of the distinction between information and entertainment?


5. Can you identify any media products that explicitly blur fact and fiction?


6. Is crime fiction a reflection of reality?


7. In what way might fiction help to shape reality?


8. How does crime fiction affect the way the audience views crime?


9. How does crime fiction affect the way the audience experiences crime?


10. How does crime fiction affect criminal behavior?


11. How might crime fiction affect how a labeled criminal views their crime and their self?


12. How might criminal justice practitioners, criminals, jurors, and so on become entangled in crime fiction or ‘reality’ TV show narratives?


13. Consider the fictional show, CSI: how does it affect your perception of crime detection? Do you think that it has had an impact of ‘reality’? Is so, how?

fill me in!

So since I wasn't able to attend class today, I was hoping everyone would be able to fill me in! I know the blog has been rather lame lately...but I'm going to try to kick it up so you guys can get some extra participation points! It would be great if everyone could leave a comment talking about something we went over in class. You don't have to summarize it all, but a paragraph or so will do. 

Moral Entrepreneurs

Some moral entrepreneurs!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fG1tNO0_Pk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qL6UAlBuUU

Questions?

Anyone have any questions on the paper? I would be glad to help. My email is eharvey1@mail.une.edu if anyone would like feedback on their paper. 

class 3/16

Okay everyone, welcome back! Here are some notes in regards to class on 3/16:

Conflict Theory:

-Basically, society is an arena in which social groups compete for power. Society is set up to benefit one group(elites) at the expense of others. Policies are made to protect this group while keeping the others in line. Marx was a major conflict theorist. He focused solely on class, the bourgeoise(upper class elites) and the proletariates(lower, working class). He believed that society is run by the bourgeoise and they create an environment in which they are able to benefit at the cost of the proletariates. He also believed that in this situation, the proletariate would become so unhappy about the oppression they face that they would rise up against the bourgeoise in revolution. However, as we see today, this has not yet occurred in our society.

Prisons

According to conflict theory, prisons are viewed as an institution created to keep the lower class in line. They are "warehouses for the poor." With very few exceptions, this is generally true. Prisons consist mainly of lower class drug offenders. Who knows what would happen if they escaped! 

The media

The influence the media has on us plays a huge role in this concept. First of all, it is important to note that almost all of the media in our country is owned by 4 major conglomerates. These conglomerates are controlled by the elites. Therefore, the messages we see are shaped by the elites to alter our perception and to protect themselves. 

What do these messages say to us?

-no wonder these people are poor, they are uneducated and lazy (ex. Jerry Springer), The poor are never accurately represented. We see them in reality shows like Jerry Springer or Cops. These shows create a negative image of the working poor. 

-General Electric is putting so much into the environment! What they forget to mention is that they are one of the most polluting companies in the world. They may be putting a few million dollars into research for solar energy, but how much more are they spending on factories that are a major contributer to our problems with greenhouse gases and global warming?

-Walmart is putting so much money into social programming! The truth is, they spent more on advertising about their social programming than they did on the programming itself. 

Hegemony

When something has hegemonic power, it has the ability to install itself as common sense and "natural." It is a type of power we don't even recognize. In accepting some things as natural and normal, we are giving hegemonic power. 

For example:

-'Women are more nurturing' This is not a scientific fact, yet it is something that most of us accept as true. Our acceptance of this shows hegemonic power because women feel as though they are choosing to stay at home with their children. They feel as though it is natural for them to feel more nurturing. Their 'motherly instincts' want them to stay home. However, we do not know that it is natural, and women's belief in this concept demonstrates hegemonic power. 

Strain Theory

Society has become fragmented with the loss of community, yet at the same time, we are managing to stay intact. This is because of our widespread pursuit of a common societal goal: the American Dream. When thinking of the America Dream, most think of a nice house with a perfect family, a great job, a nice car. At the root of all of this is money. We all desire money. In the media, we are constantly bombarded by messages telling us that with material wealth, comes happiness. We become greedy, and will do anything to attain this goal. Most use legitimate means to become successful. We work hard, get a good education and a good job. However, in our society, there is much emphasis placed on the goal itself, with weak emphasis on the legitimate ways of achieving it. This leads to a strain in society and creates innovators. Innovators are people who become creative and use illegitimate means to achieve this goal. For example, when someone is in need of money, rather than picking up a few extra shifts, they may just rob a bank. This is not an accepted way of getting money, but it is getting money nonetheless. Merton defines these illegitimate acts as being illegal, and this is where wilding comes in. 

Wilding

Wilding is basically any act done in complete self interest at the expense of others. This act is not necessarily illegal, yet it is always harmful. For example, extreme cases of wilding could be murdering someone for their life insurance policy or robbing a bank. However, everyone engages in wilding, most cases being much less serious and at times very accepted. For example, look at the show The Apprentice. People are constantly backstabbing each other, lying and cheating simply to get ahead. This is wilding since it is for self benefit, and it harms someone else. This is very common in competitive jobs. The bottom line is, wilding is the term for both legal and non-illegal actions performed in self interest at the expense of others. It is interesting to see how we accept some actions that are just as harmful as others that are not. 

It is evident that we socially construct what we label as criminal, when at times, it is the very same act as something completely normal. 

Example:

Someone is selling a drug to make a profit. One is selling Prozac, one is selling marijuana. The act itself is exactly the same, yet we view one as criminal and one as completely normal and encouraged. 

What is also funny:

There are 106,000 deaths per year IN HOSPITALS from side effects and reactions with prescribed medications...marijuana? zero. All illegal drugs: 10,000