Crime Headlines vs. Reality—What does the local coverage of crime teach about the world around you? How do headlines compare to what the police are reporting to the public about crime in their city? To find out we took a look at the news coverage of crime for one week in four major US cities. We then compared that to what the police reported about crime that same week in those cities. Here's what we found.
Crime Headlines vs. Reality—What does the local coverage of crime teach about the world around you? How do headlines compare to what the police are reporting to the public about crime in their city? To find out we took a look at the news coverage of crime for one week in four major US cities. We then compared that to what the police reported about crime that same week in those cities. Most of what we found isn't surprising.
The media covers these types of crime 20-30% of the time, despite the fact that murder represents less than 1% of crimes committed. In Oakland, the city best ranked for accuracy, the police reports show murder as .8% of crime, while the media's crime coverage focused on murders 62% of the time.
If you lived in Oakland and read the news during this week, we'd be surprised if you weren't shaking in your bed after every creak in the night. In Oakland, residents would have been better served by information discussing burglaries, larcenies and auto thefts—crimes that many people could protect themselves against and that together made up 57% of the crime in that city.
infographic by: simplisafe.com
