NCJ Number
176696
Date Published
1998
Length
288 pages
Annotation
This book examines how the criminal justice system is presented in the mass media.
Abstract
The chapters in this volume address the interrelationship between criminal justice and popular culture from a variety of perspectives. The methodologies included historical research, observational research and content analysis. The book includes a general overview and introduction to the topic, and theoretical perspectives on understanding popular culture. It looks closely at censorship, in particular the furor in the 1940s and 1950s over juveniles and crime comic books and at recent crusades against controversial forms of popular culture. A separate section focuses on the depiction of crime and justice by journalists. Included in that section are articles on the role of the media in the creation of public police violence, forensic journalism as patriarchal ideology, and the role of the media in reintegrative shaming. The final section is about the images of criminal justice professionals (female police and attorneys, and correctional officers) and of prisons in popular films. Each chapter includes discussion questions. Notes, tables, figure, appendixes, references, indexes