Tese final
Download as PPTX, PDF0 likes322 views
(1) The document analyzes the portrayal of crime in local media in Amazonas, Brazil compared to actual crime statistics. (2) An analysis of TV crime shows found they depicted more violent and random crimes than actual statistics, which show most victims of non-lethal crimes are black, male, young, and poor. TV shows underrepresented black and female victims. (3) The conclusion is that local media in Amazonas exaggerates the role of criminals and drugs, while underrepresenting actual victims. This shapes public perceptions in ways that do not reflect reality.
Tese final
- 1. Rachel R Mourao, M.A. Candidate, LatinAmericanStudies
- 2. Introduction
- 3. It’s “just” TV SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF CRIME “How we define the cultural production of crime as a „social problem‟ and how we regard victims, offenders, and agents of crime control, emerges out of the social interactions between ordinary people, journalists, and sources of information within the structural and political-economic contexts of active processes of news construction and crime management” (Barak, 1994) FEAR OF CRIME Individuals who frequently watch television are more likely to feel a greater threat from crime, believe that crime is more prevalent than statistics indicate, and take more precautions against crime. (Dowler, 2003; Wood &Ribeiro, 2010) POLITICAL CONSEQUENCES “The lack of confidence in the courts and police has prompted a growing number of Latin Americans to support quick- fix “solutions” that short circuit or undercut democratic norms” (Prillaman, 2003)
- 4. ResearchQuestions RESEARCH QUESTIONS (1)What is the actual prevalence of crime in Amazonas, and how does it vary by social status? (2) What is the profile of the media-constructed image of the prevalence and character of crime and violence? Hr: Political TV shows are more violent than non-political TV shows (3) In what ways do the actual estimates differ from the image the media presents to the public? (4) What decision-making processes do newsrooms employ when they cover crime in the state? HYPOTHESIS Media’s portrayal of crime in Amazonas is exaggerated, distorted and divorced from the actual prevalence of crime.
- 5. How to measurethis? INTERREALITY COMPARISON (DIXON AND LINZ, 2000) Crime on the streets: Estimates of the prevalence of crime victimization: 2009 National Household Survey – PNAD and MapadaViolencia (Weiselfisz, 2011) Crime on TV: ContentAnalysisof crime shows Comunidade Alerta andAlô Amazonas 58 stories from ComunidadeAlertaand Alô Amazonas (June 06 – 17, 2011) Unit of analysis: each story (approximately 5 min each) Focus on three aspects of programming: a) Demographics b) Characterizations c) World-view Participantobservationand interviews: sixweeks in Manaus
- 7. Crime onthestreets X Crime on TV Number and Percentage of Stories that Depicted Offense Types by Victimization Rates per 1,000 inhabitants Program* Amazonas, Brazil – 2008 Amazonas, June 2011 Alo Comunidade Alerta Combined Type of Crime Rate Percentage Amazonas Theft 37.86 38.52% % n % n % n Robbery 44.11 44.88% Homicide** 62.5 10 33.3 14 41.4 24 Assault 16.08 16.36% Motive Money 0 0 21.4 3 12.5 3 Total non-lethal 98.06 99.77% Drugs 50 5 7.1 1 4.2 1 victimizations Passion 0 0 14.3 2 8.3 2 No apparent 0 0 21.4 3 12.5 3 reason Homicides* 24.5 Unknown 50 5 28.6 4 36.7 9 0.24% Theft 0 0 11.9 5 8.6 5 Total victimizations Robbery*** 0 0 35.7 15 25.9 15 100% Drug/weapon trafficking 37.5 6 11.9 5 19 11 Source: PNAD Assault 0 0 7.1 3 5.2 3 2009 Total 100 16 100 42 100 58 *Per 100.000 inhabitants - Source: MapadaViolencia 2011 * Percentages based on total number of crime stories in each show. (Waiselfisz, 2011) ** Includes attempted murder ***Includes burglary/land invasion
- 9. Crime onthestreets: victims LETHALVICTIMIZATIONS (1) 24.8 homicides per 100,000 (2008): 17th most dangerous state in Brazil (2) Youth (15-24 years old): 46 per 100,000 inhabitants (3) 92.4% males Probability of a victim of homicide being Afro-Brazilian is 290.2% higher than being white NON-LETHAL VICTIMIZATIONS: THE MOST VULNERABLE (1) Theft: Black, female, 40-49 years, employed (sales) (2) Robbery: Black, male, 30-39 years, employed (services) (3) Assault: Black, male, 20-29 years old, unemployed The more violent the crime, the younger, poorer, and darker the victim
- 10. Interreality: race 1= negative, 4= neutral, 7 = positive
- 11. Findings (1) Victims appear only on 41% of the stories, body of a victim 52.4% (2) ComunidadeAlerta is more violent than Alô Amazonas (3) Drug-related crimes are newsworthy in Amazonas: authority sources “News about drug seizures or the arrest of a drug dealer will always make an impact. That‟s because the average citizen likes to see drug criminals being punished.” (Military Police Representative, Personal communication, June 29, 2011) (4) Robbery, theft and assault underrepresented (5) Underrepresentation of black AND white victimization (6) Underrepresentation and misrepresentation of females: only predatory crimes
- 12. Conclusions (1) Crime on TV is more violent and random than actual statistics (2) TV stories emphasize the role of criminals, their weapons, and their connections to the drug industry. (3) Amazonas, Brazil: Lack of representation of victims in Amazonas’ local media being a victim not a benign role in the crime phenomenon. E.g. “(s)he was the victim of drug traffic”, “(s)he made the wrong friends”, “when a citizen owns money to the bank, his name goes to a collection agency. When a citizen owns money to the drug traffickers, he will pay with his life.” (4) Host (ComunidadeAlerta): “electronic vigilante”, denounces the failures of the social system and calls attention to the many risks people face (5) TV shows mediate relationship between people and authorities: lack of institutional democratic spaces for representation
- 13. Thankyou!