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Reverberate, Resonate, Reproduce: A Reconsideration of Ideological Influence in Crime News Production

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Abstract

For decades, scholars have increasingly been concerned with media representations of crime. Content analyses have chronicled pervasive distortions in media representations of crime. Many have argued these issues are particularly troubling in the news, as it supposedly provides an invaluable democratic service, spurring many theories of crime news production. Classic works often conceptualized crime news as either a product of dominant ideologies and top–down power, or journalistic routines and values, coupled with reflexive agency by journalists. More recently scholars have argued for hybrid perspectives. However, such hybridized approaches often brusquely treat the role of ideology in crime news. This article rethinks the role of ideology in crime news production, particularly the ways in which various ideologies interact and mutually strengthen each other.

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Notes

  1. Grounded theory is an approach, somewhat exploratory in nature, that allows the data to determine themes, analysis and conclusions (Charmaz 2006).

  2. Clearly such resonance happens outside these institutional spaces as well, but my own space constraints preclude such a broadening of this conversation.

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Acknowledgments

Many thanks to those providing feedback and guidance in the production of this manuscript including Kathy Ferguson, Sang Hyoun Pahk, Meda Chesney-Lind, David Johnson, Donna King, and anonymous reviewers.

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  1. Sociology Department, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2424 Maile Way, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA

    Nick Chagnon

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  1. Nick Chagnon
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Correspondence to Nick Chagnon.

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Chagnon, N. Reverberate, Resonate, Reproduce: A Reconsideration of Ideological Influence in Crime News Production. Crit Crim 23, 105–123 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10612-014-9260-5

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