Our fascination of deviant families

In response to Tony’s blog Deviant families: why can we just not get enough of it? http://z3333542.blogspot.com/

The media does have an inclination about reporting stories focusing on children, parents and violence. Just look at the violence displayed at a junior football match. A few weeks ago a fight had broken out between the parents of two players and then the players started attacking each other on the field. Former Swans coach Paul Roos, says that the junior game involves more violence than when he played professionally. He says “It begins with parents, permeates through to the young players and ends in officials being forced to become involved.” (Wilson, 2011)Who would have thought that a children’s sport would attract that kind of behaviour? Just when you thought the parents would be the people setting a good example to their children, they are the ones to pick a fight.

Sometimes on shows such as Today Tonight or A Current Affair we see drunk teenagers being returned home to their parents who are just as drunk, and funnily enough their faces are always blocked by the privacy blur. How are children supposed to learn how to act properly when their own parents are a disaster? You just hope they have the sense to look at their disgraceful parents and go “I never want to be like them.” So how true is it, that children mimic the behaviour of their parents? If they do, let’s just hope that the violence doesn’t escalate to criminal activities.

On another matter, which Tony touched on is the spotlight on the Ibrahim and Moran crime families. These two families have dominated media coverage over the past few years. If there were any new crime discoveries about the people from these families, it would be all over the news and tabloids the next day. Is it a coincidence that these two families were both on the television show Underbelly? Let’s face it; the media will always report something on violence because it is newsworthy (Jewkes, 2004). It is the topic that most attracts the attention of the audience. Something so small such as violence between parents in a children’s football match makes the news. We are so used to hearing and seeing violence in media coverage, we have become desensitised to some of the most gruesome stories.

So why do deviant families fascinate us? Maybe it is because we look at our own family and thank god that we are not like the ones in the news, or maybe it is for our own entertainment that we like to see the plight of others. Either way, the media will continue to report these types of stories, and we, the audience will continue to indulge in them.

References:

Jewkes, Y. (2004). Media and Crime, Sage Publications, London

Wilson, R. (2011). Keep bad dads out of kid’s sport, 28 May 2011, The Daily Telegraph

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/nrl/keep-bad-dads-out-of-kids-sport/story-e6frext9-1226064332565

The Internet and Social networking sites- should we be worried?

Ok, so maybe I have a biased view of social networking since I don’t use Facebook, Twitter any other form of social media, but are these sites more trouble than they are worth?

Crime that is conducted via the internet is known as cybercrime (Marsh & Melville, 2009, pg 154).A type of cybercrime is Cyberbullying. Recently, there was a landmark ruling where the Victoria's Victims of Crime Assistance Tribunal concluded that Allem Halkic’s death was caused by an act of violence and awarded his parents compensation (Fogarty, 2011). Allem who was just 17 years old, killed himself in 2009 after he was bullied on a social networking website. No amount of money will bring their son back, but at least people are starting to recognise that cyberbullying is a growing problem that needs to be prevented in order to protect children. It was a landmark case because cyberbullying is finally being recognised as an act of violence. It is not just suicide because someone else’s direct actions have caused another person’s death.

People need to realise the seriousness of cyberbulling and its impacts on young people. Cyberbullying is not the same as traditional bullying in the playground. The internet has allowed people to anonymously inflict harm on one another. The effects are detrimental as teenagers all over the world are committing suicide over these hurtful comments. How many of these people who bully online would do so if the internet did not exist and it was not anonymous? Cyberbullying is surrounded by the idea of deindividualisation where people lose their sense of individual identity and engage in anti-social behaviour. They are less inhibited because they are less personally identifiable. People who bully online think they can get away with it because there is less chance of getting caught.

The new technologies created are not always beneficial. Yes, they enhance communication and allow people to keep in contact with friends around the globe, but deaths are also resulting because of them. Susan McLean, the director of Cyber Safety Solutions, said studies showed that between 15-30 per cent of young people have been bullied online (Fogarty, 2011). This figure is too high. Even though schools are educating children about cyberbullying, there needs to be more done to help young people so they feel like they can talk to others about being bullied because they cannot handle it on their own.

Cybercrime only exists because of the internet and therefore cyberbullying only exists because of the internet. I often wonder what life would be like without the internet. Would it be better or worse? Personally, I depend on it way too much. There is only the small minority (I hope) that choose to abuse the internet for serious crimes such as cyberbullying and it is those people who deserve to live without life’s luxuries.

References:

Fogarty, D. (2011). Tribunal find cyberbullying is violence, 30 May 2011, Sydney Morning Herald

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/tribunal-find-cyberbullying-is-violence-20110530-1fcn1.html

Marsh, I & Melville, G. (2009). Crime, justice and the media, Routledge, USA

Police Patrol

Over the weekend, police across Australia conducted their yearly weekend blitz on alcohol-fuelled violence and anti-social behaviour with Operation Unite. Extra police were sent out in force targeting drunken violence. This operation takes on the zero tolerance approach as police and the government want to let people know that they are sick and tired of alcohol violence. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/05/15/3217211.htm 

Police need to maintain a positive public image, but some of their techniques are out of line. Some images of police getting tough on crime and arresting people can make others in the community feel safe and reassures them that something is being done to protect them.  However, police always attract much criticism about the way they choose to handle some situations. I know that people can drink excessive amounts of alcohol and get out of control, but having 7 or 8 officers pinning one guy down seems a bit much. The images seen in the media of police officers using violence to target violence does not represent a positive image.

This all relates back to “law and order commonsense” where it is said that police need greater powers to control people and that we need tougher penalties to keep society in order (Hogg & Brown, 1998). Crime is shown to be a massive problem and if it is not handled quickly, the community will spiral out of control. This weekend blitz is seen as something of a solution to alcohol-related crime. Although crackdowns seem to work for the short term, there needs to be better responses to combat this problem. Maybe the solution is not to get tougher on crime, but to educate people about the consequences of their actions.

How the police are portrayed in the media can have an effect on public knowledge and opinion (Marsh & Melville, 2009, pg 130). A positive image of police can encourage the public to cooperate and assist in reporting crime. You never want to rub people the wrong way, and this is especially important with police as they have a job to protect the community and need all the help they can get to catch criminals. The relationship between the police and media can be a double-edged sword. On one hand, it can be beneficial to promote the police as friendly and caring. However, the media (especially the news) can show police getting heavy-handed with people and using excessive violence to control them.

Love them or loathe them, the police are here to stay.

References:

Hogg, R & Brown, D. (1998). Rethinking law and order, Pluto Press, Australia

Godfrey, M. (2011). Drunk idiots too common in oz, 15 march 2011, Sydney Morning Herald

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/drunk-idiots-too-common-across-oz-police-20110515-1ent1.html

Marsh, I & Melville, G. (2009). Crime, justice and the media, Routledge, USA

No author. (2011). Police crackdown targets 'boozed-up idiots', 15 March 2011

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/05/15/3217211.htm

Modern day moral panics

A moral panic starts to develop when the media, police and the wider public overreact to behaviour that is seen as a social problem (Marsh & Melville, 2009, pg40).

An example of this is the recent Villawood violence where we saw detainees setting fire to the buildings. The information and images conveyed to the public by the media caused an outrage. Many people lashed out and said that these people do not deserve to live in this country and that they should be sent back to their country.

The topic of asylum seekers always attracts great debate. On one hand they are seen as a social problem and people do not want them entering their country, then there are those who argue human rights and say that they should be allowed in.  The panic has created people to fear foreigners. The media and other influential sources describing them as dangerous and a threat to society, and the images of them burning and destroying property makes people anxious and fearful.

This was also the case when September 11 happened as there was a mass panic erupting around the world. The effect of this event created so much chaos. This was mainly due to the information and devastating images created by the media and fed to society.  People were basically living in fear that another attack was going to happen. Since this event, security, defence forces and anti-terrorism laws have gone into overdrive. Just look at airport security and the incident that occurred when about 10 people were not screened and everyone had to be called back, which delayed flights for days. Moral panics are based on disproportionality as viewed by Goode and Ben-Yehuda, and the response was a bit disproportionate calling everyone back due to 10 unscreened people. (Marsh & Melville, 2009, pg47)We now live in a world where things are checked, rechecked and go through multiple processes to make sure everything is safe. The policies that have been changed and created since 9/11 are made to keep people safe but all it is doing is creating a heightened sense of fear.

About a week ago, Osama bin Laden was killed. When I got home to watch the 6pm news I was quite disheartened by the fact that people would ‘celebrate’ the death of Osama bin Laden. Watch here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FmHti8iBQM . I realise the killing of bin Laden is what people have been looking forward to for the past 10 years but there is no need to carry on the way they do. I think the quote that sums it up the best and has been tweeted by many is the one by Martin Luther King, Jnr  - "I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy."

Even with bin Laden dead people are still fearful as some have cancelled their flights in fear of revenge attacks. I guess once the panic is set in, it never leaves.

References:

Marsh, I & Melville, G. (2009). Crime, justice and the media, Routledge, USA

Williams, P & Dickinson, J. (1993). Fear of crime: read all about it? The relationship between newspaper crime reporting and fear of crime, British Journal of Criminology, 33(1), 33-56.

NSW State Election

It was a landslide victory to Barry O’Farrell and the Liberal Party. Let’s just hope they can keep to all their promises and the slogan of “real change” and not go down the road Labor has done for the past 16 years.  

Crime, politics and the media have an intertwining relationship. Politicians use the media as a way to get information to the public. This can be seen through the law and order policies that become the main focus of election campaigns. Political parties always want to be seen like they are doing something about crime to keep the people in society safe. After all it is the citizens who vote for them.

Both Labor and the Libs promised to crack down on crime by boosting police numbers, with O’ Farrell’s “blitz on crime” aiming to add an extra 550 officers. “With public concern about crime on the rise, the NSW Liberals & Nationals are determined to give police the powers, the resources and the backing they need to keep our community safe,” Mr O’Farrell said (O’Farrell & Gallacher, 2011).That seems to be the solution to crime every time – just put more police out on the streets and everything will be alright. However, Scott Weber (NSW Police Association president) said that more needs to be done and “we want to see both parties take the politics out of policing and make informed decisions” (Grogan, 2011). Sometimes life would be so much easier without the politics of it all.

The Coalition aims to target alcohol related violence and crime by strengthening ‘move on powers’ and introducing new offences to deal with the ‘drunk and disorderly’. This always happens to be one of the main policies. What kind of an election would it be without the need to tackle alcohol crime because people have the right to enjoy a night out without feeling unsafe?

Kristina Keneally took it one step further with her “tough on crime” approach by promising people New York-style anti-Mafia laws (Smith, 2011).  Really? Have we turned into America? Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for keeping people safe and secure, but do we need to go that far?

This all sounds like ‘law and order’ commonsense illustrated by Hogg & Brown (1998) as politicians have responded by increasing police powers as the solution, thinking that crime on the rise, looking towards New York as the model for the future, and calling for tougher penalties. Law and order commonsense is caused by assumptions of popular sources such as the media who have ingrained into society its views about crime and what sort of actions are needed to prevent crime.  People take it for what it is and accept it.

Politicians use the media to their advantage to persuade the public about certain issues. Election time is the best time to get to people because this is when people are looking for a change. Whatever policies each party promises, there will always be a certain level of doubt over whether it will be put into action. With Barry O’Farrell leading the charge, hopefully this will be the breath of fresh air that this state needs to get back on track.

References:

Grogan, Z. (2011). Neither policy goes far enough, 23 March 2011, Liverpool Leader.

http://liverpool-leader.whereilive.com.au/news/story/neither-policy-goes-far-enough-police/

Hogg, R & Brown, D. (1998). Rethinking Law and Order, Pluto Press, Australia

O’Farrell, B. (2011). The NSW Liberals' & Nationals' action plan to tackle alcohol related violence and crime

http://www.barryofarrell.com.au/protect-our-local-environment/the-nsw-liberals-nationals-action-plan-to-tackle-alcohol-related-violence-and-crime.html

O’Farrell, B & Gallacher, M. (2011). NSW Libs & Nats crime fighting plan: more police, more cars, new chopper, 21 March 2011

http://nsw.nationals.org.au/From-the-Coalition/nsw-libs-a-nats-crime-fighting-plan-more-police-more-cars-new-chopper.html

Smith, A. (2011). Anti-mafia muscle on Premier’s to-do list, 14 March 2011, Sydney Morning Herald.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/state-election-2011/antimafia-muscle-on-premiers-todo-list-20110313-1bt27.html

Media Magnet

My consumption of crime and media news is probably on par with most people in today’s society. Everytime I hear or see crime in the media, something just draws me in. It is like a magnet, I seem to gravitate towards crime stories. We are so fascinated by crime. What is it about crime that draws us in? For me it is the combination of the person and the crime committed (but mostly the crime). Anything that involves death or bloody violence, I would have heard about it. I have more of a tendency to be drawn to these stories. Our society is basically surrounded by crime-related material as it is the topic that dominates the media. With today’s advancement in technology we can get our media fix from just about anywhere. Unless you’re living under a rock, it is pretty hard to escape.  

I probably do not give as much time as I should to other news in the media. I guess with big news such as the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and other natural disasters I do make the extra effort to tune in. However, if you were to ask me about something a bit more general I would not be able to give you much. I think if people are interest in a particular topic, sirens go off in your brain. Be it the news on TV, the newspaper or the internet, crime stories are the first topic to grab my attention. If I see crime-related stories that I interest me in the Sydney Morning Herald, Daily Telegraph or any other relevant papers I cut them out. If I see something on Channel 7’s 6pm news, Four Corners or Australian Story I record it. If I want something from the internet it is only a click away. It’s so handy and convenient. You could say I have somewhat of a crime library at home (even though it does make me sound like I’m a hoarder).

When I hear about crime and famous people I just get annoyed (yes I’m taking about you Charlie Sheen). Would we really be devoting that much time to this story if it was someone else, an unknown person? The media is like a dog with a bone when it comes to such stories. We are a world obsessed with celebrities. It must be so hard for them knowing that they cannot escape the media spotlight.

With all that we consume and how crime is the dominating topic in the news, it is hard for us not to be influenced by the media (Surette 2007, p.2). We all know that the media can exaggerate and put their own spin on the stories, however, I for one hope that I can make an informed decision about what I hear, see and read for myself.

References:


Surette, R, 2007, Media, crime, and criminal justice: Images, realities, and policies, Thomson Wadsworth, Canada