Relationships of Media and Violence: How They Affect Criminal Justice

Although many argue the fact that the media has no adverse effects on society, there have been numerous amounts of documentation, experiments and studies that prove otherwise. It is made clear that the media of today is full of violence and explicit materials. The effect of media violence is commonly seen amongst our youth and within the criminal justice system. Although the relationships between media and violence are not the sole causes of violence and corruption, it is proven through our criminal justice system to initiate a staggering amount.

What is media?

By definition, media is described as a mass means of communication. In the early 20th century, media was limited to published works, radio and a small amount of television. As technology advanced, so did the media. Cable television, movies, Internet, personal audio and magazines are just a few of the media advances. Television is one of the major types of media that contributes to the violence in America.

Saniresch shooting for children’s television pro...

FBI Criminal Justice Information Services.

Adult Criminal Justice System

Television in the early 1950s only had three major stations, whom could broadcast nationwide: CBS, ABC and NBC. These stations were very restricted to what could be shown and what could be said. Back then not every American had a television set, and the viewings of television programs were limited. Now almost every household in America has at least one television set. In 1975 Cable television was introduced, and by 1998 there were over 10,700 cable companies serving more than 65 million subscribers. With the mass amount of television programs, the government's strict regulations became lenient. A study conducted by four universities found that 2,700 television programs from twenty-three different channels showed that 57% of those programs contained violence. There are now hundreds of television channels and millions of television programs shown daily. The study also found that 44% of...