Discuss the effects of 'cultural reductionism' in media representations of ethnic minority youth and crime. Culture, a multifaceted set of human practices, transmitted through complex dialogues, objects, rituals and institutions is represented through media as internally homogenous, simplified and distinctive (Mills and Keddie, 2010). Such reductionism possesses momentous ramifications, associated with the injustices faced by these groups and how they are addressed in the political and societal milieu (Mills and Keddie, 2010). This essay draws attention to the pervasive power held by the media through the renowned theoretical notions of Arjun Appadurai’s ‘Multiple Scapes’ and Stanley Cohen’s ‘Moral Panic’ and how these conceptions interplay …show more content…
In particular mediascapes, ethnoscapes and ideoscapes are factors contributing to ideologies of cultural reductionism. Mediascapes, profuse media outlets (Appadurai, 1990) act as a potent tool of influence within society, permeating a sensationalised and ubiquitous view of crime inducing heightened fear of juvenile ethnic minorities (White and Perrone 2007). Ideoscapes centres on discourses and hegemonic ideologies of powerful institutions (Appadurai, 1990), operating through the cultural realm of society, integrating people into “racialised” patterns, undermining, oppressing and subordinating the communities’ subject of ideological theory (Mills and Keddie, 2010). Ethnoscapes refers to constant and fluid shifting of persons across geographic locations, resulting in the lucid cultural diversification within society, affecting the politics of nations regarding new conditions and environments for displaced people. This globalised spatial distribution of ethnic communities portrays the growing tension and anxieties between nation state-based solutions and policy reform concerning refugee populations (Appadurai, …show more content…
Windle (2008) reveals a cut in the number of humanitarian visas allocated to Africans from seventy per cent to thirty per cent, disregarding rights of young people, justifying African Youths had failed to integrate and adjust to Australian antics. It is conjured the dominant ‘in-groups’ are cast as generous and virtuous and contrastingly the minority ‘out-group’ in particular need of help, devising a polarising effect (Windle 2008). Nonetheless, although these minority ethnic groups are apart of the out-group compared to the dominant in-groups, they do posses their own connotations of in-group membership, identification and bias where they derive social identities and values (Mills and Keddie, 2010). These polarising images regarding in-group/out-group bias portray that the origins of criminality stem from outside of Australia, interrelated with immigration policies, ideas and cultures of ethnics, rather than the internal social and economic inequalities (White and Perrone
‘’ Abolition of systemic discrimination in the CJS may leave behind ‘structural racism’: the discriminatory impact of laws, policies and practices rather than individual racist attitudes’’ (Blagg et al 2005: 12). The white susceptibilities are offended when Aboriginal people’s occurrence induces loathing and fear: their social custom, and their differences (sitting in parks, moving around as a group). In public places it is approved or considered as ‘okay’ to discriminate against Aboriginal people, for instances; Aboriginal children was rejected from shopping malls for ruptures of dress codes while young non-aboriginal youths are not, Aboriginal background adults are denied service in pubs is all regarded as being ‘okay’. Aboriginal people’s cultural values and beliefs are ignored as the Criminal justice system (CJS) enforces non-Aboriginal principles upon them. As a result, such behaviour is considered as institutionalised norms, practices and standards but not reflected as deliberate
Reynolds, H. (2005). Nowhere People: How international race thinking shaped Australia’s identity. Australia: Penguin Group
In conclusion, this essay has discussed the media’s response to the recent issue of youth-related gangs in Melbourne, through the utilisation of the moral panic model. Goode & Ben-Yehuda’s five elements of moral panic were applied to analyse the recent media response to youth gangs in Melbourne, and compared to the media attention devoted to gangs in previous years. The functions of the media in facilitating moral panics were also discussed in order to justify the reasons why the current response of the media can be classified as a moral
Australia has had a long history of receiving individuals and groups who are seeking asylum as well as unfortunately a long history of turning those away who are perceived as different. (McKay,Thomas & Blood 2011).Even though the white Australia policy was abandoned decades ago it still lives on as a strong resonance in the conservative right of politics (Westoby & Ingamells, 2010). Community fear about Australia’s border seem easily triggered, which has prompted the term ‘paranoid nationalism’ to be used to describe the heightened refugee politics of the Howard years linked to discrimination and maltreatment of asylum seekers which still lives on today (Westoby & Ingamells, 2010). This paper will use the term asylum seeker to identify those who have arrived at Australian shores seeking refuge without a valid visa. I aim to consider throughout this paper this history of how asylum seekers have been constructed as the ‘other’ and to examine the role of public discourse and political, legal and media responses, such as the implementation of detention centres, as creating and reinforcing the position of asylum seekers as different and not belonging. It will be therefore argued that while we have come a long way from the treatment the Howard government gave asylum seekers, we have not come far enough. Two key areas being the use of ‘othering’ and the implementation of detention centres need to be challenged if we are to take the responsibility of providing refuge for asylum seekers seriously.
Cultural criminology is a relatively new perspective and approach to understanding crime and deviance. Cultural criminology first began to develop in the 1990s and rapidly progressed in to a new field of criminology that is both influential and informative. The core concept of cultural criminology is built upon by using traditional approaches from different disciplines such as sociological studies, cultural studies, symbolic interactionism and many other disciplines, theories and methods. (Oxford bibliography Keith Hayward) Although it would seem that cultural criminology is nothing more than an interdisciplinary field, using only the studies and theories of some of the disciplines mentioned above - it actually does offer a new line of thought and individuality that other fields of criminology in the past did not. This is because instead of viewing crime objectively, it instead looks at crime subjectively by analysing the idiosyncrasies of the modern sociocultural environment. It offers an explanation of crime and deviance as a constructed result from either political, social or cultural actors and groups who commit crime, because of a shared sense of meaning, emotions, symbols, styles and even fashion within different subcultures. (Oxford bibliography Keith Hayward) Cultural Criminologists hope to explain and examine how the meaning of certain aspects of a subculture can play an active role in society and the construction of crime, not only by explaining why crime is committed, but also how crime is controlled. This essay will explain what cultural criminology is by using The 1989 Hillsborough disaster as an example in illustrating some of the research findings by cultural criminologists. There have been many different topic area...
As a part of my English communications study I have chosen to explore the various social and political issues regarding asylum seekers in Australia. Firstly I would like to clarify the term asylum seekers, or as they are more commonly referred to: ‘boat people’.
The causes of crime are complex, Collectivists believe that acceptable ways to reduce crime, is to address the social conditions in which the conditions for crime are created, things such as, a more equal society, improved work opportunities and effective housing will make crime less of an attraction. If people are in a stable job, providing for their family and are content with life, they could be less motivated to break the law. Individualists focus on individual values’ or absence of as the motive why people commit crimes. In the long run, if someone chooses to commit a crime, they are accountable for their own actions. If they are caught, they should face the consequences.
Most people use second hand information as their core source of information about crime, this source of information usually being the media. When carrying out sample research in Birmingham, Susan Smith (1984) discovered that 52% of people obtained most of their information about crime from the media, 36% obtained it from hearsay or alleged experiences of friends and neighbours, 3% from their own experiences, and 1% from the police service themselves (cited in Jones, 2001; 8). However the media tend to exaggerate upon areas of criminal activity causing a moral panic. ‘A moral panic is a semi- spontaneous or media generated mass movement based on the perception that some individual or group, frequently a minority group or subculture, is dangerously deviant and poses menace to society. These panics are generally fuelled by the media, although not always caused by, media coverage of social issues… These panics can sometimes lead to mob violence… (newsfilter.co.uk).
African-Americans are the predominant race in prisons in the United States of America (Rushton). Aboriginals are the predominant race in prisons in Canada (Wortley). The majority of both of these nations are whites. Does this show that minorities commit criminal offences more than the majority population? There have been different theories t...
The Stolen Generation has left devastating impacts upon the Aboriginal culture and heritage, Australian history and the presence of equality experienced today. The ‘Stolen Generation’ refers to the children of Aboriginal descent being forcefully abducted by government officials of Australia and placed within institutions and catholic orphanages, being forced to assimilate into ‘white society’. These dehumanising acts placed these stolen children to experience desecration of culture, loss of identity and the extinction of their race. The destructive consequences that followed were effects of corruption including attempted suicide, depression and drug and alcohol abuse. The indigenous peoples affected by this have endured solitude for many years, this has only been expressed to the public recently and a proper apology has been issued, for the years of ignorance to the implementation of destruction of culture. The Stolen Generation has dramatically shaped Australian history and culture.
This is predominately a social phenomenon by which a minority or sub group is excluded where their needs or desires are detached. Initially, marginalisation within the Aboriginal community is a product of ‘White European’ colonisation in the late 1700’s. In fact, Indigenous Australians are still experiencing marginalisation by white Australian culture. This is due to the developments of policy, programs and practices in order to meet the requirements of white society (Baskin C, 2003). For Aboriginal youth, the continued marginalisation is an immediate felt experience. (The Royal Commission) in (Graham, 1999) recognised that Aboriginal youth are furthermost socially and economically marginalised group of young people in Australia, as it was further recognised that their marginalisation was borne out of a complex interrelation of social, economic and cultural factors. (Beresford & Omaji, 1996 in Graham,1999) asserted that evidence of the marginalisation of Aboriginal youth was evident in the early 1990s and since then, the situation has intensified. As a result, a considerable number of Aboriginal youth have alienated themselves from mainstream society by the interaction of family poverty and dysfunction, educational failure and labour market exclusion. As a direct result, many young Aboriginals, particularly those in urban and metropolitan settings, have sought refuge in a subcultural lifestyle characterised by crime, drug abuse and
Racism in Australia traces both previous incidents in the past and present racist attitudes which is the result of continuous defamation of indigenous people and the mass migration of people to Australia. In Australia the most prevalent people who in Australia’s past and still to this day show acts of racism on a large scale are the white settlers who after dispossessing the land from the aboriginals started a continuous wave of racism and hate. The main target of racial attacks in Australia are the Aboriginals and migrants who after suffering are still subjected to continuous racism and racists remarks. Racism in Australia is a large scale problem as it has numerous detrimental effects
In recent years, the subject of crime has become an increasingly important theme of political, academic, and public debate. In particular, the media today is more focused on victims than it has ever been before. Through media representations of the ‘ideal victim’, this essay will subsequently show how the media are able to construct and re-affirm pre-existing traditional ideologies within the public realm. In effect, this assignment will critically assess the concept of an ‘ideal victim’ and show how the media have used this when describing crime.
According to Rachel Boba, “Crime analysis is a law enforcement function that involves systematic analysis for identifying and analyzing patterns and trends in crime and disorder” (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime analysis).The information on these patterns can assist law enforcement agencies in the deployment of resources in a more effective manner; it can also help detectives to identify and catch suspects. Crime analysis also plays a role in improvising solutions to crime problems, and developing crime prevention strategies. There are various types of technology that is used in crime analysis. Crime analysis relies heavily on computer technology, and over the past fifteen years there has been a significant improvement in computer hardware and software that has led to tremendous developments in this field. One form of hardware that is used by Crime analysts to complete most of their work is Desktop personal computers, laptop computers are also used by crime analysts for fieldwork and presentations. Other forms of hardware that are used include color laser printers that can produce high-quality documents quickly, plotters which are printers that can produce large poster size color maps, scanners, and digital cameras, these specific types of hardware is mostly used by police departments when analyzing crime.
Throughout society there are both individuals and groups of people with a wide range of perceptions about crime and justice. These perceptions are influenced by the media and what the media presents. Media presents crime stories in ways that selectively distort and manipulate public perception, thus creating a false picture of crime. Therefore the media provides us with perceptions and social constructions about our world. Firstly I will be discussing the role of the media in constructing knowledge about crime. I will begin by explaining why the media is important, and go further to explain that media representations construct knowledge of crime and since knowledge about crime is constructed it does not necessarily capture reality in fact crime stories are often sensationalised. I will then link this to my central argument that the media shapes people’s perceptions of crime and how this is important as it can lead to changes in the law. I will then explain what it is that the public or society needs to be aware of when reading and watching media reports about crime. We need to be aware of bias and moral panics that are created by the media and how the media shapes or influence’s public perception through this, it is important for us to be aware of misleading or false crime stories so that we are not swayed by the media in believing what they want us to believe.