NCJ Number
192795
Journal
Prison Journal Volume: 80 Issue: 3 Dated: September 2000 Pages: 245-264
Date Published
September 2000
Length
20 pages
Annotation
This article presents a content analysis of the correctional debate in the New York Times.
Abstract
Scholarship over the past three decades has generated considerable insight into the roles of the media, politicians, and law enforcement officials in constructing images of criminal justice; that body of research has rarely included corrections. This study, based on analysis of 206 articles on corrections published in the New York Times, examines news sources and their quoted statements. Findings reveal that the New York Times relies heavily on political and government sources who express support for the prevailing correctional policies and practices. Although the New York Times has also quoted sources critical of the government's correctional strategies, the article considers the dominance of political sources in the press evidence of agenda setting in the debate over corrections. It describes the phenomenon of agenda setting in corrections as highly relevant to criminal justice research, especially considering that popular notions about crime and criminal justice are constructed by the media, often according to the political views of government leaders. Tables, notes, references