This instructional manual for planning and implementing police crime-prevention publicity campaigns addresses types of police publicity campaigns and their target audiences, the benefits of publicity campaigns, issues related to publicity campaigns, and elements to consider when designing a publicity campaign.
Police crime-prevention publicity campaigns are designed for either potential victims or potential offenders and are most effective when they focus on one type of crime problem. Offender-oriented campaigns are designed to deter offenders from committing a specific crime type. Victim-oriented publicity campaigns are intended to guide potential victims in ways to protect themselves from being victims of a particular type of crime. Regardless of the target audience for the campaign or the type of crime the police hope to prevent, a publicity campaign should be but one part of a multipronged strategy for preventing the targeted offense. A publicity campaign alone, without other police tactics to combat the offense, will have minimal effect. Benefits of a publicity campaign include its low cost, improved police-community relations, and a reduction in the commission of the type of offense being targeted. One section of the manual addresses issues related to publicity campaigns, namely, the involvement of concerned stakeholders, heightened anxiety among the public due to publicity about a particular type of crime, displacement of the offense to an adjoining jurisdiction, and the vandalism of campaign signs/materials. Practical guidance for conducting a publicity campaign covers the nature of the message, geographic coverage, campaign duration, implementation, reaching diverse populations (language issues), types of publicity formats, and evaluation of the implementation and impact of the campaign. 69 notes, 48 references, suggested readings and Internet sites, and appended checklist for campaign design and implementation and a summary table of previous publicity efforts