NCJ Number
229755
Journal
Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice Volume: 52 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2010 Pages: 55-77
Date Published
January 2010
Length
23 pages
Annotation
This article examines how the shooting death of a 15-year-old student at a high school in Toronto, Ontario, was portrayed in the local media and how this portrayal led to a misrepresentation of crime in poor communities inhabited primarily by people of color.
Abstract
Using data gathered from local press coverage, this article examines how the shooting death of 15-year-old Jordan Manners at a Toronto high school was framed. In particular, the authors seek to explain why the media's initial attempt to contextualize the event vis-a-vis the tragedy of past school shootings eventually gave way to an interpretive frame rooted in ideological presuppositions about Toronto's underclass. The authors argue that when the media are confronted with a "must cover" event but lack essential information, the tendency is to adopt pre-existing, consonant frameworks. The authors conclude by exploring the socio-political significance of such essentializing frames vis-a-vis crime in poor communities inhabited mainly by people of color. Notes and references (Published Abstract)