Racial Censorship in the Media

The relationship between race and crime is a debated subject in the United States. In the article “Should race play a role in how the media reports crime?” by Kyle Rogers, he claims that “the media does not like to report black crime” and media bosses “say that censorship is for the public’s

benefit”. This view point seems contradictory to me. I can't remember how many times I have heard on the news or read in the paper, “the suspect, an African American male….” I feel like race is acknowledged frequently on the news, yet Rogers claims that this is not a regular occurrence.

He makes the bold claim that public safety has become less important than being politically correct. This I find interesting because it correlates with colorblind racism. We as a society are so sensitive to race that we try to hide it publicly. The media says that in the end race is not important information in regards to the cases/crimes, but they are just ignoring race all together. Acknowledging that race exists does not make you a racist. And in regards to race not being an important factor in crimes, as unfortunate as you may think it is, race is used by almost everybody as one of the ways to describe a person. I can understand why the media wants to avoid contributing to the stereotype, but facts about the crime should not be skewed.

I’m not sure I believe the media censors to the extent that Rogers implies. Why would the relationship between race and crime be such a hot topic if it wasn’t ever mentioned on the news? Plus, as we have discussed in class, racial issues is a focal point in our nation. Alexander even mentions in her article, “The New Jim Crowe”, that “at other stages of the criminal justice process, the Court has indicated that overt racial bias necessarily triggers strict scrutiny” (Gallagher 221). Racism exists! We will never be able to overcome the racial conflicts unless we admit that they are relevant in our society and a problem.

While I agree that race seems to be either overplayed or underplayed in the media, I don’t agree with some of his strong right-winged comments. One example of this is his statement about a Chicago Tribune reporter, Steve Chapman, who was defending censorship in the news. Rogers explained that “Chapman would rather see more innocent white people attacked than report the news accurately”. This statement seems like overkill to me. Chapman wants to believe in or contribute to the United States’ colorblind outlook and try and make the idea of race seem outdated or unrelated to crime. Although a bit radical, Chapman is trying to help fight the battle against racism. However, he is wrong to think that race is not relevant when it comes to crime. How can race not be related to crime when “the Supreme Court has actually granted the police license to discriminate” (Gallagher 221)? Talking about race is like walking on a tight rope, and while I don’t believe that ignoring it is a solution, I don’t believe that showcasing it will solve any problems either.

Sources:

http://www.examiner.com/article/should-race-play-a-role-how-the-media-reports-crime

Gallagher, Charles A. "The New Jim Crowe." Rethinking the Color Line: Readings in Race and Ethnicity. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2012. 221. Print.