David Wilson is one of the UK's best-known and most innovative
criminologists. An 'insider' view of the construction of a news agenda
for crime and punishment. This superb read from Professor David Wilson
looks at how the "news" agenda for crime and punishment is constructed.
It also contains analysis of media stereotypes, narratives and
depictions together with insights connecting these to real life. Media
portrayals set the agenda for public discourse and popular debate.
Academics in their 'ivory towers', professionals and other crime experts
ignore this at the risk of seeing their more informed understandings
side lined. The book builds on the author's experiences of covering high
profile cases and populist issues for TV, radio, newspapers and other
media. It also contains telling inside accounts of police-media
relations at murder scenes in Gloucester, Soham, Whitehaven, Rothbury
and Ipswich. A must in grasping the equally 'hot topic' of Public
Criminology With a Foreword by the award-winning investigative
journalist Donal MacIntyre. Reviews 'This book is hard to categorise. It
is part academic criminology, part autobiography and part true crime.
Such a deeply personal and unconventional publication is likely to
illicit different reactions for readers. However, it is full of
observations and insights that reward careful reading, but more than a
source of reflection, it is also an attempt to inspire, incite and
provoke criminologists into action': Prison Service Journal 'David
Wilson draws together a variety of spheres that presents as a
contemporary review of the changing medias and technologies in the area
of crime news. An excellent addition for those students studying
subjects with a focus on cultural criminology. Where this book differs
from others is in its exploration of the subject from a range of
perspectives. Chapter three in particular profiles the experiences of a
senior police officer and their experiences and observations of the
influence of the media in and on their work and beyond. An interesting
and engrossing text and an excellent addition for the discipline': Paul
Taylor, University of Chester 'An inspiring and intelligent read. For
journalists, the Police and citizens alike there is so much to take from
David's work. The joy is in its accessibility. There is meat and weight
in these pages and for me the chapter dealing with the Raul Moat
case-The Righteous Slaughter of Some Shootings-shows David Wilson at his
best: open, truthful and wise. In a time of frenzied observation there
is always room for smart analysis that transcends the intelligentsia and
permeates the lives and minds of ordinary people. There is never a
better time to write a book like this and never a better and more
appropriate writer to do the job': Donal MacIntyre (from the Foreword)
Author David Wilson is professor of criminology at Birmingham City
University where he is Director of the Centre for Applied Criminology. A
former prison governor, he is the editor of the Howard Journal and
well-known as an author, broadcaster and presenter for TV and radio,
including the BBC, Channel 4 and Sky. He has written a number of books
for Waterside Press, including: The Longest Injustice: The Strange Story
of Alex Alexandrowicz (with the latter) (1999), Prison(er) Education:
Stories of Change and Transformation (with Ann Reuss) (2000), Images of
Incarceration: Representations of Prison in Film and Television Drama
(with Sean O'Sullivan) (2004), and Serial Killers: Hunting Britons and
Their Victims 1960-2006 (2007).
