First published in 1991, Sex Crime in the News is a unique examination
of the nature of sex crime reporting in the press. Analysing examples
from forty years of newspaper coverage, the authors provide a systematic
study of this controversial topic. The book reveals the misleading and
trivializing nature of sex crime coverage, with serious research reports
on rape and discussions on law reform being given short shrift. The
authors examine the increasing gap between the reality of sexual abuse
and the coverage it receives in the press, and they set their detailed
empirical work within a context of broader concerns about the
relationship between the media, the individual and the state. Critical
though it is of the press, this book will be of special interest to
people working in the media, and to legislators involved in debates
about the press. It will also be of value to students on course in
women's studies, cultural and media studies, and deviancy.