Criminal Victimization and Offending: Representations of Gender, Race-Ethnicity, and Social Class in Prime-Time Crime-Fighting Television

• In Event: 390 - Section on Race, Gender and Class Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 06. Race, Gender, and Class: Media and Controlling Images

Abstract

Media studies have long shown numerical underrepresentation and stereotyping of subordinate groups in mainstream media (e.g., Gerber 1998). Yet, with more diverse casts and the influence of feminist and minority group movements, contemporary media may be changing along these dimensions (e.g., Lauzen 2014; Gill 2012; Cuklanz and Moorti 2006). Such changes may be consequential given that studies suggest media portrayals may affect how individuals think and behave (e.g. Lanis and Covell 1995; Geis et. al 1984). This study seeks to further an understanding of the nature of contemporary media portrayals of gender, race-ethnicity, and social class by focusing on crime fighting television, a genre increasingly centered around male-female crime fighting partnerships with diverse ensemble casts. Specifically, I analyze the long-running television series Castle utilizing data content coded from 88 episodes over six seasons. The analyses consider group similarities and differences in portrayals of criminal victimization and crime perpetration. The findings suggest a distorted view of both victimization and perpetration – yet it is a distorted view that does not fit consistently with stereotypical images of gender, race-ethnicity, and social class. I conclude with discussion of the implications of these findings.

Author

• Donna Bobbitt-Zeher, The Ohio State University