By Iain Stott
Newspapers, radio phone-ins, national news, local news, the Internet, if we are to believe them, then Britain is overrun with knife-wielding, hooded teenagers marauding through the streets in search of pensioners to mug. Yet, as we look out of the window, as we walk down the street, as we travel in and out of towns and cities, we are forced to ask, where is this crime?
The latest police-recorded crime figures show that violent crime has fallen by 8% in the last year, and the most serious violent crime by 12%. Yet, ask the average man on the street, and he'll tell you that "the end of the world is nigh".
Is bandwagon jumping journalism irresponsible, or dangerous even? For instance, teenagers are an impressionable bunch; tell them that their peers are walking through the streets armed with knives, and they are going to want a knife for themselves. Is it beyond the realms of possibility, that the minuscule percentage of the teenage populace that carry knives could be increased substantially by irresponsible, misleading journalism? Is there a danger of 'Knife Crime in Britain' becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy?
What can we do about it? Well, unfortunately, probably not a lot. There is always going to be a substantial number of people who can sleep soundly at night no matter what dirty deeds they have carried out during the day. Irresponsible journalism is here to stay. Luckily though, these story fads tend to last only a few months at the most. With any luck, the next fad will involve dog-bites or the like, or something else that will not be exacerbated by the reporting of the less ethical members of our press. Why not make the next fad something fun for once? Knicker-snatching is always good for a laugh.
knifecrime
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