Ethical aspects of reporting on juvenile crime in Serbia
Abstract
The subject of the paper is reporting on juvenile crime in Serbia on the websites of daily newspapers Kurir and Politika By applying the content analysis, the author intended to determine whether reporting was approached professionally, as well as whether journalists dealt with the causes of juvenile delinquency, while at the same time trying to educate readers about the specific characteristics of this phenomenon. The aim of the paper is to examine the compliance of media coverage with the relevant norms that bind journalists. The results of the research indicate that, in a formal and legal sense, media reporting is in compliance with the positive regulations governing this area, but that the ethics could be at a higher level. Although reporting is generally based on the named sources and does not contradict the principle of privacy protection, there is no indication of the broader context in which juvenile delinquency manifests itself. The media image of juvenile crime created by the analyzed websites emphasizes violent crime, although juveniles in Serbia predominantly commit property crimes. The author concludes that there is a need for more substantive reporting that would not be limited to the mere transmission of information about the most serious forms of juvenile crime, but would also educate the general public about this topic.
References
Artello, K., Hayes, H., Muschert, G., Spencer, J. (2015). What do we do with those kids? A critical review of current responses to juvenile delinquency and an alternative. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 24, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2015.04.014.
Aziz, D., Perry, B. (2018). A Different Lens?: How Ethnic Minority Media Cover Crime. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 60 (1), 96–121.
Cecconi, C., Poggi, I., D’Errico, F. (2020). Schadenfreude: Malicious Joy in Social Media Interactions. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.558282.
Dowler, K., Fleming, T., Muzzatti, S. L. (2006). Constructing crime: Media, crime, and popular culture. Canadian journal of criminology and criminal justice, 48 (6), 837–850.
Đoković, L. (2019). Media, crime and juveniles. Revija za kriminologiju i krivično pravo, 2 (19), 113–130. [In Serbian]
Greer, C. (2007). News Media, Victims and Crime. In: P. Davies, P. Francis, C. Greer (eds.). Victims, Crime and Society (20–49), London: Sage.
Grosholz, J., Kubrin, C. (2007). Crime in the News: How Crimes, Offenders and Victims are Portrayed in the Media. Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture, 14, 59–83.
Igrački, J., Ilijić, J. (2016). Juvenile crime-State of affairs in the world and in Serbia. Zbornik Instituta za kriminološka i sociološka istraživanja, 60 (1), 185–200. [In Serbian]
Jevtović, A., Bajić, P., Vojinović, M. (2022). Black chronicle as a segment of the media agenda in daily newspapers in Serbia. Sociološki pregled, vol. LVI (3), 1056–1081. DOI: 10.5937/socpreg56-39133
Joye, S., Heinrich, A., Wöhlert, R. (2016). 50 years of Galtung and Ruge: Reflections on their model of news values and its relevance for the study of journalism and communica-tion today. CM: Communication and Media, 11 (36), 5–28. https://doi.org/10.5937/comman11-9514
Knežić, B., Glomazić, H. (2015). Media killing the victim. In: I. Stevanović (ed.). Juveniles as offenders and victims (245–258). Beograd: Institut za kriminološka i sociološka istraživanja. [In Serbian]
Kovačević, M. (2021). Coverage of violence against children in Serbian daily newspapers, Politeia, 11 (21), 69–81, https://doi.org/10.5937/politeia0-30489 [In Serbian]
Manić, Ž. (2017). Content analysis in sociology.. Beograd: Čigoja štampa i Institut za socio-loška istraživanja Filozofskog fakulteta u Beogradu. [In Serbian]
Milić, I. (2014). The political use of tabloids in Serbia. Godišnjak Fakulteta za kulturu i medije: komunikacija, mediji, kultura, 6 (6), 347–362. https://doi.org/10.5937/gfkm1406347M [In Serbian]
Näsi, M., Tanskanen, M., Kivivuori, J., Haara, P., Reunanen, E. (2021). Crime News Consumption and Fear of Violence: The Role of Traditional Media, Social Media, and Alternative Information Sources. Crime & Delinquency, 67 (4), 574–600. https:// doi.org/10.1177/0011128720922539
Nikolić Ristanović, V., Konstantinović Vilić, S. (2018). Criminology.. Beograd: Prometej. [In Serbian]
O’Hear, M. (2019). Violent crime and media coverage in one city: A statistical snapshot. Marquette Law Review, 103, 1007–1033.
Perišić, N. (2022). Violent communication in the headlines of daily newspapers on the subject of traffic during 2020 in the Republic of Serbia. CM Komunikacija i mediji, 2, 223–238. https://doi.org/10.5937/cm17-40704 [In Serbian]
Pritchard, D., Hughes, K. D. (1997). Patterns of deviance in crime news. Journal of com-munication, 47 (3), 49–67.
(RZS, 2023). Report 191. Beograd: Republički zavod za statistiku [In Serbian]
Ruigrok, N., Van Atteveldt, W., Gagestein, S. & Jacobi, C. (2017). Media and juvenile delinquency: A study into the relationship between journalists, politics, and public. Journalism, 18 (7), 907–925. https://doi.org/10.1177/1464884916636143
Spasić, J., Pešić, J. (2019). In the public interest-Handbook for journalists, editors and jour-nalism students on the most frequently violated provisions of the Code of Journalism of Serbia.. Beograd: Savet za štampu. [In Serbian]
Steinberg, L., Piquero, A. R. (2010). Manipulating Public Opinion About Trying Juveniles as Adults: An Experimental Study. Crime & Delinquency, 56 (4), 487–506. https:// doi.org/10.1177/0011128708330179
Stjepić, S., Subotić. I. (2023). Youth in the media mirror 2022.. Beograd: Krovna organizacija mladih Srbije. [In Serbian]
Stojšin, S. (2015). Development and area of content analysis application. Godišnjak Filozofskog fakulteta u Novom Sadu, 40 (2), 169–188. [In Serbian]
Vodinelić, V. V. (2012). Journalists’ codes and media law in Serbia: Insufficient self-defining. Pravni zapisi, 3 (1), 73–89. https://doi.org/10.5937/pravzap1201073V [In Serbian]
Welch, M., Price, E. A., Yankey, N. (2002). Moral Panic Over Youth Violence: Wilding and the Manufacture of Menace in the Media. Youth & Society, 34 (1), 3–30. https://doi. org/10.1177/0044118X02034001001
Copyright (c) 2024 Sociološki pregled
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.