CRMJ/SOCA 385: Media, Crime, Criminal Justice.

A Justice Site

Media, Crime, Criminal Justice
Fall 2008
Mirror Sites:
CSUDH - Habermas - UWP - Archives

California State University, Dominguez Hills
University of Wisconsin, Parkside
Soka University Japan - Transcend Art and Peace
Created: July 27, 2003
Latest Update: November 20, 2008
jeannecurran@habermas.org
takata@uwp.edu

CRMJ 385 Media, Crime, Criminal Justice
You will be held accountable for the readings and discussion questions listed here. There will be no "testing." That means that you will not have to live in anxious anticipation of what we will ask and how much you will have to know. Instead, we will provide weekly discussion questions, lectures, essays, and concepts we feel that you should know as a result of having taken this course. You will assure us of that learning and receive your grade for the questions and concepts about which you choose to write and talk with us. In addition you will find detailed explanations and examples on our grading policies in the first week's reading.

"Media, Crime, Criminal Justice" Cards

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Week 14: Week of November 30, 2008

Monday, December 1st through Wednesday, December 3rd -- Second meetings
Monday, December 8th, beginning of class - Second Visual Projects due (including bibliography & self-assessment)
Topic: Media, Crime, Criminal Justice:The Future
Preparatory Readings:

Rafter . Shots in the Mirror. Chapters 8.
Surette . Media, Crime and Criminal Justice . Chapters 9.
Potter and Kappeler. Constructing Crime. - entire text.
Domentary: "-----" (to be shown in class)

Metaphor and Theory. Read the Blind Men and the Elephant fable. Think about how this fable relates to the course.
"theory, policy, practice"
W.I. Thomas "Definition of the Situation

Lecture related links:

Sociology of Knowledge Files
Ray Surette's website
Internet Movie Database

Concepts to be covered:

moral ambiguity
alternative-tradition crime films
ideology
the Other
illocutionary discourse
definition of the situation
social constructionism
perception v. reality

Discussion Questions:

Note: Incorporate the readings into your answers.
Surette states: "The fear and loathing we feel toward criminals is tied to our media-generated images of criminality," (pp. 238-239). What did he mean by this? Do you agree or disagree with Surette? Why.
Discuss which scenario is most disturbing and what steps you would support (increased censorship, for example) or what social conditions you might tolerate (less privacy, for example) to prevent either scenario from becoming reality. [Surette, p. 240]
What are some of the most negative aspects of the relationship between the media, crime and criminal justice? Why. And, what are some of the most positive aspects of the relationship between the media, crime, and criminal justice? Why.
In discussing the media, crime and criminal justice, which author's conclusion -- Potter & Kappeler, Rafter or Surette -- do you agree with the most? Why.

Suggested Visual Projects/Creative Measures:
Note: Your visual projects/creative measure: a) Must relate to "media, crime, and the criminal justice system." b) Must be approved before starting your creative measure. c) Cannot be something that you are doing or have done for another course. d) Research cannot be 100% online (i.e., google, askjeeves). e) Must conduct library research using scholarly works, (not the popular press -- Time Magazine, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated). No term papers! Email me your visual project idea/topic.

Make an "explosion box" or a card that focuses on this week's topic, "Media, Crime, Criminal Justice: The Future."
Select a recent criminal justice issue (i.e., gangs, death penalty, terrorism) and trace the public attitudes and beliefts.
Explore how much time people (i.e., children, teenagers, young adults, older adults, the elderly) spend time watching television? surfing the Internet? going to the movies? listening to the radio?

Self-Assessment Questions for each Visual Project:

List the names of the individuals in your group. What did you do exactly for this visual project? (If in a group, explain the division of labor and your individual contribution to this visual project). Describe the small item that you made for visitors to your visual project to "take away."
Explain in depth, how your visual project specifically relates to "media, crime, criminal justice" (i.e., the readings, the documentaries, class discussions, major concepts). Explain how the interrelationship of "theory, policy, practice" applies to your visual project. What did you learn?
Assess how the 6Cs apply to your visual project, with special attention on competence and creativity. What is your visual project self-assessment (provide a letter grade) ___ ? Explain why this particular grade.

Recommended Readings:

Samuel Walker. Sense and Nonsense about Crime and Drugs: A Policy Guide.
J. Carlson. Prime Time Enforcement.
Ray Surette. Justice and the Media.
Ray Surette. The Media and Criminal Justice Policy.

Charles Derber. People Before Profit.
Paul Klugman. The Great Unraveling: Losing Our Way in the New Century.
Robert W. Chesney. Rich Media, Poor Democracy: Communication Politics in Dubious Times.
Gaye Tuchman. Making News: A Study in the Construction of Reality.
Bernard Goldberg. Arrogance: Rescuing America from the Media Elite.
Bernard Goldberg. Bias: A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distorts the News.
Steven Levy. The Perfect Thing: How the iPod Shuffles Commerce, Culture and Coolness.

Internet Movie Database

Lawrence Lessig. Free Culture: How Big Media Uses Technology and the Law to Lock Down Culture and Control Creativity. Lawrence Lessig, a law professor at Stanford University, has made his book free online.
Course Syllabus for CRMJ 385 "Media, Crime, Criminal Justice"

Media Sources:

Left/Right Perspectives - Cursor - New York Times
Arts and Letters Daily - The Economist - The Guardian
Wall Street Journal -The Weekly Standard - The Nation
Los Angeles Times - Chicago Tribune - The Washington Post
Cursor's Al Jazeera Archive - Ha'aretz - Palestine Monitor

Indymedia - BBC News - New Profile - Progressive Sociologists Network

takata@uwp.edu

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