© 2024 Texas Public Radio
Real. Reliable. Texas Public Radio.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

The Source: Muslim Terrorists And Latino Immigrants, How News Misrepresents Crime

Caroline Culler http://bit.ly/1O4h1RG

A new study of five years worth of network and cable news broadcasts shows skewed reporting when it comes to minority groups in the U.S.

While finding a lack of coverage when it came to African Americans and crime--both as victims and as perpetrators--the study saw Muslim groups represented as terrorists 81 percent of the time despite only 6 percent of FBI listed terror suspects in the U.S. being Muslim.

Additionally, Latinos are overrepresented in coverage of undocumented immigrants and crime among immigrant communities. 

The issue of representation in news plays a critical role in how people perceive their communities, how they vote, and how society and lawmakers institute policies

Guest:

  • Travis Dixon, Media Scholar and Associate Professor of Communications at the University of Illinois Ubana-Champaign
Stay Connected
Paul Flahive can be reached at Paul@tpr.org