Article Media, Gender, and Fear of Crime

Few studies have examined how the intersection of gender and race/ethnicity may manifest dif-ferences in the effects of crime-related media on fear of crime. This study examines the relationships between various forms of crime-related media on fear of crime with a sample disaggregated by gender to ascertain if crime-related media consumption works differently for women and men. Race/ethnic differences within gender were also examined. Only slight differences between men and women were found and differences across race/ethnicity within gender groups were minor. Therefore, despite the prevalence of White female victims in crime-related media, media messages of risk, and fear seem to influence viewers similarly regardless of gender or race, providing additional support for cultivation theory and mainstreaming effects. Keywords social constructions of crime/justice, crime/delinquency theory, gender and crime/justice, other, race and crime/justice, othe