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News judgements: a critical examination of reporting non-convictions for minor crimes

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journal contribution
posted on 2013-06-01, 00:00 authored by Kristy HessKristy Hess, Lisa Waller
This paper considers issues related to the reporting of non-convictions for minor criminal offences. The entry point for the discussion is a content analysis of press court reporting across the Australian state of Victoria that shows that many newspapers report non-convictions. The paper observes that as the practice of reporting non-convictions has extended into digital space, a person the local court decides should not have a black mark recorded against their name can now be named and shamed before a global audience for an indefinite period. 

This paper has two aims: to document the Victorian news media’s practice of reporting non-convictions for minor offences, and to argue that its authority to name and shame those who receive non-convictions should be considered through the lens of media power. It is the second stage in a research project on “naming and shaming” of people who come to the attention of journalists as potential news stories when they appear before the courts.

History

Journal

Australian journalism review

Volume

35

Issue

1

Pagination

59 - 70

Publisher

Journalism Education Association

Location

Magill, South Australia

ISSN

0810-2686

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2013, Journalism Education Association

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