Media Coverage of Homicide Involving Mentally Disordered Offenders: A Matched Comparison Study

Abstract

Research highlights the distorted nature of print media reporting of both mental illness and homicide. However there are few studies that focus exclusively on the media depiction of homicide perpetrated by mentally ill offenders. The aim of this study was to compare the print media coverage of homicides involving mentally disordered offenders found ‘not guilty by reason of insanity’(NGRI) with a matched sample of homicides involving convicted offenders who did not have a mental illness at the time of the offence. Articles covering twenty cases of NGRI homicide and convicted homicide between 1996 and 2000 in New Zealand were analyzed (N = 207). Coverage of NGRI homicide was more inclined to be highlighted with bold sensationalized titles and photographs; and to attract comments by the friends and relatives of the victims close to the time of the homicide. Furthermore, the past private life of the mentally ill offender was more likely to be revealed and partial blame apportioned to external agencies linked to the event. We conclude that such revelations profile the NGRI offender giving the person a public identity, which assists in etching the event in the public mind.