Have you heard that the occurrence of violent crimes has diminished? Contrarily, if you're relying on right-wing media outlets for your information.
Federal data, collated from 16,334 law enforcement agencies nationwide, revealed a nearly 12% decrease in homicides and non-negligent manslaughters year on year, along with a more than 9% decrease in reported rapes. Total crime dropped by 3%, and property crimes dipped by 2.4%.
This data was published just prior to a contentious presidential election, where crime and security have become significant political talking points. Former President Donald Trump often spins grim and mostly inaccurate narratives about violence, claiming "our crime rate's skyrocketing" and "we have crime-plagued cities like never before." CNN's fact-checks have debunked these assertions.
The comprehensive FBI data, disclosed on Monday, justified these fact-checks and was widely reported by numerous news sources, including CNN, AP, NBC, and The New York Times. However, this information was largely ignored by pro-Trump media outlets.
Fox News, a leading right-wing media platform, briefly addressed the issue for less than a minute during "Special Report with Bret Baier." During this segment, Baier claimed that the report was flawed because it lacked data from major cities, a false allegation that had been propagated online by Elon Musk and other Trump supporters.
In reality, the FBI reported that every urban agency serving a population of over a million individuals contributed data annually to their system, meaning that large US cities were included in the data analysis. Fox News declined to comment on this matter.
Sister right-wing cable networks, Newsmax and One America News, also stayed silent on the declining crime rates, as documented by the FBI. Similar silence was observed on their digital platforms.
On Monday, the online platforms of Fox News, Newsmax, Breitbart, The Daily Wire, The Gateway Pundit, The Blaze, The Washington Examiner, and The Epoch Times neglected to cover the FBI data showing a decrease in homicides and other crimes. Newsmax even published a story on the report, but it was sourced from Reuters.
The conspicuous omission of this FBI data by right-wing media outlets signifies a growing disconnect between public perception and actual crime statistics. A Gallup survey in November revealed that 63% of Americans considered crime a major issue, despite a significant decrease in violent crime rates since the 1990s.
According to Jeff Asher, a criminal justice analyst and co-founder of AH Datalytics, the lack of such data leads individuals to rely on anecdotes and exaggerated media reports to determine if crime is increasing or decreasing. Social media platforms, which amplify serious offenses, further contribute to this misguided view of crime trends.
Businesses might choose to invest in areas perceived as safe due to the decreased crime rates, as suggested by the FBI data. However, many right-wing media outlets, such as Fox News, Newsmax, and The Epoch Times, failed to report on this positive business-related aspect, focusing instead on alternative narratives about the crime statistics.
