Why Does the Media Have an Obsession with Chicago Violence? (apartments, home)

[prairiestate]

This isn't too surprising. The Orange Line has really gone downhill the last few years. Graffiti from top to bottom, litter, panhandling, aspiring rappers. Of course you never see a CTA employee on a train, let alone a police officer. No wonder people can get away with anything. They spent the whole day riding the trains and realized they would never encounter anyone in a position of authority.

[nightlysparrow]

Naturally, The Onion has its own version of "media obsession":

Environmental Study Finds Air In Chicago Now 75% Bullets | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

[urza216]

Originally Posted by nightlysparrow

Naturally, The Onion has its own version of "media obsession":

Environmental Study Finds Air In Chicago Now 75% Bullets | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

I already posted that. And referenced it in this thread.

The Onion should do an article about a terrified transplant living in a nice Chicago neighborhood on the north side.

[nearnorth]

Originally Posted by FAReastcoast

The difference is there are more news outlets now than 20-25 years ago.

That was kind of my point. Not just more outlets, but more 24-hour news outlets desperate to fill up an entire day of programming, and more click-bait profit-driven online sites. Sensationalism sells better than journalistic integrity, I'm afraid.

[nearnorth]

Originally Posted by UICJohn

Part of me is happy that there is so much attention placed on the crime that is going on in Chicago. Things cannot be fixed if people are not aware of them.

However, on a national level, nothing has really been done to fix them. Therefore, all of the coverage is somewhat pointless. Yes, it is true and unavoidable. It is not part of my daily life as I do not live in any of those neighborhoods. However, it does give the entire nation (and world to a degree) that Chicago is nothing but a gun range which is not the truth whatsoever.

What has the local government done to stop crime? What about the national government? Let's cut funding from programs that really could help those that need the help like in the mental health fields. Or actually real programs that will get the kids get off of the streets?

This is an important point. This is a national problem, not specifically a Chicago problem. Even if we could magically end Chicago's violence overnight, it isn't going to mean much to the dozens of other places with violent crime and homicide rates similar to or greater than Chicago's.

[nearnorth]

Originally Posted by Ralph_Kirk

Murder rate is significantly statisically, but for a news headline it's the raw number that provides the shock value and grabs the eyeballs.

Exactly. But then people who are smart know to dig beneath the shock-inducing headlines to look at the actual data and trends. Dumb people, not so much.

[Craziaskowboi]

Originally Posted by nearnorth

Yep. Between these two things and the history of the Democratic "machine," Chicago is pretty much everything conservatives hate. And, despite their cries of a "liberal media" in the U.S., the major media outlets are owned by major corporations who have pro-corporate agendas first and foremost. They exist solely to make as large of a profit possible for their shareholders, just like any other corporation. There is nothing "liberal" about them.

The conservative media is treating Chicago no differently than the liberal media treated Texas when George W. Bush was president. It's each side's way of saying, "See?! These are the kinds of people who voted this bum into office!"

[nearnorth]

Originally Posted by Gnutella

The conservative media is treating Chicago no differently than the liberal media treated Texas when George W. Bush was president. It's each side's way of saying, "See?! These are the kinds of people who voted this bum into office!"

I agree. The Texans I knew were as embarrassed of Dubya as anyone, but I acknowledge that I was probably exposed to a skewed sample of them. There's also a racism element with Obama that wasn't present with Bush (or any other former president for obvious reasons), but I agree that the general concept is the same-- generalizing the things we don't like about an individual to an entire state.

[chet everett]

Those that claim this is some kind of national problem or some kind of "vast conspiracy" to paint the current administration in an unfavorable light need to get some fresh air.

The facts clearly show that the level of "pain" that is centered in Chicago neglected areas is off the charts -- there are crummy schools, no employment options, horrible options for housing, nearly unchecked flow of street drugs, an overworked / under-involved police force and an epidemic of illegal weapons.

Theese things MIGHT be a priority for a mayor that really cared about them, and a governor that was not too busy giving cash to thugs for votes instead allocating resources to turn things around but the level of incompetence that these two have demonstrated is instead making things worse. I can't blame the Federal governement for not doing more, apparently they have less than a DOZEN ATF agents for the whole region!

[The Villages Guy]

Because it is so severe. Thugs have taken over and no one is doing anything to correct it.