Outcomes

Programme

Evidence Model 27/08/2013

Fear of Crime Project Objectives

Most ‘topics’ exist in three ways (to varying degrees )

Media coverage suggests crime & safety has seen an upsurge in anxiety, followed by 2-phases of response

Opportunities Re-frame the language around crime and safety –From ‘battling’ to ‘outsmarting’; adopting a position of balanced realism Manage media negativity –Proactively own the potential the ‘negative’; acknowledge work still to be done; simple visualisation of key positives Adopt a 2-level communications approach playing separately to ‘high’ and ‘low’ crime A more strategic approach to public communications –Avoid inadvertently fuelling anxieties; confident, graphic style Invite and own debate on complex or contentious issues –Social media and more traditional forms of communication

Re-framing the language around crime and safety What’s the observation? The public is not in-step with emergent police and justice techniques and not yet in a position of being reassured. People mostly think in terms of a ‘blunt response’. A language still exists that describes communities as combat zones and uses the language of conflict: –The war on crime –Wining or losing the battle against x This is likely to contribute to a sense of anxiety.

What’s the opportunity? Communication about crime and safety needs to reflect the emergent nature of crime and policing more effectively. Opportunity to present a more ‘balanced reality’ –Accurately reflecting the state of things as they really are, without accelerating anxiety through combative dialogue Re-framing the language around crime and safety

“The war on crime” Smarter Solutions Outsmarting Disrupting criminal activity Intelligence Mapping Evolving

Re-framing the language around crime and safety “If you see crime, report it” “We see crime, We’re on it. You can help” Partnership Working together Help each other

Better management of alarmist and escalatory news reporting What’s the observation? Language used by newspapers is deliberately alarmist and inflammatory. Statistics are mired in complex arguments around policy and politics. Representations of progress are met with scepticism by the media For every statistical marker of progress there is a counter-statistic of ‘failure’. Crime reporting can feed doubts around law enforcement and promote fear of crime. Media use combative, binary language (winning/losing) – reinforcing anxiety.

Better management of alarmist and escalatory news reporting What’s the opportunity? Alarmist and escalatory language of news reporting could be managed better by pre-empting and owning the potential negative counter-points that positive reports may allow. A sense of realism about the progress made and inevitable challenges still to be faced. Acknowledge there will always be disorder and criminality, but that the law will always be in step with changes and keeping a lid on it – as opposed to eliminating it.

Better management of alarmist and escalatory news reporting What’s the opportunity? Make press releases work harder. Highlight the achievement. But take ownership of the potential negative statistic as “work to be done”. By taking ownership of the negative statistics that newspapers focus on you can frame it is a positive, proactive light, acknowledging you are ‘on it’. Simple visualisations of progress made.

Dual strategy to addressing anxiety What’s the observation? Media analysis suggests public anxiety falls into two main groupings: Low level crime and disorder Elicits anger and frustration Anxiety stems from proximity and perceived likelihood Sends ripples through communities (“signal crime”) Can be depicted as ‘feral youth’ – fuelling fear in older people Depicted as random, chaotic and unpredictable, and opportunistic Highly motivated ‘high crime’ Trafficking Drugs cartel ID / credit card fraud Represents slide of society into lawlessness A terrifying world of deeply violent, internationally connected criminals lacking moral codes Creates feeling of hopelessness

Dual strategy to addressing anxiety What’s the opportunity? A single line of approach is likely to either: –Increase local community anxieties by suggesting a dominant law enforcement system, out of touch with ‘day-to-day’ crime. –Provide insufficient confidence that high criminality is being dealt-with, by too much emphasis on community policing. Opportunity to adopt a dual strategy.

A more strategic approach to campaigns about crime and safety What’s the observation? Some campaign materials can contribute to the landscape of anxiety –Identification with ‘victim status’ –Reproducing anxiety-inducing imagery –Inadvertently condoning undesirable behaviour

A more strategic approach to campaigns about crime and safety What’s the opportunity? Ownership of a simple and universal style of communication would allow for ‘balanced reality’ to be conveyed without contributing to anxiety. Non-combative language Economical, abstract images which don’t reproduce depictions of crime Visualised statistics to help people grasp real and relative risk and progress.

Invite and own debate on complex or contentious issues What’s the observation? Progressive policy can be starved of the oxygen of debate. Suffers from immediate blunt classification e.g. hard/soft.

Invite and own debate on complex or contentious issues What’s the opportunity? Invite and own debate. Leverage social media. Extend the notion of dialogue and debate into more traditional forms of communications.

Invite and own debate on complex or contentious issues Campaigns which invite debate or challenge the status quo can be effective for changing attitudes and behaviour on more complex or contentious issues.

Opportunities Re-frame the language around crime and safety –From ‘battling’ to ‘outsmarting’ Manage media negativity –Proactively own the potential the ‘negative’; acknowledge work still to be done; simple visualisation of key positives Adopt a 2-level communications approach playing separately to ‘high’ and ‘low’ crime A more strategic approach to public communications –Avoid inadvertently fuelling anxieties; confident, graphic style Invite and own debate on complex or contentious issues –Social media and more traditional forms of communication

QUESTIONS?

GROUPS Think of an issue: Dominant and emergent themes What language to use and avoid How to own the negatives Visuals to use and avoid How to invite debate