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general public about what professionals in
the criminal justice system actually do.
Members of fictional criminal investigation
teams often assume the multifaceted role of
forensic technician, police investigator, and
assistant to the district attorney. These
fictional characters are charged with the
complex task of conducting laboratory
analyses of evidence, questioning witnesses,
gathering potential suspects and sources of
evidence, and aiding the district attorney in
securing a conviction. This is an incredibly
unrealistic portrayal of the individuals who
work in the field of forensic psychology,
who typically only assume one of these
roles.

Particularly programs such as CSI also
overstate the ability of hard evidence (also
known as forensic evidence), such as
fingerprints and DNA, to provide evidence
of definite innocence or guilt (Trask, 2007).
They often disregard other components of
the investigative process, such as police
questioning, despite these being equally
valid to establishing guilt (Nolan, 2006). This
over-reliance on forensic evidence, due to
the importance of forensic science being
dramatized by television crime dramas, is
also known as the CSI effect.

The CSI effect can steer courtroom
proceedings towards pro-prosecution or
pro-defense decisions, depending on the
nature of the evidence presented at trial.
Two effects related to this have been
demonstrated by the literature; the
defendants effect and the strong
prosecutors effect (Baskin, & Sommers,
FACT SHEET: crime in the media
Context
1
Media portrayal of crime and criminal justice
has become incredibly widespread in the last
decade, with crime often considered both a
source of news and entertainment. As a
source of entertainment, crime and criminal
justice have emerged as central themes across
various sources of media. Particularly in
television shows, portrayals of crime and
criminal justice can be seen in everything
from courtroom dramas to nightly news
programs. Indeed, the popularity of crime
shows has lead to some of televisions most
enduring series, such as Law and Order and
CSI.

Most individuals do not have any direct
experience with the criminal justice system,
so their only source of information on this
topic is the media. Because of this, fictional
and non-fictional portrayals of the criminal
justice system on television shape and inform
the publics beliefs and attitudes about what
the average criminal looks and behaves like
(also known as criminal prototypes). They
also shape the publics understanding of the
typical process for solving a crime (the
investigative process), and how criminals
should be punished (appropriate sentencing)
(Dowler et al., 2006).
Blurring the lines between fiction and reality,
many crime dramas unfortunately contribute
to misconceptions about how the criminal
justice system works. Indeed, watching crime
shows can lead to unrealistic expectations
regarding both crime and procedural justice.
Crime dramas also serve to confuse the
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Carmen Reid, B.A. student & Julia Shaw, PhD candidate
The CSI Effect
How Crime is Represented

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A European Association of Psychology and Law - Student Society Publication April 2012

FACT SHEET: Crime in the media

Qui ck summary:
Most people have no contact with the criminal justice
system, so they rely on the media to inform them about it
Crime is often represented in unrealistic ways
The CSI effect refers to the biasing effect that inaccurate
media portrayals of forensic evidence can have on jurors
The medias portrayal of crime can foster stereotyping
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3
2010; Cole, & Dioso-Villa, 2007). The
defendants effect presents itself when there
is no forensic evidence. When a jury is made
up of individuals who spend a lot of time
watching crime dramas, jury members are
more likely to find the defendant not guilty
if there is no forensic evidence presented at
trial (Tyler, 2006). This is because jury
members who watch crime dramas lean
towards interpreting non-forensic evidence
as too weak to warrant a conviction. On the
other hand, the strong prosecutors effect
implies that in the presence of forensic
evidence, jurors who watch crime dramas
may be more likely to convict the defendant
than a jury who engages in lower crime
drama viewing, regardless of how good the
forensic evidence actually is.
Portrayals of crime in the media also often
capitalize on racial stereotypes, especially
when reporting on criminal offences by
minority offenders. For example, although
the issue of domestic violence affects a large
number of people throughout Canada,
televised news media frequently portrays it
as exclusively a problem among non-White
communities. In addition to racial
4
stereotypes, portrayals of criminality and
victimization involving minority victims
receive less attention than white victims
(Dowler et al., 2006). These racial images,
along with the drama-based perceptions of
the criminal justice system, further bias the
jury in fundamental ways.

In sum, while providing entertainment
value, crime dramas have unintentionally
cultivated inaccurate conceptions about the
criminal justice system. Such misconceptions
have far reaching implications for jury
decision-making. Crime is often given an
entertaining angle, and investigative
procedures are presented as realistic even
though their presentation is distorted or
misrepresented. It is important for us to be
aware of the lasting effects that media
depictions of crime can have on us, and to
inform ourselves (and those around us)
about the differences between fact and
fiction regarding the criminal justice system.




Conclusion
Fostering Stereotypes


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Where can I get more information?
Bibliography
FACT SHEET: Crime in the Media

1
1. Andrews, D. A., Bonta, J., & Hoge, R. D.
(1990). Classification for effective
rehabilitation: Rediscovering psychology.
Criminal Justice and Behavior, 17, 19-52.

2. Baskin, D. R., & Sommers, I. R. (2010). Crime-
show viewing habits and public attitudes
toward forensic evidence: The "CSI Effect"
revisited. The Justice System Journal, 31(1), 97-
113. Retrieved from
http://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=he
in.journals/jusj31&collection =journals

3. Berns, N. (2004). Framing the victim: Domestic
violence, media, and social problems. New
York: Aldine.

4. Berns, N., & Schweingruber, D. (2007). When
youre involved, its just different. Violence
Against Women, 13, 240-261.

5. Cole, S. A., & Dioso-Villa, R. (2007). CSI and
its effects: Media, juries, and the burden of
proof. New England Law Review, 41, 435-470.
Retrieved from http://newenglrev.com/

6. Dowler, K., Fleming, T., & Muzzati, S. L.
(2006). Constructing crime: Media, crime, and
popular culture. Canadian Journal of
Criminology & Criminal Justice, 48(6), 837-850.


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2
7. Eschholz, S., Mallard M., & Flynn, S. (2004).
Images of prime time justice: A content
analysis of "NYPD Blue" and "Law & Order."
Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture
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8. Nolan, T. W. (2006). Depiction of the CSI
effect in popular culture: Portrait in
domination and effective affectation. New
England Law Review, 41, 575-590. Retrieved
from http://newenglrev.com/

9. Podlas, K. (2009). The CSI effect and other
forensic fictions. Loyola of Los Angeles
Entertainment Law Review, 27(2), 87-125.
Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.lmu.
edu/elr/

10. Trask, T. (2007, April). The CSI Effect:
Popular cultures effect on civil juries. Paper
presented at the American Bar Association
Section of Litigation Annual Conference, San
Antonio, TX. Abstract retrieved from
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ads/file/ Trask%20-%20ABA%20-
%20Popular%20Culture%20And%20Juries.p
df

11. Tyler, T. R. (2006). Viewing CSI and the
threshold of guilt: Managing truth and
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http://www.jstor.org/ stable/20455645