The present study examines how the Japanese media represents foreign criminals with (re)constructing the particular 'frame' of criminal events. The study thereby attempts to demonstrate the following contrast: In reporting crimes by foreigners, 'media frame' often emphasizes "who" commits the crime, whereas in reporting crimes by the Japanese, it makes other factors more noticeable, e.g., "what" was stolen.
The data for the study are the articles of one of the major Japanese domestic newspaper,
Yomiuri-Shiunbun (
The Daily Yomiuri). The study pays a special attention to a variety of compound nouns of
settou-dan (=theft-group), appearing in headlines, and investigates the relationship between the structure of the compound nouns and the focus of news. The result demonstrates that when the members of
settou-dan are non-Japanese, frequently, the structure of the compound nouns of
settou-dan emphasizes the identity and/or attributes of the criminals, portraying these specific national or ethnic groups as the actor of the crime.
View full abstract