Volume 10, Number 8

1996 Murder Statistics:                                     
TV Coverage Down, Murder Rate Up Slightly

IN OUR ANNUAL COMPILATION OF murder stories reported on national television news, we found that for the first time in four years coverage of murder has gone down. This is somewhat counter-intuitive since murders in Canada were up 6 percent in 1996. According to Statistics Canada, "Police reported 633 homicides, 45 more than in 1995." Statistics Canada notes that part of this growth in the number of murders was due to an increase in multiple-victim homicides, such as the Vernon murder last spring.[Statistics Canada, "Homicide in Canada, 1996," The Daily, July 30, 1997] This finding, however, is consistent with our overall results that television news does not accurately reflect changes in the actual murder rate (figure A).


Bernardo, Simpson create bulge in coverage

The high profile and notorious murder cases and trials of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka and that of American football player O.J. Simpson were responsible for the peak in attention to murders on Canadian television news in 1994 and 1995. Although the heightened attention had waned considerably by 1996, attention to these notorious murders and to Clifford Olson accounted for 8 percent of CBC and 17 percent of CTV attention to murders in 1996. This is a significant decline from the 18 percent of CBC and the 45 percent of CTV attention paid to these specific murder cases in 1995.

Click here to view Figure A -Television Coverage of Murder, 1989-1996

Newspapers provide substantially more attention to murders than television

This year's study was expanded to include selected local daily newspaper attention to murder in Canada. Four newspapers-the Calgary Herald, the Ottawa Citizen, the Vancouver Sun, the Toronto Star-provided an average of 1,389 stories on murder in 1996, with the highest coming from the Calgary Herald with 1,667 murder stories and the lowest from the Ottawa Citizen with 1,091 stories.

On CTV and in the four daily newspapers examined, the bulk of murder stories focused on incidents outside of Canada. Forty-one percent of CTV, 40 percent of the Calgary Herald, 35 percent of the Vancouver Sun, 28 percent of the Toronto Star and 44 percent of the Ottawa Citizen's coverage on murder in 1996 was about murders beyond Canada's borders. In contrast, on CBC, just 23 percent of murder coverage focused on homicides in foreign countries. These crimes included incidents from as far away as Africa or the Middle East to crimes committed in the US. Often the cases reported from the US would focus on Canadian victims of murder, such as Canadian tourists in Florida who were victims of random crime (figure B).

Click here to view Figure B-Television Coverage of Murder, 1996

Television gives more attention than newspapers to random murders

Statistics Canada reports that in 1996, almost 9 in 10 victims of solved murder cases knew their assailant. The fact that murders are more likely to be committed by someone known to the victim rather than a stranger was not fully reported by the media.

CBC was the worst offender for over-emphasizing random murders (see figure B). On CBC, 16 percent of murder stories centred on cases of random murder, while cases where the victim knew the assailant constituted slightly less coverage, at 14 percent.[As figure B shows, notorious murders, historical/statistic reports, legislation, and unsolved murders accounted for the remaining 70 percent] All other media analyzed gave more attention to acquaintance or spousal murders than to random murders. CTV gave five percent more attention to acquaintance murders than random murders. In the newspapers, murders where the victim knew the assailant comprised 29 percent of the coverage, while random murders accounted for 11 percent of the coverage (figure C).

Click here to view Figure C-Newspaper Coverage of Murder, 1996


One explanation for this difference is that newspapers are focused on local issues and, because of that, will profile the murders committed in their communities. Since the majority of murders in Canada are domestic or acquaintance-related, it makes sense that they would be profiled more in local newspapers than on national television.

Calgary Herald and Ottawa Citizen provide the most murder stories

Despite the fact that coverage of murders in Canada has gone down on national television news, Canadians still receive a substantial amount of murder news from the higher circulation local newspapers. There was an average of 115 stories about murder reported in the four local newspapers of the major metropolitan cities every month last year. Therefore, it is not surprising that CTV News and Angus Reid report that most Canadians believe crime in their communities is on the rise.[Chad Skelton, "Most Canadians believe crime is rising, poll shows," Globe and Mail, July 28, 1997, p. A6.]

The Calgary Herald and Ottawa Citizen provided the most murder coverage relative to the respective murder rates in those cities. There were 12 murders committed in Calgary in 1996, and the Calgary Herald printed 716 stories on domestic murders or murder trials (this figure excludes stories on murders that occurred in foreign countries, notorious killers, and general statistics). The Ottawa-Hull region had 17 murders last year, and the Ottawa Citizen reported 459 Canadian murder stories.

To place these figures in context, we calculated a murder story rate (figure D). While the murder rate in Calgary is 1.41 per 100,000 population, the number of murder stories in the Calgary Herald per murder per 100,000 population (the murder story rate) is 7.26. The murder rate in Ottawa-Hull is 1.64, but the murder story rate of the Ottawa Citizen is 2.67. In contrast, although Vancouver has a relatively high murder rate of 2.97, the Vancouver Sun provided a murder story rate of only 0.58. Similarly, the Toronto Star had a murder story rate of 0.273 even though the murder rate in Toronto was 1.79.

Click here to view Figure D-Murder Rate Compared to Murder Story Rate


In other words, the Calgary Herald was 13 times more likely than the Vancouver Sun and 27 times more likely than the Toronto Star to report on murder. This despite the fact that there were more murders committed both relatively and absolutely in the latter two cities than in Calgary. It is not surprising then, that the same Angus Reid survey mentioned above on perceptions of crime found that those polled in the four Western provinces said crime was at the top of their list of chief community concerns.

-Lydia Miljan

Summary of Murder Statistics, 1996

Television Coverage Down: Murder Rate Up Slightly in 1996.

In our annual compilation of murder stories that were reported on national television news, we found for the first time in four years that murder coverage has dropped. This is despite Statistics Canada figures that show murders in Canada increased slightly in 1996. However, this finding is consistent with our overall results that television news does not accurately reflect changes in the actual murder rate. The high profile and notorious murder cases and trials of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka and that of American football player O.J. Simpson were responsible for the peak in attention to murders on Canadian television news in 1994 and 1995.

Newspapers Provide Substantially More Attention to Murders than Television.

This year's study was expanded to include selected local daily newspaper attention to murder in Canada. Newspapers provided an average of 1,389 stories on murder in 1996 with the highest coming from the Calgary Herald with 1,667 murder stories and the lowest with the Ottawa Citizen with 1,091 stories.

Television Gives More Attention to Random Murders than Newspapers.

Statistics Canada reports that almost 9 in 10 victims of solved murder cases in 1996 knew their assailant. CBC gave more attention to random murders than did the other media outlets analyzed. Sixteen percent of CBC's coverage focused on random murders compared to 14 percent coverage of murders where the victim knew the assailant. All other media analyzed gave more attention to acquaintance or spousal murders rather than to random murders.

Who Called Whom What in the 1997 Federal Election Campaign

LEADERSHIP HAS BEEN A significant issue in Canadian election campaigns for the better part of the last 50 years. Scholars note that the attention paid to political leaders has risen steadily with the evolution of television news as a prominent source of information. [Fred Fletcher, "The Mass Media in the 1974 Canada Election," in H.R. Penniman, ed., Canada at the Polls: The General Election of 1974, Washington, D.C.: American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 1975, p. 272] The emphasis on party leaders can be observed almost daily in the language of politics. Lawrence Leduc observes, "even issues and policy questions are frequently personalized and associated with the leaders." For example, there are the neutral descriptions that identify the leader of a particular government, such as the phrase "the Chretien government." Guilt by association is a common technique employed to make a policy seem less attractive. Typically, opposition parties will invoke an unpopular leader's name when discussing a policy they oppose in the hope of linking the targeted policy with the disliked public figure in voters' minds. During the 1988 federal election, the NDP and Liberal parties frequently disparaged the free trade agreement, labelling it the "Mulroney trade deal" [For example see November 13, 1988, CTV News where John Turner labels the Free Trade Agreement the "Mulroney trade deal."]

Although media analysts tend to emphasize the role of the media in setting the political agenda, the role of the party in this equation should not be downplayed. According to W.C. Soderlund and his colleagues, "The media reported on what the political parties had to say, rather than on the underlying structural problems of the country." [W.C. Soderlund, W.I. Romanow, E.D. Briggs, and R.H. Wagenberg, Media and Elections in Canada, Toronto: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1984, p. 56] Another research team headed by Richard Johnston of the University of British Columbia analyzed the 1988 federal election and concluded that the three traditional parties-the Liberals, Progressive Conservatives and the NDP -colluded on the issue of national unity. That is, they all took a middle ground approach, carefully avoiding discussions of national unity. [R. Johnston, A. Blais, H.E. Brady, and J. Crete, Letting the People Decide: Dynamics of a Canadian Election, Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1992, pp. 106-7]

In 1997, with the Reform and Bloc Quebecois parties playing prominent roles, collusion on national unity was unattainable. Reformers, much to the ire of the other English language-based parties, brought up national unity almost daily. Rather than enabling the Reform Party to discuss substantive issues of national unity with the other parties, this approach made Reform the object of ridicule and hyperbole. Indeed, the response of the traditional parties was to impugn the motives of the Reform Party leader to ensure that the media characterized the Reform perspective as extreme or radical.

This issue of On Balance examines how the various party leaders were characterized in media reports. The parties have a great deal of influence on how leaders from opposing parties are depicted in the media. However, it is ultimately the media itself that decides which characterizations it is going to report. Forty-five percent of CBC's and 60 percent of CTV's descriptions of the leaders originated from partisans, that is, party members, candidates, MPs, and other persons involved within the apparatus of political parties. To discern how leaders were depicted by other parties and by national television news we examine the positive and negative evaluations of the leaders and the sources of those viewpoints. In this regard, we will explore not only how Preston Manning and the Reform Party were criticized for broaching the sacrosanct national unity issue, but also how other leaders were portrayed by the media.

Name-calling a popular weapon in election strategies

On CTV all the leaders were subjected to mostly negative references. On CBC, only Conservative leader Jean Charest and NDP leader Alexa McDonough received more positive than negative labels. Seventy-one percent of CBC and 69 percent of CTV's labels of the leaders were unfavourable. (See figure E.)

Chretien portrayed as old and unfit to lead

Prime Minister Jean Chretien, who during the last campaign was portrayed as a seasoned leader, emerged from the recent campaign with his image tarnished. [See "Election '93: What Role Did Television Play in the Outcome?" On Balance, vol. 6, no. 9] While Liberal Party loyalists such as Finance Minister Paul Martin praised Chretien on CTV as one of the great prime ministers, both national networks offered sources that were highly critical of the prime minister. Negative remarks such as "the old man from Shawinigan" were over four times as likely on CBC and three times as likely on CTV to be provided than positive labels of the prime minister. On CTV, even some of the positive labels were not altogether complimentary. Two of the 9 positive statements on CTV were only marginally so: one might argue that "hardly old and tired" are defensive in tone rather than exuding praise.

Labels about Chretien on both networks centred on three issues: age, competence, and national unity. The Prime Minister was typically called "old," "tired," "too slow," "credible," "competent," "disappointing," "unsure of himself," "in hiding," "the only leader not ready to finish the French language debate," and "disconnected from Quebec."

Charest receives most number of positive evaluations on both networks

The portrayal of Jean Charest during the election contrasted starkly with Jean Chretien's treatment. On CBC, Charest was more frequently described using positive rather than negative terms. On CTV, although the negative labels outnumbered the positive ones, he nonetheless received more accolades than any leader on that network. Fourteen percent of the statements about all the leaders were favourable to Charest. Jean Charest was frequently portrayed as an intelligent, sincere individual desirous of saving Canada.

CBC reports described the PC leader as "smart," "active," and "credible." On CTV, positive comments included such glowing references as "a real contender in Quebec," "the guiding light," "prime ministerial," "a leader with vision," "capturing the imagination of the country," and "the only leader who can keep the country together."

Negative evaluations of Charest on CBC described him as "a small-time politician," lacking convictions, "competing for control of the far right," and using "a double language." Similarly, on CTV, critical labels applied to Charest were: lacking "moral authority," "too programmed," "a smooth-talking Louisiana politician," "shifty-eyed," and a "bullfrog."

Manning attacked over national unity

The issue of national unity, which was well in the background in the early days of the campaign, grabbed the spotlight during the latter part of the campaign. Reform Party leader Preston Manning pierced the collusive silence observed by the traditional parties on national unity by promoting his "ten equal provinces" model rather than the traditional "two founding nations" concept of Canada. Needless to say, Manning paid dearly for it in terms of labels and epithets hurled at him.

As with Jean Chretien, labels describing Manning were four times as likely on CBC and three times as likely on CTV to be negative as positive. Manning, however, earned a special distinction: of all the party leaders, he received the greatest number of negative labels. Twenty-nine percent of CBC and 23 percent of CTV's labels of the leaders were critical of Manning (figure E).

On non-unity issues, CBC broadcast references to Manning that included but were not limited to "extremist," a brown shirt, goose-stepping, "ultra right-wing," "crass," "one of the results of the Mulroney era," and "the head of a party often accused of having too many insensitive white guys."

For violating the unspoken rule against discussing national unity, on CBC Manning earned the favourable description "the father of a new Confederation" but also picked up the unfavourable epithets "the national unity gunslinger," "preparing for the split-up of the country," "a political arsonist," "expressing an ethnic-based nationalism," "appealing to the worst in human nature," "anti-Canadian," and "sinister." After being positively described on CTV as "very strong" and "the only leader willing to talk about Quebec," Manning was then attacked variously as "slow to discipline racist MPs," "immature," "ultra right-wing," goose-stepping, and a "warmonger."

Even Manning's mental health was called into question during the networks' coverage of the campaign. Jean Charest's powerful diction and imagery helped to create a picture of Manning as a bizarre, unbalanced figure. The Reform leader was presented as insane, disturbed, dangerous, perhaps even criminal, as in Charest's "like a political arsonist" simile. The apparent assault on Manning seems consistent with the collusion observation of Johnston and his colleagues; since the parties do not want to discuss national unity, they attack Manning ferociously, denouncing him in the strongest language.

McDonough called few names on networks

Although the other party leaders largely avoided labelling NDP leader Alexa McDonough, the labels she garnered were frequently positive. Of CTV's 5 labels, 2 were positive and 3 were negative, while of CBC's 10 labels, 7 were positive and just 3 were negative.

CBC referred to McDonough as "a woman of influence," "witty," "articulate," and "confident." All 3 CBC negatives pertaining to the NDP leader originated from Liberal Industry Minister John Manley, who characterized McDonough in the May 6 broadcast as someone whose "bad math" might make her good intentions "dangerous."

CTV had very little to say about McDonough. Of the 5 labels on that network, 2 were positive and 3 were negative.

Duceppe criticized by English television journalists

Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe was four times as likely on CBC and three times as likely on CTV to be negatively as positively labelled.

Both networks appeared to exhibit a demonstrable anti-Bloc Quebecois reporting stance. Unlike their treatment of other party leaders, English-language journalists did not shy away from attacking Duceppe directly, often using strong language. CBC journalists called Duceppe "not popular," "not well known," "embarrassed," "weak," "hesitant," "gaffe-prone" and a "big loser." CTV joined in criticizing the BQ leader. That network portrayed Duceppe as "self-destructing," "permanently recovering," "defensive," and "inexperienced."

-Matthew Vadum

Local TV News in Canada Scores High on Information, Education; Far Less Sensational than US TV News

THE LEAD STORIES ON LOCAL TV news shows in Canada are less sensational, provide more substantive news, and are far less likely to focus on crime than those on local US stations. TV news "leads"-the first story of each newscast-have been traditionally reserved for the most important news item of the day. On 44 local television supper-hour newscasts aired across Canada on July 25, 1997, local TV news leads focused primarily on politics and business, accounting for one-half of the lead stories. In the US, meanwhile, a similar study [Rocky Mountain Media Watch surveyed 100 local US television newscasts on February 26, 1997. The findings are published in Paul Klite, Robert A. Bardwell and Jason Salzman, "Baaad News: Local TV News in America," Denver, Colorado, 1997.] found that politics and business was the subject of just 10 percent of American local TV news leads.

Crime was the dominant theme on American local TV news leads, accounting for 59 percent of lead items according to the 100 US newscasts surveyed by Rocky Mountain Media Watch. In Canada, crime constituted just 23 percent of TV news leads. Accidents and disasters were also more prevalent in US leads than in Canada (18 versus 14 percent).

In total, news reports portraying the world as crime ridden and chaotic accounted for over 70 percent of US leads, twice the rate of leads on Canadian TV news. American stations led with an explosion, high school brawl, or fire, even if there were no serious injuries. This trend was not observed on local Canadian TV newscasts.

Soft news-specifically, human interest stories, entertainment, and celebrity news-led US news more than twice as often as it did Canadian news. On the day of the study, two Canadian stations began their broadcasts with soft news: Global's "First News" from Toronto led with a story about US comedian Bill Cosby, and TQS's "Le Grand Journal" from Quebec led with the German Grand Prix. On US local television news, soft news was the subject of 10 percent of lead stories and included "Rock band KISS tickets went on sale," "Women go overseas for plastic surgery" and "Child actress fired from 'Annie' musical."

Based on this preliminary study, local Canadian TV news broadcasts appear to be far more civic-minded than their US counterparts. Most American stations lead their news with an emotionally-charged story, whether a murder or a miraculous birth, while in Canada newscasters appear to be more concerned with reporting issues they believe to be relevant to their local communities, such as political wranglings, education, and business news.

-Kate Morrison

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Last Modified: Wednesday, October 20, 1999.