Common Misperceptions: The Press and Victorian Views of Crime.

The article presents a historical study of crime in nineteenth-century Great Britain and compares crime statistics with a frequency analysis of words such as murder, robbery, and violence appearing in the texts of British newspapers, especially "The Times" and "The Manchester Guardian." It explores "New Journalism" and sensationalism in the press and popular literature and considers how such literature swayed popular opinion regarding crime. Other subjects include the early 19th century reform of criminal law and penal policies; the use of both capital and corporal punishments; the codification of criminal laws; Victorian mass media and print culture; and literacy, subscription libraries, and readership of periodicals.