MORE MEDIA STUDIES HAVE CONCERNED NEWSPAPERS THAN TELEVISION. RESULTS INDICATE THAT A TYPICAL METROPOLITAN NEWSPAPER USES ABOUT 5 TO 10 PERCENT OF ITS SPACE FOR CRIME NEWS, WITH MAJOR EMPHASIS ON VIOLENT CRIME AND MINIMAL ATTENTION TO GENERAL ISSUES SUCH AS CAUSES AND REMEDIES. THOUGH INDIVIDUAL NEWSPAPERS VARY GREATLY IN CRIME COVERAGE, NEWSPAPER COVERAGE IS NOT RELATED TO THE ACTUAL AMOUNT OF CRIME EXPERIENCED. TELEVISION DEVOTES A SIMILAR PERCENTAGE OF ITS NEWS COVERAGE TO CRIME AND FOCUSES MORE ON INDIVIDUAL CRIMES THAN ON OTHER TYPES. THE PERCENTAGE OF PRIME TIME SHOWS RELATING TO CRIME WAS MINIMAL UNTIL 1959. A PEAK WAS REACHED IN 1975, WHEN 40 PERCENT OF THE THREE MAJOR NETWORKS' PRIME TIME SHOWS BOTH NEWS AND ENTERTAINMENT DEALT WITH CRIME AND LAW ENFORCEMENT. VIOLENT ASPECTS OF CRIME, CRIMINAL, AND LAW ENFORCEMENT ARE EMPHASIZED. THE LEGAL PROCESS PORTRAYED USUALLY ENDS WITH CAPTURE. POLICE ON TELEVISION ARE MUCH MORE EFFICIENT THAN IN REAL LIFE; THEIR WORK AND CRIMINAL TRIALS ARE NOT REALISTICALLY PORTRAYED. SOCIOLOGICAL STUDIES INDICATE BOTH THAT UNDER SOME CIRCUMSTANCES, VIEWING TELEVISION VIOLENCE INCREASES AN INDIVIDUAL'S CHANCE OF AGGRESSIVENESS, AND THAT TELEVISION VIEWING PRODUCES DISTORTED PERCEPTIONS AND EXPECTATIONS ABOUT CRIME AND LAW ENFORCEMENT. TWO ADDITIONAL PROBLEMS ARE SENSATIONALISM, AS ILLUSTRATED BY COVERAGE OF THE 1977 SON OF SAM ARREST, AND MEDIA COVERAGE OF TERRORISM, IN WHICH THE MEDIA CAN BE MANIPULATED BY TERRORISTS AND MEDIA ACTIVITY CAN THREATEN POLICE OR HOSTAGE SAFETY. AS A RESULT OF THESE PROBLEMS, BOTH NEWSPAPERS AND TELEVISION HAVE DEVELOPED GUIDELINES FOR REPORTING OF SUCH EVENTS. FOOTNOTES AND REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (CFW)