gun crimes
There is a great deal of media stereotyping related to rap music, hip-hop culture and the economically deprived areas in which these art forms were born. Campbell explain,
“ The common sense selection process of news organisations often dictates coverage of ‘negative’ minority news, whiles ‘positive’ stories about progress and success in minority communities tend to be shelved due to what journalists consider a lack of newsworthiness” (C Campbell, 1995, p.30)
Recent growth in gun crime, and gun culture has turned attention to reasons behind this trend. Hip- hop has been an easy target for groups who associate this music scene as a negative influence over those who listen to it.
In 2003 nearly 350,000 people in the USA where victims of murders, robberies or aggravated assaults where the perpetrator carried a firearm (Brady et al, 2004). It was in this year that rapper 50 cent released his first studio and breakthrough album, ‘Get rich or die trying’. The record went to number one in the US and number 2 in the UK. The record sold 11 million copies worldwide. Many critics linked his lyrics with the glorification of gun violence, but as Jay Nordlinger of the national review highlighted 50cent was certainly not the first to rap about such matters, however he does think there is a correlation between rap and guns, stating, “many rappers sing of guns with almost lascivious glee”
Serious explorations of the link between gun violence and rap music are not as common. While the subject is good for alarmist news reports, a serious exploration of the subject would require some understanding of hip-hop culture and the capability to analyze both the statistics and the human elements of the situation. What Rodrigo Bascunan and Christian Pearce’s deliver in the book Enter the Babylon System, is a book-length exploration of the link between urban culture and firearms. “Unpacking gun culture from Samuel Colt to 50 Cents” is written in a documentary style with insight into the
“ The common sense selection process of news organisations often dictates coverage of ‘negative’ minority news, whiles ‘positive’ stories about progress and success in minority communities tend to be shelved due to what journalists consider a lack of newsworthiness” (C Campbell, 1995, p.30)
Recent growth in gun crime, and gun culture has turned attention to reasons behind this trend. Hip- hop has been an easy target for groups who associate this music scene as a negative influence over those who listen to it.
In 2003 nearly 350,000 people in the USA where victims of murders, robberies or aggravated assaults where the perpetrator carried a firearm (Brady et al, 2004). It was in this year that rapper 50 cent released his first studio and breakthrough album, ‘Get rich or die trying’. The record went to number one in the US and number 2 in the UK. The record sold 11 million copies worldwide. Many critics linked his lyrics with the glorification of gun violence, but as Jay Nordlinger of the national review highlighted 50cent was certainly not the first to rap about such matters, however he does think there is a correlation between rap and guns, stating, “many rappers sing of guns with almost lascivious glee”
Serious explorations of the link between gun violence and rap music are not as common. While the subject is good for alarmist news reports, a serious exploration of the subject would require some understanding of hip-hop culture and the capability to analyze both the statistics and the human elements of the situation. What Rodrigo Bascunan and Christian Pearce’s deliver in the book Enter the Babylon System, is a book-length exploration of the link between urban culture and firearms. “Unpacking gun culture from Samuel Colt to 50 Cents” is written in a documentary style with insight into the