Analysis of the Current Print Media Coverage of Domestic Violence in the New York State Area

Media coverage of domestic violence cases has long been a source of concern for those who work to end domestic violence. In order to make stories attractive to readers, it is not unusual for cases to be sensationalized by reporters who have a limited knowledge of the dynamics of domestic violence. The New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence (OPDV) is an executive level state government agency that was created by a provision of the New York State Executive Law in 1992, and the mission of OPDV is to reduce domestic violence in New York State by improving the State's local response to and prevention of domestic violence, ensuring that everyone can feel safe in their personal relationships. The three main objectives of this Capstone project are to research and analyze current print media coverage of domestic violence throughout New York State, conduct a literature review of other jurisdictions? findings, and to make recommendations as to how OPDV could improve the State's media coverage of this issue.