Abstract
Media content heavily relies on crime reporting, which continues to be of great interest to the public. Over the years, the topics of mental health and gun control have received considerable attention by the media in relation to crime. Specifically, random acts of violence such as mass shootings. These events of mass violence have prompted many researchers to conduct threat assessments and/or profiles in order to prevent future events, however recurring themes have emerged which demonstrate importance of fame-seeking in past shooters. Shooters continue to receive mass media attention following their action, which encourages copycats seeking attention. In this case, the media plays a significant role in reporting mass shooting events. In the aftermath of mass shootings, two themes have emerged in an effort to explain and understand these tragic events: mental health and gun control. This study is a content analysis examining the media portrayal (news articles) of three selected mass shootings, based on the number of casualties and location spreading throughought the United States: Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012; San Bernardino workplace in 2015 and Orlando nightclub in 2016. Specifically, to explore the following two hypotheses: (H1) newspaper coverage of the top three mass shootings will focus on the individual responsibility of the shooter in the absence of a societal issue/mental illness. (Ha) newspaper coverage of the top three mass shootings will focus on the individual responsibility of the shooter in the absence of a political issue/gun control issue. Published articles from three on live media sources, the Los Angeles Times, New York Times and USA Today were retrieved from online databases and used as secondary sources. A collection of 225 news articles were examined. Data were analyzed to determine whether or not the articles were portrayed in light of mental health or gun control. The findings show that the issue of mental health was raised in two of the three shootings, Sandy Hook and San Bernardino. The findings also indicate that all three mass shootings were portrayed in light of gun control, suggesting a significant theme in media portrayal. Overall, mass shootings continue to be portrayed as issues of mental health and gun control, rather than an independent and personal choice.