Do you believe that the world was a non-violent place before the growth of media? If yes, let me tell you that historical evidences clearly state the brutal acts of violence by rulers who believed in imperialism! The belief that the crime rate is proportional to the exposure to violent stories is false, as the rate of crime has always been fluctuating, but the reporting of stories of violence by the media, has always been on the rise. So, it is very difficult to establish a relationship between the two. People who have propounded, that media has influenced the crime rate, are biased. I won’t say that such people have an agenda to shadow the merits of media, but they tend to ignore the fact that the growth of media has led to the awareness among the people. Without the media it would never have been possible to witness and realize the atrocities faced by helpless people all over the world, we could never have taken measures to rescue the victims of violence, if we were unaware of their existence. Media does not highlight violence, it has no intention of glorifying criminals, it simply gives attention to the victims of crime.
Earlier, even if the crime rate was high, the awareness of these crimes was less. People never realized that heinous crimes take place everyday, hence they believed that the crime rate is low, but now, the awareness has increased, and as the media tells stories of violence everyday, thus people perceive that the rate of crime has increased! You should realize, that criminals are often driven by psychological factors and traumatic personal experiences, and it is unwise to say that crimes are a result of the negative influence of media. Be pragmatic, do not believe that one or two acts of insanity and violence, will have a butterfly effect!
Is media responsible for increasing crime? Well, now you know the answer. Media has the power to inspire, but you cannot blame it for the birth of criminals. Remember, generally motivation leads to crime, rather than inspiration!