Knowing local crime allows individuals to make informed decisions about their safety landscape and participate in community initiatives. It also fosters a sense of collective responsibility – a necessary component for addressing security risks. However, many property owners struggle to understand the dynamic of local crime patterns and trends. The process of analyzing and deciphering crime statistics can be time consuming and difficult for those not familiar with local data and criminal justice issues.
Using a public facing crime map, community residents can view local law enforcement reporting in real-time. They can customize the map with specific crime types to see events by location or search for a specific event, viewing results on the map or in a data grid. They can also subscribe to daily, weekly or monthly crime alerts that notify them of incidents or changes in reported activity.
Americans who consume local crime news are interested in all aspects of the topic, including underlying causes and broader patterns. However, they are most interested in what officials are doing to address crime (50%), and tips on how to stay safe (47%). Six-in-ten Black Americans express high levels of interest in all aspects of local crime news.
Americans get their local crime news from a variety of sources, including social media (23%), police agencies (31%), neighbors and friends (22%) and locally focused apps like Nextdoor (18%). The Pew Research Center’s analysis suggests that these diverse information sources may help explain why some Americans believe crime is on the rise even when government statistics indicate otherwise.