hat they know about violence from [the news]." "'The media [have a] responsibility,'" he said, adding that whereas students ages 12 to 19 have a one-in-2-million chance of being killed in school, 71% of the public thinks it's likely to happen. In addition, he said, juvenile homicides overall have declined by 56%, though 62% of the public thinks juvenile violence is on the rise". (qtd. in O'Brien)
             Most people's perceptions about a supposed increase in youth and school violence are skewed by the mass media's sensationalistic attitudes in presenting incidents such as Columbine and Paducah. Kathryn Montgomery, who works for the Center for Media Education has said that the media has great responsibility in accurately portraying acts of violence: "But Montgomery said this pattern of over-representing certain acts, such as the school shooting in Littleton, Colo., is consistent with other patterns in news of crime and violence. She said that more than two-thirds of coverage of violent crime focuses on youth, although young people are responsible for only about 15% of violent crime." (qtd. in O'Brien)
             Many people would have us believe that we are becoming an ever more violent society, but these opinions are often just that. They are not supported by any hard facts or data. As Paul McMasters points out in his poignant and precise essay:
             "Violence on network television has been declining steadily over the past three years, according to a report released in January by the Center for Communication Policy at the University of California at Los Angeles. Public perception, largely the result of media emphasis, is that almost half of all violent crime is committed by juveniles; in fact, the figure is 19%. Public perception is that violent crime among juveniles is increasing dramatically; actually, it has remained at about 20% for more than 100 years. After a terrifying spike beginning in the '80s, the murder rate among young people declin...