FBI’s Annual Crime Report Misunderstood and Misrepresented by Media

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In an October 2023 article, The Appeal highlighted the FBI’s latest annual report on crime in the United States for 2022. Although crime rates are on a steady decline, messaging from corporate media conveys the opposite, with alarmist headlines announcing “the most dangerous cities in America” and conflating crime rates with single policies or politicians, author Ethan Corey reported. Such attention-grabbing articles don’t tell the whole story—and neither do the statistics themselves, according to The Marshall Project.

The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program obtains data from law enforcement agencies through the newer, more comprehensive National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) and the older Summary Reporting System (SRS).

An October 2023 Stateline article reported that the transition to NIBRS presented challenges for many law enforcement agencies, leading to incomplete and not entirely comparable statistics for 2021 and 2022 crime reports. According to The Marshall Project, “Experts predict that the national crime data is likely to be incomplete for years to come, and will leave more room to politicize crime statistics without concrete evidence.” But data was incomplete even before 2021, as submitting it to the UCR was not mandatory.

The Appeal explained how the FBI has failed to prioritize sexual assault, organized crime, and white-collar crime within the UCR. Moreover, police departments have previously been found to skew their data to make their cities seem safer or to gain more funding. However, that doesn’t make the FBI’s statistics useless—they still highlight crime trends across longer periods and can cast light on racially disparate policing and the use of force. “Crime data can be a valuable tool in this context, but only to the extent that it’s accurate and the public is aware of its shortcomings,” Corey wrote.

As of June 2024, comprehensive coverage of FBI crime statistics and holistic interpretation of them has been scarce. NBC News and USA Today did note that Americans’ perceptions of crime aren’t in line with FBI statistics. Independent sources such as the Guardian and local news media reported in greater depth.

Ethan Corey, “FBI Crime Data for 2022 Is Out. Here’s What You Need to Know,”?The Appeal, October 16, 2023.

Weihua Li and Jasmyne Ricard, “4 Reasons We Should Worry about Missing Crime Data,” The Marshall Project, July 17, 2023.

Student Researcher: Quinlan Stacy (Frostburg State University)

Faculty Evaluator: Andy Duncan (Frostburg State University)