Victims or perpetrators

The object of this study is the content present in the journalistic discourses of reports, the subject of which is linked to the issue of adolescence/crime, which were published in 2015 on the electronic news portals Gazeta do Povo and Paraná Online. These two portals were chosen because they were the most accessed by Paraná residents in 2015. These portals were collected using predetermined key terms (adolescents in conflict with the law, adolescent offenders and juvenile offenders) that appear as available on the aforementioned electronic portals. The aim of this research was to: analyse the historical elements that permeate the issue of adolescents in conflict with the law in Brazil; reflect on the scenario of crime involving adolescents in contemporary times and on the media’s approach to this issue; identify the content of the media discourses broadcast on the electronic portals most accessed by Paraná residents in 2015; analyse the existence of stigmatising or stereotype-building elements in the media discourses.