This is the story @CNN chooses to run when crime rates across the nation are plummeting.
It tells you everything you need to know about the media’s role in stoking public fear of crime.

Domestic violence is a serious problem. And if it is increasing, then it is a cause for concern.

But other serious crime appears to be falling right now. By choosing to focus only on crime increases, CNN is misleading its audience about public safety. https://www.google.com/amp/s/thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/491055-crime-rates-drop-across-the-nation-amid-coronavirus%3famp

It is a longstanding problem that the media reports far more about increases in crime than about decreases in crime.

Countless studies have documented that the public continues to believe that crime rates are increasing even when they have been falling for years,

Public fear of crime is one reason that the U.S. has incredibly punitive criminal justice policies. Public officials worry about being seen as "soft on crime" by a public that mistakenly believes themselves to be in constant danger of falling victim to crime.

When CNN reports on the increase in domestic violence crimes, without mentioning the significant decrease in other violent crimes--like murder and robbery--then their audience is left only with the impression that crime is worse across the board.

It is very important that the public not think the virus is just increasing crime rates.
Elected officials need to be letting people*out* of jails and prisons right now, not putting more people in.
They are unlikely to do that if the media narrative is about a crime spike.

For those who are interested in learning more about the media's role in punitive criminal justice policy, I recommend this article: https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/faculty_scholarship/1617/
And my apologies to those who read this thread as being dismissive towards DV victims. That was definitely not my intent.