Violent crime is at the lowest in decades in America, but then it is still higher than in most developed nations. But a more worrisome trend has been the creeping in of apps styled as neighborhood vigilantes. These ever-increasingly popular intrusive lifestyle apps have crime and vigilantism as their core subjects. Apps like Citizen and Nextdoor are zooming in popularity if figures are any indication.
Apps like Citizen, Nextdoor, and Neighbors, the last one from Amazon, allow subscribers to view real-time neighborhood crime and alert people nearby. They have become among the most popular media apps in America, going by download figures from both Google Play and App Store.
Nextdoor claims it is the world’s biggest neighborhood social network. It allows you to ask for the best restaurants nearby, buy second-hand furniture, and report stolen cars or bikes. After Nextdoor, it is the turn of Amazon to enter the neighborhood watch fray.
Amazon recently publicized an editorial spot to coordinate news reporting linked to the crime. These services are based specifically around Ring and Neighbors, an attendant app.
Apps Like Nextdoor Fuelling The Narrative Of Increase In Crime And Violence
Neighbor alerts subscribers to local incidents of crime collected from unproven sources. It is mostly filled with videos of thieves making off with online packages and reports of suspicious people at entrances. It boasts of the command of a community to keep its members informed and safe.
Nextdoor has moved up to become the 9th most used lifestyle app in America on iPhones by April last year. this data by App Annie, the mobile analytics and data providers informs that it has moved up from the 27th position in the category of social networking.
Nextdoor has changed the category of its app from lifestyle to social. It has become popular as it perpetuates a false narrative that crime is increasing continuously. Even as Americans begin to think that crime in the country is on the rise, data released both by the Bureau of Justice Statistics and the FBI show that there has been a strong fall in crime in the past quarter-century.
