[1] In recent decades, graffiti has become an extensive problem, spreading from the largest cities to other locales. Despite the common association of graffiti with gangs, graffiti is widely found in jurisdictions of alli sizes, and graffiti offenders are by no means limited to gangs.
2] Because of its rising prevalence in many areas - and the high costs typically associated with cleanup and prevention - graffiti is often viewed as a persistent, if not an intractable, problem. Few graffiti offenders are apprehended, and some change their methods and locations in response to possible apprehension and cleanups.
[3] As with most forms of vandalism, graffiti is not routinely reported to police. Many people think that graffiti is not a police or "real crime" problem, or that the police can do little about it. Because graffiti is not routinely reported to police or other agencies, its true scope is unknown. But graffiti has become a major concern, and the mass media, including movies and websites glamorizing or promoting graffiti as an acceptable form of urban street art, have contributed to its spread.
What effect does paragraph 1 have on readers?
It makes readers aware of the fact that graffiti is harmless.
• It lets readers know that their assumptions about graffiti might be wrong.
• It makes readers aware of the constant efforts to discourage graffiti in communities.
• It lets readers know that they should be looking for graffiti in their own neighborhoods.