I often hear claims like this, such as about catalytic converter theft, and I think: that happens back home in Midwest, rural Iowa. Des Moines, Iowa has a similar crime rate to San Francisco! There aren't order of magnitude differences between my small home town, where I was born, or any other town I could find.

Don't let news reports overwhelm your availability heuristic. If crime rates are roughly similar everywhere, but some cities are more dense yet share a common news or media environment, what does that suggest?