Marxist/Neo Marxist Approach

Question 1

Hall et al

Answer 1

• Moral panics are a way of distracting people as it masks the real social problems of society
• Moral panic benefits capitalism and they argue that the ruling class defines what is deviance and therefore decide who the folk devils are
• incidences gave the ruling class a scapegoat to distract attention from the real crisis
• They argue that the black mugger symbolised a threat to society which then caused a divide in the working classes which drew attention away from the truth