Moral Panic

Question 1

What is moral panic?

Answer 1

• way of public concern about some imagery threat to society
• due organisational constraints sometimes the news is mis-reported

Question 2

What is false reporting?

Answer 2

• making up stories
• exaggeration, sectionalising or dramatising of specific events

Question 3

What impact do media generated moral panic have? And a02?

Answer 3

1. Deviance amplification spiral - eg: black muggers - media purchased selective stats = black people were more prone criminality than white people = distract that the system is failing
2. The public - could lead to riots - agencies like schools, police and social services agencies in a disproportionately harsher responses eg: prevent - required public sector to look out for people who may engage in terrorism

Question 4

Why do the media create moral panic? New Marxists argument

Answer 4

• gmg argue that it reinforces social values, defining who is normal and what and who should be deemed as deviant
• ensuring values which will be reinforced are those which align with the dominant ideology
• creating moral panic and help newspaper to make money

Question 5

What is the instrumentalist ( Marxists ) view of why the media create moral panic?

Answer 5

• creates distractions for the public and media owners create a divide between people
• to distract the audience as it doesn’t shine a light on the system failing and so social class don’t unite and cause a revolution to overthrow capitalism

Question 6

Evaluations for moral panic?

Answer 6

• Mcrobbin and Thornton = reinforces of news outlets, constant news and competition and choice = audience respond different to moral panic