Young People and Moral Panic SOCI 0067 Crime

Young People and Moral Panic SOCI 0067: Crime and the Media Lecture 9 Dr. L. Cho, Ph. D E-mail: Lifcho@gmail. com DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

What is Moral Panic? l l l Public reactions to individuals whose behaviour threatens dominant values and culture Media plays central role in facilitating dominant group’s outrage Reaction disproportionate to perceived threat

Why Study Moral Panic l l Happens all the time It has become essential part of political process and elections Analyze how power works: the press, pressure groups, politicians, police, public How and why some public policies emerge

UK Moral Panic Model: Stan Cohen Folk Devils and Moral Panics (1972) l l Studied clashes between two groups of young people called ‘Mod and Rockers’ Media’s role in developing a ‘deviancy amplification spiral’

Cohen: Deviancy Amplification Spiral l l The initial outbreak abnormal behaviour Generated enormous media reaction (newsworthiness) Forced the police to intervene more strongly in subsequent disturbances Increasing numbers arrested Leads to a spiral of increasing police activity and public concern Source: http: //openlearn. open. ac. uk/file. php/1366/formats/print. htm

Moral Panic Informs Social Changes l l Cause of panic and focus (e. g. Ketamine used by young people) Uncertainty and anxiety about the rapid changes in modern life (e. g. legal/illegal immigrants often the focus of moral decline in society) l l Challenges dominant values (HIV/AIDS prompted attack on homosexuality, challenging heterosexuality) Attempts to reestablish moral boundaries (recreational drug use)

Stanley Cohen: Folk Devils and Moral Panic l l l l First recorded conflict of the Mods and Rockers Clacton on Easter Sunday 1964 Seaside Resort Fight broke out Beach vandalised, windows broken 97 people arrested Next day national newspaper headlines: “Wild Ones Invade Seaside – 97 Arrests (Daily Mirror) "Day of Terror by Scooter Groups" (The Daily Telegraph)

Cohen: Folk Devils and Moral Panic l l l Cohen's criticism: media coverage exaggerated and distorted facts Phrases include 'orgy', 'riot', 'siege', and 'screaming mob' were incorporated into the text Exaggeration of the numbers involved Misperception that it is more violent than the facts support Moral entrepreneurs: people who start the panic fearing a threat to dominant social or cultural values Folk devils: people who threatens the social order

Folk Devils: Mods (Modernists) l l Subculture originated in the UK Wore tailored suits and fashion conscious Listened to Beatles, the Who, Rolling Stones Drove scooters

Folk Devils: Rockers (Rock n Roll) l l Biker tough image, wore black leather jackets Listened to rock n roll Working class backgrounds Rode motorbiks

Media Presentation l l l Folk Devils: stylized and stereotypical fashion Moral entrepreneurs: editors, religious groups, politicians emerge as moral authorities Pronounce the problem and offers solutions to cope with “threat”

Examples of Moral Panic l l l 60’s Hippie Culture, Drugs and Sexual Freedom 70’s Young Black Muggers 80’s Missing Children (Joel Best 1990) 90’s Child Abuse (Philip Jenkins 2001) 00’s Internet Predator

90’s Child Abuse l l (Philip Jenkins 2001) Studied the response to child abuse and the moral panics Examined how attitudes, while shifting, have basically remained the same over 100 years

Folk Devil: To Catch a Predator l l Folk Devil become subject of loosely organized but pervasive campaigns of hostility (Perverted Justice) Mass media can get in on the act, creating further controversies To Catch a Predator is a series of hidden camera investigations by the TV newsmagazine Dateline NBC It identifies and detains potential child sexual abusers who attempt to contact minors over the internet

Controversies Around the Show l l l Do shows like these “To Catch a Predator” contribute to moral panic? Is it entrapment? Are the alleged criminals given due process

Moral Panic l l Threat could be “new” Threat could have been around, but suddenly appears as problem Panic passes over, forgotten Some become more serious, long lasting, producing changes in social policy

Moral Outrage Directed at “Subculture” l l Criminals (murderers, drug sellers/buyers, pedophiles, etc. ) Behaviour strays conventional codes of conduct (strikers, protesters) Behaviour or style of dress different from the norm (hippies, rappers) Fail to conform to conventional ideas such as the institution of family

Five Elements of Moral Panic l l l Ordinary >>> Extraordinary Deviance amplification spiral Clarify moral boundaries Occur at a time of social change Youth focused

Element 1: Ordinary >>> Extraordinary l l l Media construct moral panic according to criteria of news value News value: key factors for turning an actual event into news story News value: trend, what has happened will inevitably happen again

News Story Test: “Can My Mother Understand This? ” l l l Simplification through symbolization Names made to signify complex ideas and emotions Word: “Mod” (Modern): becomes symbolic of a status (deviant) Object: Form of clothing (motorbike) signify status and negative emotions What neutral before now has negative connotation?

What word or object was neutral before now has negative connotation in HK? Gay? Rap music? Video games? Internet bar (in China)?

Element 2: Deviance Amplification Spiral l l Moral discourse established by journalists, news editors, politicians, police, interest groups Collectively demonize perceived wrong doer as source of moral decline and social disintegration Set in motion a series (spiral) of events Attention given to deviants leads to criminalization and marginalization

Deviance Amplification Spiral l Interest groups who use the media to make moral statement about group or behaviour Those in power label group as subversive with view to exploit public fear Step in to provide “solution” (“tough on crime”, “ 3 strikes and you are out”)

Deviance Amplification Spiral l Increased attention validates media initial concern Target group feels alienated Politicians and other claims maker demands action to control deviants

Deviance Amplification Spiral l l Society outlaw particular group Negative social reaction escalates Deviants become isolated Become criminally oriented

Spiral of Deviance l l l Occur for a period of weeks, months, never out of control Media interest wanes Media moves on to other issues Folk devil becomes familiar Perceived less as threat Due to new laws or mundane strategies

Time Magazine 3 July 1995 l l Photo of horrified child New study released by Carnegie Mellon, premiere computer science school in the US Source: Marwick, Alice. "To catch a predator? The My. Space moral panic" First Monday [Online], Volume 13 Number 6 (19 May 2008) Available at: http: //www. uic. edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index. php/fm/article/view/2152/1966

Cyberporn Scare l l Study found 83. 5% of online images were pornographic Adult materials available online was more extreme and problematic than in print and video

Cyberporn Scare l l News story gave strong evidence to politicians’ claims that pornography ran rampant on the internet Readily available to children Article prompted nation-wide media interest topic Prompting the introduction of several legislations to tighten control of the internet

Controlling Social Networking Websites and Chat Rooms l l Prohibiting schools and libraries from giving minors access to sites like My. Space Could include educational and useful websites like blogs, Wikipedia, Google Groups, and Yahoo! Cyberporn Panic Led To Technopanic Panic over the uses of new computer-mediated technologies used by youngsters

Exaggerated Data l l l The study results turned out to be largely made up Did not analyze all online images Looked only at adult bulletin boards and places where adult content was prevalent

Internet Safety Technical Task Force l l l Created in February 2008 Attorneys General Multi. State Working Group on Social Networking and My. Space The scope of the Task Force's inquiry was to consider those technologies that industry and end users including parents - can use to help keep minors safer on the Internet Source: Enhancing Child Safety and On-line Technology Report

Findings: l l l No significant finding that kids are being targeted and lured by adult strangers It Happens very rarely Pedophiles are much more likely to be lured themselves by cops staging as kids in sting operations. Study found that widespread sexual harassment, sexual abuse and sexual solicitation of minors does occur- but that it’s far more likely to come from other kids than from predatory adults Another finding is that age verification technology doesn’t really work.

In Sum l l l Child pornography and child abuse are important social issues No data has yet to show that online predators represent an epidemic Preventing minors from using My. Space and other social networking sites is misguided l l l Sensationalized negative coverage of technology frighten parents Prevents teenagers from responsible usage Leads to misguided legislation

Element 3: Moral Panic Clarify Moral Boundaries l l Creates consensus and concern Division between us (decent, respectable, moral) and them (deviant, undesirable outsiders)

Manufacturing Consensus l l l Threat may be real and serious Does not necessarily constitute universal belief Press reports it as if it is a consensus Common underlying message in news: Society is deteriorating, not what it used to be, decline in morals, religions, lack of respect for authority, disintegration of family values Politicians seen as “family doctor” who identify solutions

Manufacturing Consensus l l l Sensitizing and legitimizing process of solidifying moral boundaries Identifying the outsiders Heightening powers of state control

80’s Satanic Ritual Abuse l News coverage on a group of satanists kidnapping children to use them for satanic rituals

Satanic Ritual Abuse l l l Observers claim 50, 000 to 60, 000 children are murdered each year No solid evidence found – FBI reports 25, 000 homicide rate, 500 stranger abducted children still reported missing 1990 -1995 Sexual molestation is a real problem Very rarely take place in daycare centres or organized groups Child pornography rings do exist, but evidence linking to satanism ever found

Moral Panic and Young People l l Young people seen as increasingly troublesome Young people demonized and criminalized Impression that young people are becoming increasingly unruly Behaviour that used to be considered normal adolescent, are seen as problems

Promoting Collective Outrage l l Combined assault by policy makers, police, and media comes to represent the views of the readers Widen gap between deviants and society In turn, this creates social cohesion amongst dominant group Affirms their own morality

Conventional Accounts of Moral Panic l l Emphasize the limits to diversity and toleration in society Confirm authority of those who are judging

Element 4: Rapid Social Change Increase Social Anxieties About Risk l l Society more susceptible at certain times Destabilizes many aspects of life Greater pluralism (individuals have more choices) Aware of new possibilities

Element 5: Young People Target of Moral Panic l l Young people represent the future Behaviour seen as barometer to test health or illness of society Unconventional styles in dress and behaviour get more noticed Resist authority, reject tradition makes adults nervous

Young People Easy Target of Moral Panic l l Represent increased vitality and social mobility Linked to having too much wealth and too little morality Personify change, innovation, experimentation Conduit of all fears in society about change and unknown

Five Indicators of a Moral Panic (Erich Goode and Nachman Ben-Yehuda, 1994)

1. Concern l l l Heightened level of concern over behaviour of certain group Increased concern about the consequences the behaviours may cause for society Concern should be manifested or measurable: public opinion polls, public commentary via media attention, proposed legislation, social movement

2. Hostility: Us vs. Them l l l Increased level of hostility towards group Collectively viewed by the public as an enemy, anti-social, deviant Division is made between ‘us’ – good, decent, respectable folk and ‘them’ – deviant, bad guys, outsiders, criminals

3. Consensus l Majority of people must agree threat is real and serious, and cause by the ‘deviants’ and their behaviour

4. Disproportionality l l Public concern is in excess of what is appropriate Concern not justified by empirical evidence Generation and dissemination of figures are wildly exaggerated Key concept. If cannot determine disproportionality, cannot conclude given concern represents moral panic

5. Volatility l l l In ways, similar to fashion, fad, or craze Erupts fairly suddenly Subsides after a period of time May also lie dormant for a period of time Could reappear from time to time

Four Indicators of Disproportionality l l Figures Exaggerated Figures Fabricated Other Harmful Conditions – 2 equally important conditions but attention paid is vastly greater than paid to another Changes Over Time: attention paid to the condition at one point is vastly greater without any empirical evidence showing the increased seriousness

Critiques of Moral Panic

Problems with Moral Panic l l Deviance – different reaction (corporate raiders versus drug dealers vs pornographic distributors) Morality – Is there still a consensus? Mixed messages now adays Youth & Style – marginalized or multiple identities Audience – Media centered vs audience centered. Do moral panics really create public fear and anxiety?