Moral Panic And Media Effects

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Introduction

Any Channel of information can be treated as a Media. The amount of information passed by the media over its influence in our daily life, turned it into a necessity. Opinions may differ! But in reality, no one seems to get away from its powerful fascination of our daily life. It is everywhere around us; in TV shows, on radio, in books, newspapers, magazines, Internet, Advertisements and almost everywhere. You are fed with information's directly and indirectly at every minute. The most essential thing here to understand is, how properly this medium is being used, since it can serve both in construction and destruction of the facts. The role of media in showcasing social issues from early eras to modern time has its own significance, to determine this role, it is necessary to find out, how it is defined and broken down by historians and practitioners. Professor Stanley Cohen, who is considered as one of the 'most inspiring thinkers around the world in criminology and human rights' (LSE, 2013), described a moral panic as:

"A condition, episode, person or group of persons emerges to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests; its nature is presented in a stylized and stereotypical fashion by the mass media; the moral barricades are manned by editors, bishops, politicians and other right-thinking people; socially accredited experts pronounce their diagnoses and solutions; ways of coping are evolved or (more often) resorted to" (Cohen, 1972, p.9).

It is necessary to consider few current and historical examples of moral panic situations to better understand about the term and its effects on the society. In this study; three different case studies are being analyzed from numerous situation and over a period of time from the history. Professor Cohen's influential study about the youth subcultures in the early 1970's, Mods and Rockers highlights the influence of media causing panic in the society.

Mods and Rockers

Cohen identified people who endanger the social cultural values as 'folk devils' in his theory about the media reporting controversy on Mods and Rockers of 1960's. Two British youth sub-cultures joined the movements named Mods and Rockers. These two gangs found their own ways to represent their genres in media and public. Both these groups were bound and determined on causing hindrance, to prove their desire for freedom from traditional norms. The Media coverage of Mods and rockers gang war happened in south coast seaside resorts in 1964, sparked the controversy of the role of media. They hyped and reported negatively; causing public consciousness and worry for the matter at hand. Of the two channels already established, BBC's channel 2 also showed their screen in controversial happening by the time. Newspapers were not able to do much against the dramatic visual story on TV , which significantly showed violent and worrying part of the event happened such as 'mugging' and breaking in to chemist shops . As a consequence family outing to seaside and beaches happened very rarely and the effect of rumors and statements made by police officers and officials made the people even more panic. The never before seen situation overwhelmed the government as more and more of Police forces were called to enforce the law (A Kerry-Ward. (2009). An absolute 'Hegemonic' crisis' as Hall (1980) describes the situation, as the struggle between 'popular' and 'populist' articulations, where the last mentioned point structures which reduce the effects of the resistance between the people and the power bloc.

While Cohen admits that Mods and rockers had some fights in the mid-1960s, he states that they were no different to the 'evening brawls' that occurred between youths throughout the 1950s and beginning of the 1960s, both at seaside resorts and after football games. According to him UK media 'labeled' the mod sub-culture into an adverse symbol of 'delinquent and deviant status '(Cohen, 2011). The deviant amplification theory constructed by Cohen states, it is the process by which mass media, through exaggeration and distortion, actually create more crime and deviance (Cohen, 1972, p27).

Although several authors written about the analysis of Mods and rockers since its release in 1972, Professor Jewkes (2004, p67), believed that several fundamental flaws in the idea of 'moral panics' have yet to be resolved. She listed five 'defining features of moral panics' are crucial in determining this social issue.

Moral panics take place when the media turn a fairly ordinary event and turn it as extraordinary.

The media in particular set in place a 'deviance amplification spiral', through which the subject matter of the panic is considered as a source of moral decline and social disintegration.

Moral panics explain the moral limits of the society in which they appear.

Moral panics take place through periods of swift social change and anxiety.

Younger people are the usual target of moral panics; their actions is ‘regarded as a barometer to test the health or sickness of a society'.

While reviewing collective behavior in their book Social Construction and Deviance, Erich Goode and Nachman Ben-Yehuda , (2009, p 140) recall Cohen theory about moral panic, where he says, "moral panics are a form of collective behavior; as such they are sustained by many collective behavior processes: rumor, gossip, collective delusion, mass hysteria, the conveyance of contemporary, or urban legends and some of the dynamics that sustain behavior during a disaster. The field of collective behavior emphasizes the shifting, volatile, dynamic quality of moral panics".

In our previous example of 'sociological concept' of moral panic which was led by Cohen states, the role of media helps in generating panic. The history of moral panic has its deepened roots throughout the life of mankind. One such case of 'historical example of behavior and response', where panic had occurred was 'Garotting' craze of mid Victorian period (Ian Marsh and Gaynor Melville, 2008).

Garotting

The Generations in the British society, particularly youth groups tend to characterize themselves in criminal and deviant behavior and those were the main 'concerns and fears' of the society. In the study of Juvenile crime and delinquency; Pearson refers to the mid-Victorian period crime of 1850 and 1860s called 'garotting' which involve choking the victim in the course of robbery which could be related to modern day 'mugging'. The re-presentation of 'garotting' by the press media elevated the concerns over the crime, with Punch magazine launching an 'anti-garotte' movement, suggesting the use of a variety rather bizarre anti-robbery devices like spiked metal collars (Pearson, 1983). A letter to The Times show the degree of reaction and panic among the public (Marsh and Melville, 2008) . The reader said as The Times saying;

'On Saturday, the 1st Inst,. When returning home at night, and as usual walking quick, I was, without any warning, suddenly seized from behind someone, who, placing the bend of his arm to my throat, and then clasping his right wrist with his left-hand , thereby forming a powerful lever, succeeded in effectually strangling me for a time, and rendering me incapable of moving or even calling for assistance...whilst a second man easily rifled me of all he could find. I was then violently thrown to the ground, or rather I found myself lying there when I came to my senses... Now, this robbery was committed on one of the most frequented highways out of London, viz., Hampstead-road...and I am convinced that the an application of this human garrote to an elderly person, or anyone in a bad state of health, might very easily occasion death.' (Letter to The Times, February 12, 1851 in ).

Karina Wilson writer and consultant of media studies broken down the stage of moral panics as:

'Occurrence and signification', where the nature of the event will be analyzed against worthy of dramatic coverage .

'Wider social implications' in which connections are made between one event and its effect on the wider range of society, in extending the life of the story with the expert's contribution.

'Social Control', where new laws are made by the consequence of moral panic to punish those 'threatening deviants'.

Moral panics are unpredictable and usually arise without warning with a constrained duration. However; they may have a fundamental cause that makes the panic arise, based upon on the circumstances of each event (Jones, M. And Jones, E, 1999, p144). One such similar circumstance but a gruesome one this time, was happened in 1981, where seven year old boy Adam John Walsh got Abducted.

Adam Walsh Case

Adam Walsh, an American boy who got abducted from a department store in Florida, late found murdered and decapitated. The Television film 'Adam' which depicted the actual story of the deceased boy was believed to be seen by 38 million people, when it got aired, which earned national publicity. The boy's father John Walsh became an advocate for victims of violent crimes and became a prominent activist who hosted television program America's Most Wanted. A nationwide campaign about missing children was boosted by stranger abduction and murder in Florida in 1981, which claimed that 1.5 million children vanished, disappeared or even abducted each year in the USA. The Federal Laws and the system to record Missing & exploited children which came into force after the panic, gradually lost its credibility because of their excessive claims. Public Concern is the main target for most media coverage's. The emotional writing and producing of a normal event with a dramatic one can sell or increase their ratings, but its negative effect on the society, are always forgotten. Studies are used if appropriate, but a reporter will get away from composing a story which is too genuine in nature. Stories involving child abuse has often come under this classification.

This enhanced mass media coverage results in the perception, that the country is encountering an epidemic of criminal activity against children. The media mania surrounding these promoted cases has not only created a ‘fear factor’ among parents and care providers, but also nightmares. It is questionable as to ask whether the occurrence of child targeting has increased or whether the society's improved awareness is a result of elevated media reporting. On the other hand: the fear of child 'abductions and molestations' has awestruck the nation (Fox,2002). Joel Best in his book about Threatened children, stresses three points to find the real point of the claim, Primarily discovering the rhetorical activities of claim makers since, Best (1990, p.41) believe that 'rhetorical decisions' are taken sequentially from available arguments and offering importance to specific ones. Secondly, determining the role of 'public opinion' where; the objective is to identify 'ownership' of a problem, by determining the 'Grounds, Warrants, and Conclusions' of the claim makers (Best 1990, Pp.23-25). And 3, The most salient features of a particular case where the media, so called 'secondary' claim makers - seize upon the novelty and drama of the issue (Best 1990, P.129). Media certainly played its role in creating a moral panic in the past, but could it be compared with today's very modern scenario, where media helped gaining the ground for terrorists.

Significance of 26/11

The event of 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack in India could be viewed as one of the best and recent example of media involvement that became widely criticized. The 'collaborators' sitting in their hideouts across the border were actually watching the live telecast of the event and were given direction to the terrorists via satellite phone. They also came to know about one of the appellant being caught alive from the report which showed in an Indian TV (Ahmed Ali, 2012) . Although the role of media undoubtedly would have created moral panics in the past; this instance uncovers the media; that it is often used as a vehicle to continue a moral panic, more relatively than playing an active role in creating one.

Conclusion

From the Mods and Rockers of 1960 to the Adam Walsh murder case of 1980, or 'Garotting' panic of the Mid Victorian period; the media has long been a main part of the sociological tendency which known as 'Moral Panic'. It is quite questionable, whether the media is actually responsible in creating moral panic and for the changes that have happened; while the charismatic power of moral panic is complicated to define; since they leave less remains. It would have to be estimated from the power of the enthusiasm that generates them.

The range of behaviors and reactions that we consider under the term moral panic lead us to mysteries. Much research has been done to find the exact cause for the same most of it came out with confusion; No matter how the process of 'labeling and deviancy amplification' by (Cohen, 1973) or about the 'collective behavior of social movements' by (Goode and Ben-Yehuda, 1994). All their social theories and practices were well received, but the dilemma to stop this from happening were out of their reach. The actual occurrence, or the significance of the alleged problem has never been reported by the media in their true sense; We the society have to realize how to determine the truth behind it, in that it is important to know the common characteristics of moral panic . Goode and Ben-Yehuda, underscore five main functions to assess the common ground in an event of moral panic , they are: concern, hostility, consensus, disproportionality and Volatility (Goode and Ben-Yehuda, 1994, p. 41, cited in Linn and Jones, 1975, p. 60).

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