Folk devils and moral panics : the creation of the Mods and Rockers

'Richly documented and convincingly presented' -- New Society Mods and Rockers, skinheads, video nasties, designer drugs, bogus asylum seeks and hoodies. Every era has its own moral panics. It was Stanley Cohen’s classic account, first published in the early 1970s and regularly revised, that brought the term ‘moral panic’ into widespread discussion. It is an outstanding investigation of the way in which the media and often those in a position of political power define a condition, or group, as a threat to societal values and interests. Fanned by screaming media headlines, Cohen brilliantly demonstrates how this leads to such groups being marginalised and vilified in the popular imagination, inhibiting rational debate about solutions to the social problems such groups represent. Furthermore, he argues that moral panics go even further by identifying the very fault lines of power in society. Full of sharp insight and analysis, Folk Devils and Moral Panics is essential reading for anyone wanting to understand this powerful and enduring phenomenon. Professor Stanley Cohen is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics. He received the Sellin-Glueck Award of the American Society of Criminology (1985) and is on the Board of the International Council on Human Rights. He is a member of the British Academy. "Mods and Rockers, skinheads, video nasties, designer drugs, bogus asylum seeks and hoodies. Every era has its own moral panics. It was Stanley Cohen's classic account, first published in the early 1970s and regularly revised, that brought the term 'moral panic' into widespread discussion. It is an outstanding investigation of the way in which the media and often those in a position of political power define a condition, or group, as a threat to societal values and interests. Fanned by screaming media headlines, Cohen brilliantly demonstrates how this leads to such groups being marginalised and vilified in the popular imagination, inhibiting rational debate about solutions to the social problems such groups represent. Furthermore, he argues that moral panics go even further by identifying the very fault lines of power in society. Full of sharp insight and analysis, Folk Devils and Moral Panics is essential reading for anyone wanting to understand this powerful and enduring phenomenon"-- Provided by publisher Cover ......Page 1 Title page ......Page 4 MORAL PANICS AS CULTURAL POLITICS - INTRODUCTION TO THE THIRD EDITION......Page 7 1. DEVIANCE AND MORAL PANICS......Page 46 2. THE INVENTORY......Page 66 3. REACTION: OPINION AND ATTITUDE THEMES......Page 92 4. REACTION: THE RESCUE AND REMEDY PHASES......Page 125 5. ON THE BEACHES: THE WARNING AND THE IMPACT......Page 207 6. CONTEXTS AND BACKGROUNDS: YOUTH IN THE SIXTIES......Page 246 APPENDIX: SOURCES OF DATA......Page 279 I. GENERAL, THEORETICAL, HISTORICAL......Page 286 II. MASS MEDIA AND MORAL PANIC......Page 288 III. APPLICATIONS AND CASE STUDIES......Page 289 NOTES AND REFERENCES......Page 294 GENERAL INDEX......Page 312 AUTHOR INDEX......Page 325 Humanities Cover 1 Title page 4 MORAL PANICS AS CULTURAL POLITICS - INTRODUCTION TO THE THIRD EDITION 7 1. DEVIANCE AND MORAL PANICS 46 2. THE INVENTORY 66 3. REACTION: OPINION AND ATTITUDE THEMES 92 4. REACTION: THE RESCUE AND REMEDY PHASES 125 5. ON THE BEACHES: THE WARNING AND THE IMPACT 207 6. CONTEXTS AND BACKGROUNDS: YOUTH IN THE SIXTIES 246 APPENDIX: SOURCES OF DATA 279 SELECTED READING LIST 286 I. GENERAL, THEORETICAL, HISTORICAL 286 II. MASS MEDIA AND MORAL PANIC 288 III. APPLICATIONS AND CASE STUDIES 289 NOTES AND REFERENCES 294 GENERAL INDEX 312 AUTHOR INDEX 325