Moral Panic and media folk devils.

oursework Moral Panic and media folk devils. * Introduction In this study I will first define what a moral panic is, then I will use previous studies from independent sources to find previous opinions and ideas and also what moral panics we have had (and are in the middle of) from the post war period onwards to present day. After this I will conduct my own study on the subject. * Hypothesis. My hypothesis for my study is that most people will agree that moral panics and folk devils are based mostly on rumours and fear influenced by the media. I believe this as many of the previous moral panics are now perfectly acceptable, and also due to media influence linking real life tragedies to other media as a scapegoat, such as shootings in America being influenced by computer games. Also I think that older people will be more concerned with moral panics than the younger generation as they have greater exposure to media, have a lesser interest in the subjects which start panics and have younger relatives and children. * Definition. The phrase moral panic can be defined as The Chambers Dictionary moral panic: the idea that 'a condition, episode, person or group of persons' (Cohen 1972) becomes defined as a threat to 'societal; values and interests' This can be simplified and explained as: When the media or government uses scapegoats to pass on the blame to a minority group or

  • Word count: 9883
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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How does the media represent female bodies?

Sociology Coursework How does the media represent female bodies? My Rationale Aim - I intend to examine how the media represents female bodies. I chose this area of sociology to study because I found the recent debate about the media's portrayal of women and the decision of the Madrid Fashion Week in October 2006 to ban size zero (UK size four) models very interesting. Media empires such as those controlled by the Murdock family and EMAP have become increasingly powerful and their focus on celebrities and their promotion of a western ideal of beauty have only become recent topics of research. Personally, I hold the view that the overemphasis on body size by the media can have a very negative affect on women's body image. This could be a factor in the development of eating disorders and low self confidence in those most vulnerable. As a teenager I have grown up in an era in which celebrity magazines commend slim bodies and ridicule anything that does not fit that image with red circles of shame pointing out any imperfections. However even though I have a strong personal view on this topic I will try to minimise bias when undertaking this study. I have decided to use content analysis as my method because I think it will be simple and effective to do and I can obtain clear results with minimal bias. However unlike interviews it will be difficult to achieve in-depth

  • Word count: 5982
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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How is Crime represented in the Media

How is Crime represented in the Media? In this Coursework I will be discussing, analyzing and evaluating the issue of Crime Represented in the Media. I chose this Specific topic because Crime plays an important part in the media. To me this is the most interesting topic I could discuss, it involves so many questions which I don't know the answers to and so to grasp this topic I will carry out an Investigation, analyzing aspects of Crime and the media such as Over Reporting, Moral Panics and Stereotyping. My aim is to explain the impact of the media's portrayal of crime on the reader and on the general public and how the media portrays crime. I will do this research by carrying out Cross-sectional studies, gathering sociological information perhaps from other sociologists, carrying out questionnaires, interviews, gathering statistics and just looking at different forms of media. I will use different people of different ages to carryout my questionnaires. Before carrying out my research I expect there to be reporting of negative aspects of crime such as rising statistics of certain crimes e.g. knife crime, instead of levels of certain crimes decreasing. Crime is an act punishable by law, as being forbidden by law or harmful to the public welfare. The characteristics of these could be peer pressure, criminals have not been taught the difference between 'right and wrong',

  • Word count: 5008
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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Does violence in the media effect peoples behaviours and opinions?

Contents: * Introduction: page 3 * Context: page 3 * Methodology: page 4 * Evidence: page 6 * Evaluation: page 13 * Conclusion: page 14 Introduction: Violence in the Media has often been criticised for influencing the youth generations to commit more crimes of a violent nature. The ground for these claims is the mass increase in the number of violent programmes shown on television. I intend to study the Media and its effects on violence. This interests me as the Media is portrayed as the sole perpetrator of youth violence and I my study will see whether or not this is the case. This will be a great interest to sociologists and society as a whole as it will any other sources which may relate to crime, such as high rates of unemployment, poor educational facilities and such. The aim of my study is to research people's opinions regarding whether TV violence causes an increase in violent crimes. I also intend to study whether or not these opinions change between younger and older generations and also if parenthood affects people's opinions. To research these aims, I am going to construct and distribute a questionnaire. The reason for doing such is that they are cheap to design and distribute and they collect a large amount of data from a large sample size.

  • Word count: 4506
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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Media and The Sexualization of Young Girls

Robinson Brianna Robinson English 4 Dunfy Media and The Sexualization of Young Girls Introduction Why is it that you walk down the streets now a days and see 13 year olds wearing clothes that could make a seasoned stripper blush? Why do I see 10 year olds wearing more make up than I have ever worn in my 17 years of life? What is causing these little girls to want to be considered “sexy” , To feel the need to have boyfriends and trade in Barbie dolls for push up bras? Media is bashing the idea of sex and the glamour of it all into everything and it’s talking a major effect. Instead of watching Barney, young girls are looking up to the Kardashians, Paris Hilton, and Lindsay Lohan. They’re watching movies where the beautiful girls with the makeup and the flirty personalities get the best opportunities, the Attention of all the guys, and the popularity that so many seek. They see the ads telling us how to be beautiful and what the guys want. The change in behavior of young girls these days is becoming more drastic. We’ve gone from girls covering every part of their body in fear of being called “easy” or “loose”, to showing up in school with miniskirts and belly shirts. The way the sleazy girl dressed in old movies is similar to how the “good” girls dress today. The message that girls are receiving these days are more confusing than ever. Although

  • Word count: 4349
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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To what extent do the media effects an individual's self-identity?

Context I have decided to look at to what extent the media affects an individuals self-identity. I am directly concerned with how the media affects young women within today's society, particularly through the use of gender stereotyping within young women's magazines, mainly through articles and advertisements. Here, the ideas and beliefs already created by the media are useful to advertisers because they are socially accepted ideologies. They know that they will influence women. It has been stated in the past that it is these media interpretations of 'The Perfect Woman' that have been the cause for so many women becoming increasingly pressured into looking good and so dieting, keeping fit etc. This can, in extreme cases lead to serious psychological diseases such as anorexia and bulimia, where one of the main causes has been identified as social pressure. I am going to study this as, being a young woman in modern society myself, I have a very personal interest in this topic. Through conducting this research, I aim to prove my hypothesis that 'women are stereotyped in the advertising media, mainly through the use of supermodels and celebrities and made to feel they have a social duty to look good' (for men). In order to go about proving my hypothesis, I am going to conduct a content analysis on women's magazines available on the current market. Here I expect to find that

  • Word count: 3844
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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Explain and Discuss Moral Panics.

Explain and Discuss Moral Panics Moral panics have been described as a condition, episode, person or group of persons which emerge to become defined as a threat to societal values and interests (Cohen, 1972, p.9). They often occur during times when society has been unable to adapt to significant change and when such change leads to a fear of a loss of control within the normal social structure. This was evident during the 1960s when society experienced such modernising trends as the so called 'sexual revolution'. When events, such as those found in the 1960's, occur there is a concern that moral standards are in decline and entire generations can sometimes be accused of undermining society's moral structure. Moral panics can occur both as novel events, or events which have been in existence within society for a long time and have suddenly become an issue of importance and concern. Many panics result in official change and have serious and long-lasting repercussions, as was the case following the panic concerning so called 'video nasties', which led to the Video Recording Act of 1984 introducing the regulation of videos via the British Board of Film Classification. The debates concerning the issue centred upon the lack of parental control in monitoring children's viewing and the dangers posed by certain programmes and films to young people (Lusted, 1991, p.14). The concern

  • Word count: 3824
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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"Does the Mass Media Influence Youth Culture?"

"Does the Mass Media Influence Youth Culture?" A S o c i o l o g i c a l S t u d y a n d S u r v e y 1 . . . Introduction What is the mass media? The dictionary tells us that it is: "those means of communication that reach and influence large numbers of people." (Collins Pocket English Dictionary, 1981 edition) To many people, however, it is something much more sinister - a monster that seeks to manipulate and control public opinion. A flotilla of highly entertaining novels and films draw upon the idea of a tyrannical government secretly controlling zombie-like citizens, using the mass media as its weapon. Ironically, these conspiracy novels and films themselves are simply another aspect of the media. But perhaps - especially now, when we are more exposed to forms of mass media than any other previous generation - the seeming fantasies are not as fantastic as we might think. Certainly times have changed significantly since George Orwell first wrote his chilling novel, 1984. For example, Hitler's government proved that it was possible to persuade an entire nation to ignore - or even to condone - horrific acts of inhuman cruelty on a huge scale. This could be done only because of the recent expansion of the mass media to include radio, film and television, meaning that there were now more potential ways of influencing the general public. And making the most

  • Word count: 3808
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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How Media, Advertising and Celebrity Culture Affects Female Body Image

Research Project Kayleigh Giles-Johnson How Media, Advertising and Celebrity Culture Affects Female Body Image In this essay we will be exploring the subject of body image, looking at which outside influences contribute to the high rate of body dissatisfaction from both psychological and sociological viewpoints, taking into account a range of evidence varying from statistics to studies in order to draw a conclusion. Firstly we will define the meaning of body image and look at the way in which the ideal has changed in recent years, before analysing the effects of media, advertising and the accompanying celebrity culture on body dissatisfaction in females. I will then apply this information in order to explain why it is that some people suffer body image related mental illnesses such as anorexia, bulimia and body dysmorphia. Body image refers to an individual’s own perception of the aesthetics and sexual attractiveness of their own body and facial features. The ideal has changed over the years with the preference of modern culture being a slender, toned figure and delicate, symmetrical features. In the 1800’s the idealised form was still voluptuous and plump, as we can see from some of the art from that time, for example in Renoir’s Blonde Bather of 1881 (Plate 1). The idealisation of

  • Word count: 3797
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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To what extent do media representations of refugees and asylum seekers limit their integration within society?

To what extent do media representations of refugees and asylum seekers limit their integration within society? As the number of asylum seekers and refugees entering the United Kingdom continues to rise, one of the pressing concerns of the European Union and the UK government is ensuring their integration within society. However, at present asylum seekers and refugees are not integrating well within society, reports have suggested that this is partly due to community tensions (ICAR, 2004). It has been argued that media coverage is adding to these tensions. As the number of asylum seekers and refugees in the UK has risen, so too has media interest in asylum issues. This is particularly evident in the national newspapers. The majority of reporting shows asylum seekers in a negative way, questioning their genuineness, rather than recognising the plight they have endured. Asylum seekers are commonly presented as 'bogus' or as 'economic migrants', with the media implying that they are not fleeing persecution but are merely seeking a better life in the UK with greater economic stability. Reporters often ignore the real reason why asylum seekers and refugees are in fact often risking life and limb to seek asylum in the UK. Other media coverage involving asylum issues often details incidents of asylum seekers and refugees' involvement in criminal activity, or criticises government

  • Word count: 3793
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Sociology
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