Role of Mass Media in Creating Moral Panic

Running Head: MASS MEDIA 0
Management

MASS MEDIA 1
Role does mass media plays in the creation of contemporary moral panic
In the recent time, mass media plays a important role in influencing the lives of
people. Therefore, we are required to depend on the communication and information in order
to move in the right direction. By ensuring the advancement in technology, life of people
becomes much easier (Dwyer, 2013). Now days, people have their own computers in order to
find out the various kinds of information, and mobile phones to communicate effectively.
Besides providing the positive benefits, it also has various negative effects attached with it.
The term mass also states that the beneficiaries of media product create the vast sea of
undistinguishable individuals and passive (Fuchs, 2017).
It is assumed that the mass communication development puts the negative impact in
modern social life in wider basis by creating the kind of homogeneous and bland culture that
entertain persons without putting challenge. The aspect of communication means giving as
well as taking of meaning, transmission, as well as reception of messages. In psychology,
sociology and communication theory, media effects means the theories regarding the way
mass media affects how the audience behave and think. It is also found that media research
has expanded in a huge way since 1960s that shifted the attention to the television as the
universal medium. Control as well as pattern of ownership is integrating more and more
media into the few big corporation, increase in the commercialisation of programming as well
as the cross media ownership. Besides this, the ideological influence of the media is also
promoting the overall pattern of thoughts and life. Therefore, the impact of electronic media
on democratic politics through distortion, reduction of news and agenda-setting, repelling
attention of public from the use of television ads in the political campaigns and social
problems.
Industrialisation, modernisation, as well as urbanisation have created the social
conditions in which mass media were developed. Mass media also plays the significant role
in reflecting and forming the public opinion (Lemish, 2019). Critiques in the twentieth century
also stated that the media has at some point has deteriorate the capacity of the individual to
act separately. The recent scholarship also highlights the more intricate interaction between
the society and media that helps in producing the information from the network of influences
and relations (Joeckel & Dogruel, 2016).

MASS MEDIA 2
A strong cultural and social influence of the media has found on the society, which
approached to a wide level amongst people. Here, the aspect of distribution of the
information is considered vital than the message. It has also stated that the effective media is
more significant than the message itself. This has been achieved through the It is done
through the support of the medium of radio, television or the print media which captures a
wide level of audience (Cohen, 2002). All these are the influential mediums as they are
responsible for shaping the routine of the individuals as well as structuring the daily lives
(Bonn, 2015). Television broadcasting has huge governor in order to influence the content that
is watched by society. In this way, internet has proved significant in challenging the
traditional participation habit involved in media such as television. Besides this, it has also
lifted various restrictions that society has to face by allowing the diversification of cultural,
and social differences, political opinions as well as heightening the level of consumers
participations. It is also suggested that by allowing the customers in producing information
through internet will definitely lead to the assault of higher information. However, mass
media allows the society as way in presenting their opinion to other people. Besides this, it
will also help in moving away from the entire political restrictions that are placed in society.
A moral panic is the emotion of fear that spreads among the various people. It also
threats the well-being of the society (Altheide, 2016). In the recent time, it is true that mass
media has become the significant player in the dissemination of the moral indigation. As per
Stanley Cohen, moral panic occurs when the episode, person, culture as well as group of
persons come together that in turn put threat to societal values as well as interest. In addition
to this, several authors have also stated that moral panic is the situation where public fears
and threat is posed to the society. In the recent time, moral panics are arising because
campaigns of mass media are being excessively used to presents the fear as well emphasising
the stereotypes. In this regard, Altheide (2016) stated that there is gap between the concern
over the situation as well as in the objective threat that it poses. Besides this, it also
highlighted that there is higher deal of uncertainties in the concern level over the condition. It
has also founded that the moral panic is public as well as political response to the distortion
and exaggeration of the threat put to the society by some of the damaging group as well as
individual (Tamborini, Prabhu, Lewis, Grizzard & Eden, 2016).