Moral Panic and Drug Abuse: Sociological Research and Media Representation in Australia

Sociology and
Social Science

Introduction
The societies around the globe have been consistently exposing to the incidents of the moral
panics every now and then. The role of the media in the sociology of deviance has been
remarkably highlighted in the celebrated research works of Stanley Cohen and Jock Young
(Petley et. al, 2013). According to him, the moral panic leads to the emergence of a condition,
person, or a group of persons to be perceived as a threat to the moral values, safety, and
culture of the society as a whole. The rationale behind the concept of moral panic in terms of
the sociological research as recognised by Cohen was to expose the inapt social responses to
a situation in the sense of being biased and inconsistent. The incidence of moral panic is
referred to an existence of widespread irrational fear that is being perpetuated by the media
and further influenced by the politicians. The result of such moral panics leads to the creation
of new laws and policies in the society which are targeted at the particular person or the
group of persons. The incidents of moral panics are often focussed at the groups or
community of people that are distinctively different in terms of the race, class, ethnicity,
religion, or nationality (Cree and Clapton, 2015). The following work is aimed at exploring
the various facets of the moral panics in terms of the sociological research and the role of the
media in the same. The topic chosen for the evaluation is the drug abuse.
Background
The issue of drug abuse or substance abuse is defined as the engagement in the use of drugs
without the supporting medical justifications to the same. Drug abuse has been regarded as
one of the most serious conditions prevailing among the youth across the world that has been
affecting their physical and mental wellbeing (Goode, 2017). In addition to the above, the
potential effects of the issue involve the harm to the economic and social prosperity of the
state as well. The nation of Australia too has also been widely exposed to the increased

magnitude of the drug abuse in the recent years. The increased use of the ‘crystal meth' or
‘ice' has been widely reported by the Australian media in the country, thus making it a moral
panic. As reported by the statistics obtained by the National Drug Strategy Household
Survey, the year 2016 had witnessed about 3.1 millions of Australians using the one or more
of the illicit drugs for various purposes (Australian Government, 2018). The survey also
highlighted that the most common drugs being used are cannabis, in addition to the
pharmaceuticals, cocaine, and then ecstasy being misused.
Sociological Research Framework of Media Panic
Stanley Cohen had first laid down the grounds of the sociological research in the form of the
moral panic framework in the early 1960s (Loseke, 2017). There have been prescribed six
pillars in the framework for the better understanding of the issues of the society in terms of
the moral panic. These are explained as follows.
Firstly, the moral panic leads to a person, condition, or group being defined as the threat to
the values and morals of the society as a whole. Secondly, the mass media presents the nature
of the issue in a stylised or a stereotypical manner, instead of presenting it in a simpler or to
the point way. Thirdly, politicians, editors, and other influencers of the society tend to
manipulate the issue and the actual situation. Fourthly, the experts of the society present a
number of diagnoses and the solutions. Fifthly, the debates and discussions lead to the
emergence of the coping mechanisms and the ways to get past the issue; and lastly, the
concerned condition is then disappeared, submerged and the visibility increases. Thus, the
model of moral panic as developed by Cohen is a process model, displaying the various
stages involved in the process of the moral panic occurrence.
The sociological framework also highlighted the fact that the conditions behind the moral
panic are either already existing in the society since a long time and suddenly become part of