NCJ Number
159496
Date Published
1995
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This chapter examines the dynamics of British political parties' attempts to marshal public support by identifying "folk devils" and promising to promote a punitive and suppressive government response toward them.
Abstract
The authoritarian populism of the Right, which is represented in the Conservative Party, has promoted the identification of and attacks on various "folk devils," which it identifies as being particular threats to law and order and the moral society. The effectiveness of this strategy has begun to wane, not so much because of the strategy of opposition political parties, notably the Labour Party, but because of pressure groups, associations, voluntary organizations, and other forms of local grassroots or campaigning politics. This chapter argues that these forms of political activity now play a key role in providing convincing opposition to the Conservatives. Representatives from these groups have used the mass media to defend the "folk devils" who are the figures of fear and fantasy created by the "orchestrators of moral panic." The defenders of the "folk devils" provide balance, analysis, and information to counter the often uninformed discourses of the politicians. These are individuals and groups committed to helping the disenfranchised and extending a helping hand to those in need, in contrast to those who attack and attempt to marshal punitive responses against those who in some way differ from the majority. 4 notes