Moral Panics

Who would have thought that scuffles between teenagers on the southeast coast of England on a cold April weekend in 1964 would have produced the notion of moral panic? Originating as a concept used to understand the reaction to the behavior of these teenagers, moral panic is one of the few sociological ideas that has entered common parlance. The reaction was considerable in relation to the degree of harm or damage. However, local and national media picked up on the events and alarm expressed by civic leaders and local business groups and made hay with headlines decrying the behavior and announcing the arrival of riot police to relieve what was described as a besieged town. More headlines further contributed to a spiral of reaction, and the issues were raised in the Houses of Parliament. The police and judiciary were urged to “crack down.” In the climate of a much-distorted view of events and behavior, overlong and custodial sentences were handed out for petty offenses such as vandalism. The participants in the moral panics include “folk devils” (the English teenagers), an influential and exaggerating media, local interest and pressure groups (civic and business leaders, religious leaders, and those who make “claims” as to expertise on the perceived problem), local and national politicians, the police, and judges. An important feature of moral panics is the “reaching beyond” the immediate problem with claims that there are society-wide implications; in the case of the teenagers in 1964, their deviant conduct was claimed to be symptomatic of general decline in morals. A moral panic is distinguished from general social anxieties and specific moral crusades when there is first a heightened concern over behavior of a group and the consequences this poses for wider society. There must be a division between “them,” the folk devils, and “us,” the responsible and law-abiding citizens. There must be consensus within society, or at least considerable segments of it, that the threat proposed is very serious. Additionally, the threat, damage, costs, and figures proposed by claims-makers are wildly exaggerated and do not coincide with an objective reality. Finally, moral panics are volatile. They typically explode, reach a pitch, and subside. Classic moral panics can also result in illiberal laws. As we will see, children and young people, and childhood, have regularly been the sites of moral panics.

A Classification Framework for Analyzing the War and Peacemaking Potential of News Media in Pakistan

In this study, we present a contextual model for analyzing the escalatory and de-escalatory trends in media reporting of seven conflicts in Pakistan. For this purpose, we combined findings from both survey and content analysis. While the survey helped to examine the journalists’ perceptions about the security threats of conflicts and the factors that influence the reportage, the content analysis was utilized to analyze the escalatory and de-escalatory characteristics in the coverage. The findings show that high security conflicts lead to a patriotic reporting scenario that results in high escalatory coverage. There is a significant decrease in the escalatory coverage as the assumed threat level of a conflict decreases. Similarly, we found that a conflict in which journalists exercised more relative freedom from pressure groups was reported in de-escalatory fashion. These findings can be useful for strategizing for the implementation of peace journalism in Pakistan in particular and elsewhere in general.

Islamist influence will grow in Bangladesh

Significance The government promised severe action against the perpetrators, many of whom support hard-line Islamist parties and pressure groups. Although the attacks attracted widespread external condemnation, majority-Hindu India, which is keen to strengthen ties with Dhaka, was quick to acknowledge the efforts made by the Bangladeshi authorities to establish control over the situation. Impacts An uptick in attacks on Bangladesh’s Hindus would increase anti-Muslim sentiment among the Indian public. The Taliban takeover in Afghanistan will embolden radical groups active in Rohingya refugee camps as well as many Bangladeshi hardliners. Minority rights will be a source of debate in the lead-up to the next general election, due in 2023.

Pressure Groups Under MMP: a Study of Behaviour and Influence

<p>This thesis examines the impact of MMP on pressure group behaviour and strategies. MMP altered the distribution of public policy decision-making power. As a consequence, it was expected to influence the strategies and behaviours of pressure groups seeking to influence public policy. The thesis finds that most expectations of pressure groups under MMP have been borne out. In particular, pressure groups have developed a wider range of political relationships and access points, have achieved more success through engagement with select committees and have been more willing to lobby and campaign publicly in opposition to Executive policy. In addition, it finds pressure groups have adopted an increasingly flexible and politically independent mentality and it finds there has been a blurring of boundaries between insider and outsider pressure groups. Finally, it concludes that policy influence has become more complex under MMP and created the need for increased pressure group sophistication. Chapter 1 introduces New Zealand's pluralist traditions as well as the history and importance of pressure group activity. It describes the rationale for the adoption of MMP and the relationship between this electoral system and the public policy process - "the rules of the game" - within which pressure groups operate and seek to influence. Chapter 2 provides an overview of the core political theory that underpins pressure group behaviour under different electoral systems - including theories of state structure and of weak and strong legislatures. It outlines the various methods of influence available to pressure groups and reviews the international literature to identify the main themes, strategies and tendencies that might be expected of pressure groups in an MMP environment. These include a drift in emphasis from Ministers and the bureaucracy to Parliament and a broadening of Parliamentary relationships, a stronger focus on select committees, increased media and mobilisation activity, as well as some additional emphasis on quality information and political gamesmanship. These expectations are set out as five hypotheses for examination. Chapter 3 discusses and reviews the extent and nature of structural change to public policy decision-making in New Zealand under MMP - as an important context for the analysis of pressure group behaviour. It finds that MMP has delivered substantial structural change to the distribution of decision-making power, but that this has been highly variable and changed from one term of government to the next. Chapter 4 first describes the methodology used for researching and reviewing pressure group behaviour and strategies under MMP. It sets out a qualitative approach that involved a mixture of expert interviews and public policy case studies. Chapter 5 returns to and examines the five hypotheses set out in Chapter 2 and concludes that most expectations have been met, particularly the development of broader Parliamentary relationships by pressure groups. Chapter 6 sets out those key conclusions and underlying themes beyond examination of the five hypotheses.</p>

Pressure Groups Under MMP: a Study of Behaviour and Influence

<p>This thesis examines the impact of MMP on pressure group behaviour and strategies. MMP altered the distribution of public policy decision-making power. As a consequence, it was expected to influence the strategies and behaviours of pressure groups seeking to influence public policy. The thesis finds that most expectations of pressure groups under MMP have been borne out. In particular, pressure groups have developed a wider range of political relationships and access points, have achieved more success through engagement with select committees and have been more willing to lobby and campaign publicly in opposition to Executive policy. In addition, it finds pressure groups have adopted an increasingly flexible and politically independent mentality and it finds there has been a blurring of boundaries between insider and outsider pressure groups. Finally, it concludes that policy influence has become more complex under MMP and created the need for increased pressure group sophistication. Chapter 1 introduces New Zealand's pluralist traditions as well as the history and importance of pressure group activity. It describes the rationale for the adoption of MMP and the relationship between this electoral system and the public policy process - "the rules of the game" - within which pressure groups operate and seek to influence. Chapter 2 provides an overview of the core political theory that underpins pressure group behaviour under different electoral systems - including theories of state structure and of weak and strong legislatures. It outlines the various methods of influence available to pressure groups and reviews the international literature to identify the main themes, strategies and tendencies that might be expected of pressure groups in an MMP environment. These include a drift in emphasis from Ministers and the bureaucracy to Parliament and a broadening of Parliamentary relationships, a stronger focus on select committees, increased media and mobilisation activity, as well as some additional emphasis on quality information and political gamesmanship. These expectations are set out as five hypotheses for examination. Chapter 3 discusses and reviews the extent and nature of structural change to public policy decision-making in New Zealand under MMP - as an important context for the analysis of pressure group behaviour. It finds that MMP has delivered substantial structural change to the distribution of decision-making power, but that this has been highly variable and changed from one term of government to the next. Chapter 4 first describes the methodology used for researching and reviewing pressure group behaviour and strategies under MMP. It sets out a qualitative approach that involved a mixture of expert interviews and public policy case studies. Chapter 5 returns to and examines the five hypotheses set out in Chapter 2 and concludes that most expectations have been met, particularly the development of broader Parliamentary relationships by pressure groups. Chapter 6 sets out those key conclusions and underlying themes beyond examination of the five hypotheses.</p>

INFLUENCE OF INTEREST GROUPS IN LATVIA ON CENTRALIZATION

Latvia has experienced four administrative-territorial reforms in 30 years. In 1989, local and regional elections were the first democratic elections in Latvia since 1934. From 1990 to 1992, self-governments were the main authority for re-establishing national independence and transforming the country from totalitarianism to democracy. The transformation process starts with wide decentralization, including substantial fiscal decentralization and substantial administrative decentralization. The first reform was the centralization (1994) of Rīga city government (1 self-government instead of a two-tier system, with 6 district local governments and 1 city local government). The second reform abolished elections in 26 regional councils (1998) and replaced them by delegates from local governments. The third reform (2009) was abolishing regional governments and reducing the number of local governments 5 times. The fourth reform will be implemented after June 5 2021, and its content is reduction of the number of municipalities 3 times. Therefore, from 596 local and regional governments in 1990s, Latvia will only have 42 local governments. All those reforms were directed towards centralization. Official goals of public administration reforms can differ from real intents of pressure groups, who impact ruling political parties and central government decisions. The paper aims to analyze reforms depending on pressure groups, who believe in benefits from centralization. Methods of policy analysis and grouping of statistics about administrative territories are used. They provided research shows that real goals of all four reforms were an expression of political competition. Dominating interest groups in each case have conflicting interests. Previous reforms facilitated emigration and peripheries effect, while the positive impact on regional development is not achieved. The impact of the last reform will largely depend on the results of the next parliamentary election of 2022.

The Effect of Curing Pressure on Shear Bond Strength of Zirconia to Resin Cement

Background: Nowadays, the esthetics demand is continuously increasing; therefore, metal-free materials are widely used, like a zirconia-based ceramic, which is conveniently fabricated via computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) system for restorations from single to full mouth rehabilitation. Objective: This study evaluated the effect of pre-curing pressure on the shear bond strength of zirconia to the resin cement. Methods: A total of sixty-three sandblasted cylindrical zirconia mounted in autopolymerizing resin were randomly assigned to three groups; Group 1: no treatment (control), Group 2: negative pressure, and Group 3: positive pressure to resin cement after resin cement application and resin composite columns bonded to zirconia. Thirty-three of the samples were stored in distilled water at 37 °C for 24 hr before the shear bond strength test for thirty samples and three samples were cross-sectionally cut for interfacial observation with FESEM. Another thirty samples were thermocycled for 5,000 cycles in distilled water at 5°C to 55 °C before testing. The shear bond strength and failure mode were evaluated. Examination of the bonding interface was also done. Results: The results were analyzed using two-way ANOVA. The means of shear bond strength of non-thermocycle of the control group were 8.01 ±1.74 MPa, 9.10 ±1.90 MPa, and 9.14 ±2.58 MPa, whereas that of thermocycle group were 5.71 ±0.84 MPa, 5.53 ±0.68 MPa, and 5.68 ±0.77 MPa in zero pressure group, negative pressure group, and positive pressure group, respectively. It showed no statistically significant differences in shear bond strength in all pressure groups (p > 0.05). The pre-curing pressure did not influence the shear bond strength of the zirconia and resin cement. Conclusion: There was no difference in the shear bond strength between the pressure groups and the no treatment control group. The positive and negative pressure did not influence the shear bond strength of the zirconia and resin cement.