NCJ Number
207021
Journal
Journal of Communication Inquiry Volume: 26 Issue: 3 Dated: July 2002 Pages: 300-325
Date Published
July 2002
Length
26 pages
Annotation
The concept of "moral panic" is analyzed in the public reactions to the alleged killing of some 40 cats by 3 high-school boys, aged 19 in Trzic, Slovenia in March 2000.
Abstract
The author first reviews the literature on the concept of "moral panic." He notes that sociologists use this term to refer to a social condition in which many people in a society overreact to a newly perceived threat to their well-being from social deviants, even through the actual threat is greatly exaggerated. In examining whether the public response to the cat killings qualified as a "moral panic," this study analyzed related media discourse on the killings in the four major national daily newspapers and the news reports of two of the most watched television channels. This analysis found that over 4 days of media reporting on the cat killings, more than 20 articles and editor's notes were published in the newspapers and at least 7 special television reports were broadcast. The boys' full names, almost exact addresses, and photographs were published. The thesis that the boys could become serial killers was broadly presented by the media and the so-called experts. The media coverage was fueled by the detailed police descriptions of the inhumane ways in which the cats were killed and comments by experts regarding the frightening significance of such behavior for escalation to the serial killing of humans. The author concludes that the public reaction to this case qualified as a "moral panic" due to an exaggeration of its frequency and significance for Slovenian society and the call for widespread policy responses as though a trend in juvenile behavior was underway. The analysis of the media and public response to this case is set in the context of cultural and political events and trends in Slovenia over the last decade. 21 notes and 59 references