Moral panic

Moral panic
It is a sensation or state of fear influenced in a large group of individuals that a particular evil threatens the welfare of the society. It is also a procedure of stimulating societal apprehension over a subject typically the work of mass media and moral entrepreneurs. The media plays a vital role in spreading of moral panic even though they do not seem to slot in crusading. Stating facts to a large audience through a medium is enough to generate worry, panic or anxiety. It is deemed a threat to social significance and interests. An example of moral panic in the current generation is a war on drugs, the impact of violent movies and video games to young children among others.
Moral panics are perceived to have an impact on expectations of gender roles and identities. It is evident in societies being feminist and the social control of gender. Consistently, government administration and organizations have been known to discriminate women regarding social status and roles in the workplace. Individuals still grip to traditional gender roles in which men were considered dominant over women. Men dominate the most vital governmental positions such as those of the legal system. Furthermore, women during court cases are forced to rely on legal systems that are based on patriarchy and racial discrimination. In addition, men are considered agentic meaning they are self-confident, independent, capable, masterful and achievement-oriented. Women, on the other hand, are considered communal such that they are unselfish, co-dependent, emotional, communicative, and relationship-oriented among other attributes.

Currently, the social media is considered the most influential means of communicating among the masses. Information in media groups for example Facebook gets accessed by a wide audience especially the youth. The advantage has enabled mass entrepreneurs to influence the masses with hate speech and propaganda directed towards particular sub-groups in the society. For instance, in the United States anti-immigrants, campaigns have been on the rise for years. Some government officials and racist factions resent such groups, and they want the society to have a negative perception of them by providing negative information. They claim that minority groups such as Latinos especially Mexicans are mostly engaged in criminal activities, and their significant presence in the society is affecting Americans tremendously. They also assert that the subgroups are taking jobs and decreasing wages.
Another moral panic on Facebook is sexual predators mostly adults who prey on minors. The issue has become an international concern whereby most administrations are declaring that young people should not be allowed to visit the sites when attending institutions. The reason being adults are constantly seeking minors on the social media for sexual contact and in the long run, damage their lives as they grow up.
With regard to the video, Flores-Yeffal has clearly outlined moral panic based on the violence portrayed by children in the society. He indicates that some societies blame the rise of young delinquents on the influence of the pop culture of the 20th and 21st century. He signifies that over the years people have blamed games such as Dungeon and Dragons for the rise of violence among kids. He also designates examples whereby some individuals claim that horror movies, violent films and video games are responsible for the increase in violent activities and some cases murder. He gives an example where the media portrays a young person who was responsible for the murder of a dozen people after influence from violent video games. He claims that such moral panics are influenced immensely by the media who regularly publish and provide such information.
As evident from above, moral panics has become a social issue whereby fear is influenced by a large group of individuals that a particular evil threatens the welfare of the society. It is also a reaction of the society against a particular social faction based on the belief that the group threatens the society greatly. They have an impact on the expectations of gender roles and identities immensely. The social media especially Facebook consists of moral panics raised within it.