Title: Youth, Popular Culture and Moral Panics
First published: 1998
Description: John Springhall has written a highly perceptive and entertaining account of how commercial culture in Britain and America has been viewed, since its inception during the process of industrialization, as a force likely to undermine juvenile morals. There has been wave after wave of scares: from Victorian penny 'gaff' theatres and 'penny dreadful' novels to Hollywood gangster films and American 'horror comics'.

A final chapter refers to 'video nasties', violence on television, 'gangsta-rap' and computer games, each in turn playing the role of 'folk devils' which must be causing delinquency. Why particular issues suddenly galvanize public attention, and why so many people have associated delinquency with the 'effects' of 'sensational' entertainment, form the fascinating subjects of this book.
Subjects: Attitudes, History, Juvenile delinquency, Mass media and youth, Popular culture, Popular literature, Social aspects, Social aspects of Mass media and youth, Social aspects of Popular literature, Youth, Popular Culture - General, Moral panics, Popular culture, united states, Youth, united states, Popular culture--influence, Youth--attitudes, Youth--united states--attitudes, Popular culture--history, Popular culture--united states--history--19th century, Popular culture--united states--history--20th century, Hm101 .s7736 1998, 306/.0973, Influence
Places: United States
Time periods: 19th century, 20th century
LC classification: HM101 .S7736 1998