Identities & the Media - Reading the riots

• How did the language and selection of images in the coverage create a particular representation of young people? 

The coverage of the events were described and pin-pointed as 'riots' rather than what they actually were, 'protests.' Newspapers featured large dramatic images to over-emphasise and dramatise the situation, revealing these young peoples as insufficiently socialised and were led by childish destructiveness. The stereotypes were heightened through these images of a young black man with a hoodie, however in terms of class, most rioters were categorised as young people however in matter of fact they only made up a small minority of the rioters, revealing a sense of discrimination amongst tabloid newspaper coverage.

• Why does David Buckingham mention Owen Jones and his work Chavs: the demonisation of the working class?'

He mentions how there is a class dimension through these representations as they are seen as implicitly working-class. Owen Jones focuses on how there is a new form of class contempt in modern Britain. The working class has become an object of fear and ridicule even though those convicted were actually in respectable middle-class jobs or from wealthy backgrounds.

• What is the typical representation of young people – and teenage boys in particular? What did the 2005 IPSOS/MORI survey find?

They found that 40% of newspaper articles featuring young people focused on violence or crime or anti-social behaviour; and that 71% could be described as having a negative tone. The typical representation of young people are that they are 'yobs' or 'hoodlems' and most negative, anti-social behaviour is associated with those that are black, therefore racial discrimination is an issue that spurs from this. 

• How can Stanley Cohen’s work on Moral Panic be linked to the coverage of the riots?

Cohen argues that the media talked up disturbances into a bigger moral panic; the media play a role in deviance amplification - in reporting the phenomenon and expressing the fear and outrage of 'respectable society,' they make it more attractive to those who might not otherwise have thought about becoming involved. The Women in Journalism study interviewed 1000 boys and found that 29% felt wary when they were around other teenage boys they did not know and 79% of adults are more wary around teenage boys. 

• What elements of the media and popular culture were blamed for the riots?

In tabloid newspapers the initial blame comes from popular culture so rap music, violent video games and reality TV. Blaming the media is a common aspect of moral panics; the earliest example of this earliest example is the ancient Greek philosopher Plato, who proposed to exclude the dramatic poets from this ideal Republic on the grounds that they had a harmful influence on the young. 

• How was social media blamed for the riots? What was interesting about the discussion of social media when compared to the Arab Spring in 2011?

In order to co-ordinate the riots, tabloid newspapers blamed Twitter and other social networking sites for the coming together and send messages to create exposure about the riots. The use of social media with the Arab Spring was described as a positive thing by Western media. Evgeny Morozov argues in his book The Net Delusion, media and technology can be used by authorities as means of surveillance and control. 

• The riots generated a huge amount of comment and opinion - both in mainstream and social media. How can the two-step flow theory be linked to the coverage of the riots?

The two-step flow model can be linked to the riots through the idea that opinion leaders, so perhaps politicians in this case would spur the comments from individuals who hold similar ideologies and therefore generates a huge amount of comment and opinion from this. Alternatively, those who are against the ideologies of those politicians would undoubtedly create debate through their negative comments. 

• Alternatively, how might media scholars like Henry Jenkins view the 'tsunami' of blogs, forums and social media comments? Do you agree that this shows the democratisation of the media?

Henry Jenkins celebrates 'participatory' media; some even see this as evidence of wholesale democratisation of the communications system. They argue that the age of 'Big Media' - of powerful, centralised corporations controlling media - is now finished: hierarchical, top-down communications have been replaced with egalitarian approach. I agree with the fact that it does show a democratisation in the media however I also believe that media institutions hold more power in terms of being able to regulate and filter out certain content so whilst individuals are able to equally participate in discussions, the removal of these comments is also a key factor to consider in terms of 'equality.' 

• What were the right-wing responses to the causes of the riots?

Max Hastings from the Daily Mail headlined the riots as '‘Years of liberal dogma have spawned a generation of amoral, uneducated, unparented, welfare dependent, brutalised youngsters.' Too much permissiveness has bred a generation of young people who do not respect the elder generation and have no moral compass. 

• What were the left-wing responses to the causes of the riots?

They argue that it was unsurprising that these events erupted in areas with high levels of poverty and deprivation. They focus on the cuts in youth services, rising youth unemployment and the removal of the Education Maintenance Allowance. 

• What are your OWN views on the main causes of the riots?

I believe that the riots spurred mainly from the fact that Americanisation has become so emphasised in British culture, therefore the cases of Rodney King in America for example spurred a great anger in African-Americans; therefore when the case of Mark Duggan initiated it catalysed the surge of young peoples rage through the act of protesting against police brutality. I think the events were simply due to the fact that individuals wanted to feel a part of something and come together to essentially 'purge' against the law enforcement. 

• How can capitalism be blamed for the riots? What media theory (from our new/digital media unit) can this be linked to?

Peter Oborne made the link between rioters, bankers and politicians saying that '... cannot be dissociated from the moral disintegration in the highest ranks of modern British society... It has become acceptable for our politicians to lie and to cheat... the sad young men and women, without hope or aspiration, who have caused such mayhem and chaos over the past few days... have this defence: they are just following the example set by senior and respected figures in society.' 

• Were people involved in the riots given a voice in the media to explain their participation?

People were given a voice in the media to discuss their participation, however the issue is the fact that everyone has different views and opinions on the topic, causing everyone to be in defence with each other and create a controversial topic where no one essentially listens just disagrees or agrees.

• In the Guardian website's investigation into the causes of the riots, they did interview rioters themselves. Read this Guardian article from their Reading the Riots academic research project - what causes are outlined by those involved in the disturbances?

There involvement in looting was simply due to opportunism and how they cannot usually afford the items therefore were able to obtain free stuff. They identified a rage of political grievances and a pervasive sense of injustice at the heart of the issue. Economically, it was the lack of money, employment and opportunity, whilst socially it was how they felt treated in society. They were angry over the Mark Duggan issue and used this as an anti-police rioting opportunity.

• What is your own opinion on the riots? Do you have sympathy with those involved or do you believe strong prison sentences are the right approach to prevent such events happening in future?

I think the riots simply catalysed a more drastic element to come from it, whereby institutions and small businesses were essentially ruined by it, areas were ruined and a whole rage was brought up in society where this could simply have been a peaceful protest. However, I think that strong prison sentences should be applied as a good approach to prevent these events from happening in the future as this would therefore show the negative outcome from this rather than revealing how many individuals came out from the events better off with free goods and did not get any consequences from this. The riots were in a sense an outsource of rage to reveal the anger of young people and frustration in society today, therefore this should have in sense spurred the government to do something to create a better society for young people and provide better opportunities, for example by opening youth centres and providing them with jobs in order to prevent them from committing crimes. However saying this, the portion of young people that were actually involved in the riots was a small minority therefore this emphasises negative media coverage and the marginalisation of young people as deviant.