SOA 1061st Edition Lecture 14Outline of Last Lecture I. Post Test NotesII. Introducing the Social StructureOutline of Current Lecture II. The Culture of Fear by Barry GlassnerIII. Where Fears Come From and How to Overcome ThemCurrent LectureThe Culture of Fear by Barry Glassner● Written in 1991● Professor at University of Southern California● Novel is about why Americans are engrossed in fear● Glassner believes the media weighs people down by advertising gruesome events that people do not really need to worry about● Glassner claims that 3 out 4 people say that they feel more fearful today than they did twenty years agoWhere Fears Come From and How to Overcome Them● Our perceptions of danger has increased, not our actual levels of danger● Organizations profit from our fears and so they create them and advertising○ News channels -- mostly reports are about crimes○ creates social panics● People waste unnecessary money worrying about these fears○ programs○ time and energy wasted on the fears● Glassner blames the news and media for the majority of peoples fears● Media Effect Theory-- the media design stories to increase ratings● “Peddlers of Fear” --politicians, news groups, and advocacy groups that propel fear and deliver stories of crime because it increases viewers and ratings○ they over exaggerate
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