Demonisation of Youth (lesson 1)

7/24/2019 Demonisation of Youth (lesson 1)

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Collective Identity

Youth

(Demonisation)



• “Kids are out of control… they’re roaming thestreets. They’re out late at night

Gordon Brown 2008

• “The children no! love lu"ury# they have $admanners% contem&t for authority# they sho!

disres&ect for elders and love chatter in &laceof e"ercise. Children are no! tyrants% not theservants of their households. They no longerrise !hen elders enter the room. They

contradict their &arents% chatter $eforecom&any% go$$le u& dainties at the ta$le%cross their legs% and tyranni'e their teachers.

Plato 350BC



Barnardo’s Ad, 2008

(dult’s &erce&tion of young &eo&le)



uestions to thin* a$out+

,. ho! media today re&resent youth indi-erent !ays

/. ho! these re&resentations difer from

those in the &ast0. !hat efect these re&resentations have

1. ho! young &eo&le use the media to form acollective identity

2. ho! far identity is increasingly constructed $y% through or in res&onse to the media



3an /4,, 5"am ns

• nalyse the !ays in !hich the media

re&resent grou&s of &eo&le

• 6hat is collective identity and ho! is

it mediated



The sim&le 7hood’…



8ign98ym$ol of !hat

• Comfort

• :rotection

•

;eligious• cademic status

• Disguise

• Transformation

• Concealment• <iolence

• 8ynonymous

!ith criminal$ehaviour



• survey of the content of national and regionalne!s&a&ers found that out of =244 stories

a$out teenage $oys% over half !ere a$outcrime and only in one in ten allo!ed the voiceof a young &erson to $e heard in a >uote.

• The language used to descri$e teenage $oys

!as >uite harsh+ nearly =44 references to?yo$s?% /24 to ?thug? and over ,44 to ?sic*?% !ith?feral? and ?hoodie? close $ehind.

• There !ere some &ositive terms used% such as

?angel?% ?altar $oy?. ?model student? and ?everymother?s &erfect son? $ut these only a&&earedin relation to $oys !ho had died% eithermurdered or in accidents.



8tanley Cohen @ ,A=4s



5aster Ban* oliday% ,A=1 Clacton



• “If the media% $y their reaction% *e&t the&anic going% therefore% in a sense%am&liEed it. nd the &olice% $y going

along !ith it% added to the drama and thedrama !as !hat attracted the *ids there%there !ould’ve $een no &oint in goingthere if it !as Fust li*e any other Griday

afternoon..• 6ITHT T5 D;J T5 :5HJ5

DID’T 5LI8T



• lthough Cohen &oints to the !ays in!hich the media am&lify an"ietiesand events and create a moral &anic%

the demonisation of youth in this !aycan only come a$out if there is some*ind of collective identity to !hich to

&oint.



Dic* e$dige



• Dic* e$dige?s study ?Subculture, themeaning o style? e"amines ho!young &eo&le construct their identity

through fashion and musicalinMuence. is arguments still a&&lytoday even if su$cultures do not

neatly divide in >uite the !ay theydid in the N4s% given the !ay musichas tended to hy$ridise.



ic* Barham

• ?!isconnected? !as$ased on researchBarham did tal*ing toteenagers a$out theirlives today. Oiven thea$sence of youngvoices in ne!scoverage% it ma*es foran interesting contrast%one that is ta*en u& $yathan in "is#ts.

Demonisation of Youth (lesson 1)

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