Why do societies suddenly become terrified that "evil" forces are threatening their way of life? In this episode, we dive deep into the sociology of the moral panic, a phenomenon where public fear is whipped up by sensationalist media and politicians to target a specific group or behavior. We explore the origins of the term, coined by sociologist Stanley Cohen in his study of 1960s youth subcultures, to describe how "moral entrepreneurs" exaggerate threats to create "folk devils" out of those who deviate from the norm,,.

We break down the mechanics of mass anxiety, looking at Goode and Ben-Yehuda’s five ingredients for a panic: concern, hostility, consensus, disproportionality, and volatility,. From the "Red Scare" of the 1950s to the hysteria over "the Devil's music" (jazz, blues, and rock), we trace how these cycles of fe ...