Folk Devils and Moral Panics in the Covid-19 Pandemic

Folk Devils and Moral Panics in the COVID-19 Pandemic analyses the phenomena of moral panics surrounding so-called folk devils in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this volume, internationally recognised moral panic scholars from disciplines including sociology, media studies, criminology, and cultural studies examine case studies of moral panics related to the COVID-19 pandemic. These analyses consider the different social, political, economic, organisational, and cultural contexts within which such moral panics emerged and assess how the concept of moral panic can be deployed to offer novel insights into sociocultural responses to the outbreak. By utilising both classical approaches to moral panic analysis and more recent trends, chapters discuss the utility of the concept of moral panic that is, for the first time, applied to a global-scale event like the COVID-19 pandemic.

This volume will be of interest to students and scholars in the social sciences with an interest in moral panics, responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the media and popular culture.

Morena Tartari is Research Fellow at the Department of Sociology and Social Work of the Babeş-Bolyai University, Romania, and Principal Investigator of the EU-funded research project WHosGreen. She is a former Marie Curie postdoctoral fellow (University of Antwerp, Belgium). Her research has explored social issues including moral panics surrounding satanic ritual abuse, the stigmatisation of single mothers in institutional contexts, non-religious identities, practices and values, parenting cultures and digital risks and crimes. She is the author of several publications on the topic of moral panic. She is an active member of the Society for the Study of Social Problems.

Cirus Rinaldi is Associate Professor of Sociology of Law, Deviance, and Social Change in the Department of Cultures and Societies of the University of Palermo, Italy, where he also coordinates the Bodies, Rights and Conflicts Research Group. His research explores deviance theory, sociological theories of sexuality, male sex work and LGBTQI+ issues. He is the author of the books Sesso, Sè e Società. Per una sociologia delle sessualità (2016) and Uomini che si fanno pagare: Genere, identità e sessualità nel sex work maschile tra devianza e nuove forme di normalizzazione (2020) in addition to many journal articles and contributions to edited collections.

Cosimo Marco Scarcelli is Associate Professor of Sociology of Culture and Communication in the Department of Philosophy, Sociology, Education and Applied Psychology at the University of Padua, Italy, where he is also Director of the BD Communication programme. His research explores sexuality, gender, masculinities, digital culture, pornography, intimacies, love, emotions, and young people. He is particularly interested in qualitative and participatory research. He is the principal editor of Gender and Sexuality in the European Media (Routledge, 2021), associate editor of The International Encyclopedia of Gender, Media, and Communication (Wiley, 2020), and author of numerous journal articles. He is also an editor of the Journal of Gender Studies.