Elements Of Moral Panic In Australia

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In recent years, Australia has suffered an enhanced number of shark attacks. This issue has caused of concern and the Western Australian government implemented a shark cull policy that reach a length of three-years in order to protect the public safety. It is apparent that the response of WA government is an evidence of moral panic. The term of moral panic was developed by Cohen in 1972, the moral panic occurs when an incident is defined as an intimidation to social values and interests (Cohen 2002). This essay will explore the question of whether or not moral panic is present in the case of the shark cull in WA. On the basis of the five elements of moral panic in the Goode and Ben-Yehuda’s article (2009) and Stanley Cohen’s moral panic