Most of the images that were selected featured young people, which created an idea that the main people involved were 'wild youth' or uncontrollable young people. Many of the images showed similar features such as the fire background which gave an idea of a 'war zone'. This highlighted the importance and seriousness of this issue. The fire in the background of these images also gave a sense of exaggeration to the situation which has given it an 'alert' or 'attention' sign for the audiences of these newspapers.
What is the typical representation of young people – and teenage boys in particular? What did the 2005 IPSOS/MORI survey find?
The typical representation is that the youth now are all 'morons' or ignorant kids that like causing havoc. The newspaper articles demonstrated that the youth are rioting aggressively with no purpose when in fact this was a protest that kicked off due to police shooting and innocent man.
How can Stanley Cohen’s work on Moral Panic be linked to the coverage of the riots?
The coverage clearly shows a sense of moral panic in society that the youth are being aggressive and senseless where society show anxiety and fear because of the youth that are causing damage all over Britain.
How was social media blamed for the riots? What was interesting about the discussion of social media when compared to the Arab Spring in 2011?
Social media showed to be very dangerous and partly the reason for the riots because that is what was used by the youth to communicate with one another in order to meet up and cause trouble and loot stores.
Alternatively, how might media scholars like Henry Jenkins view the 'tsunami' of blogs, forums and social media comments? Do you agree that this shows the democratisation of the media?
The media scholars will view this as a silly accusation because they would believe that the shooting triggered the riots although social media was being used to communicate, it doesn't and shouldn't put blame on such a platform that has brought many advantages to society over the years.
What are your views on the main causes of the riots?
I think that what triggered the riots was the shooting of the innocent man however, it then grew out to become for many different reasons that the youth may have felt hard-done by. Some youth may have rioted and looted because they're fed up of their treatment and stereotypes in society that come naturally to them even when being innocent.
Were people involved in the riots given a voice in the media to explain their participation?
No, people involved in the riots were not given a voice to express why they done such things but instead were called morons and idiotic youth for participating in such aggressive behavior which doesn't seem to be fair.
In the Guardian website's investigation into the causes of the riots, they did interview rioters themselves. Read this Guardian article from their Reading the Riots academic research project - what causes are outlined by those involved in the disturbances?
Many say the main cause of the riots was due to the rioters anger towards the police department and their treatment to communities. Rioters relationship with the police is what caused the riots and the looting's to happen. Rioters feel that the police do not show sympathy or understanding for the youth and how they are treated.
What is your own opinion on the riots? Do you have sympathy with those involved or do you believe strong prison sentences are the right approach to prevent such events happening in future?
I think that the shooting by the police caused and sparked the riots to happen. I definitely feel sympathy towards the rioters because I believe that the riots occurred because of a reason behind them and not headless youth trying to cause trouble. I believe that the mistreatment of the youth and people in communities in general has cause the anger to build up and has caused the riots to take place. I think that prison sentences will not prevent this from happening because the youth will still feel anger but this may also anger them more due to them feeling hard-done by and not listened to by society. I think instead the police and governments should work on creating youth clubs and activities for children in order to discipline them but also give them a voice in their community which is what they're seeking for.
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