The Paradox of the Culture of Fear - Essay Sample

Introduction

Glassner in his book The Culture of Fear categorically states that society is addicted to the most graphical and violent contents. This instills fear among the population, often in which the members await the impending danger or violent spectacle. These fears are; rise in criminal activities, terrorism, economic decline, the prevalence of diseases et cetera. The fear addiction results in blatant ignorance of other severe challenges facing the community. The paradox is the fear of the wrong things. The government and the media aid in stamping great fears across the population by insisting on the most dangerous aspects, i.e. terrorism. This makes the citizens fearful of terrorist from staging the next terror act (Glassner, 2010). The greater danger to this paradox is the existence of other problems facing the citizens disregarded by the media and the government. More so, if in case these catastrophic events don't occur, the government resources allocated to mitigate these challenges are wasted.

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The Culture of Fear benefits the Government, media, powerful and wealthiest organizations. The society members are enslaved by instilling fear in them to believe that some phenomena are more dangerous to their well-being than others (Glassner, 2010). This makes them reliant on these agencies to provide solutions in which is a tool to lead them as per their wishes. The society is made to forget other critical issues affecting them.

The best solution in curbing the culture of fear is through public enlightening. The public is advised on various challenges affecting them and their effects on their livelihood. The euphoria against other things over others should be avoided. The government and media outlets should avoid emphasizing the perceived most dangerous events. The fight against terrorism as described earlier is one of the most emphasized themes by the media and the government. The public is fearful of terrorism due to its economic influence and loss of lives. The society is fearful of certain ethnic and religious groups. Fear of terror has been overdrawn. The citizens believe terrorists are more dangerous than corruption, mismanagement of public resources, poor health services, and inadequate social amenities (Furedi, 2007).

Conclusion

In conclusion, the culture of fear perpetrated by the government and media against its targets makes the society more fearful of the emphasized challenges. However, it's also important to note that often the government and the media always wish its citizens the best, and the fight against other things at the expense of the other might be for the goodwill of the people.

References

Glassner, B. (2010). The Culture of Fear: Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things: Crime, Drugs, Minorities, Teen Moms, Killer Kids, Muta. Basic books.

Furedi, F. (2007). The only thing we have to fear is the 'culture of fear'itself. American Journal of Sociology, 32, 231-234.