Crime Control as Mediated Spectacle

The Institutionalization of Gonzo Rhetoric in Modern Media and Politics

Dados Bibliográficos

ID2049720
AutoresR J Maratea (0009-0005-1447-9010, New Mexico State University, autor correspondente), Brian A Monahan, Brian Monahan (0009-0003-2968-4549, Marywood University)
Ano2013
Volume36
Fascículo3
Páginas261-274
Data de publicação2013-08-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoSymbolic Interaction (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0195-6086 • E-ISSN: 1533-8665
EditoraWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/symb.59
OpenAlexW1762013643
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas5
Referências citadas23

This study examines contemporary crime and punishment discourse in mass media to better understand the institutionalization of hyper-punitive sanctions as acceptable forms of social control. Our principal focus is on gonzo rhetoric, or the discourse and symbolism used to promote and justify exaggerated acts of punishment. Using a content analysis of 136 broadcast transcripts, we examine the rhetorical techniques employed by Sheriff Joe Arpaio, of Maricopa County, Arizona, in order to show how this brand of 'crime talk' has become a central component of modern crime control culture. We suggest that the appeal of gonzo rhetoric is rooted in longstanding cultural assumptions about crime and disorder

Appeal · Art · Crime control · Criminal justice · Criminology · Cultural Criminology · Institutionalisation · Political science · Politics · Punitive damages · Rhetoric · Rhetorical question · Sanctions · Social control · Social science · Sociology · Spectacle · Crime Patterns and Interventions · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis · Law · Psychology · Psychopathy, Forensic Psychiatry, Sexual Offending · Social Psychology