Moralpanikens (o)logiska dagordning - En fallstudie av den amerikanska kontextens undantag från den konstitutionella ordningen
Constitutional orderMoral panicState of ExceptionTerrorismMass mediaHumanitiesHumanioraPolitical historyPolitisk historiaSocial sciencesSamhällsvetenskaperHistory and philosophy of the social sciencesSamhällsvetenskapernas historia och filosofiJuridical scienceRättsvetenskapJuridikHuman rightsMänskliga rättigheterSocial psychologySocialpsykologiPress and communication sciencesJournalistikMediaKommunikationHistory and ArchaeologySocial SciencesLaw and Political Science
Abstract"The war on terror" has resulted in numerous exceptions from the constitutional order. This thesis is an attempt to give empirical support to Georgio Agambens theory that these exceptions should be regarded as a constant element in modern societies based on a constitutional order. The results of the case study of the empirical exceptions in the American context give Agambens theory validity. The exception is a reappearing phenomenon, which implies that the constitutional order is fragile. What then is it that makes the legal norms fragile? In this thesis I will discuss the causality of moral panic. A societal phenomenon that is created by the representatives of the politics of fear. The folk devil in this case is the terrorist. The 9/11 attacks made the terrorist threat into the new "great evil" after the fall of the Soviet Union. Politicians, mass media and other interest-groups feed the moral panic with stereotypical images of the terrorist and the imminent threat they pose on the American society and on all those who support freedom and democracy. This thesis will argue that the fear of terrorism is a tool for the reigning elite to impose exceptions from the constitutional order.