recent issues in C+D

Trading in illegal drugs and arms causes huge social problems

• UN's world drug report(2005) - global trade in illegal drugs was worth $320billion, supplying 200 million users. Amounts to 1/8 all global trade
• Karofi and Mwanza(2006) - outlined negative effects of illegal drug trade. Pointed to consequences for health, change in social behaviour and funding of terrorism and war with profits
• Transnational Institute in Amsterdam reported majority of armed conflicts are funded/part funded by illegal drugs trade
• global communications and unregulated financial markets have made illegal trade in arms easier to carry out and harder to trace.
• Karofi and Mivara - highlight role of drugs in destabilising societies
• trade in small arms causes an estimated 80% of conflict deaths each year. Kofi Anan called small arms "weapons of mass destruction in slow motion" because of their impact in developing world.

• illegal movement of people for exploitation. Taken with force or deception
• United Nations Report(2007) - Human trafficking trade worth $5b-$7b per year. One of the fastest growing global crimes
• 2.5 million people worldwide in forced labour as result of human trafficking
• global problem which has devastating effect on its victims

• Globalisation lead to massive increase in computer + internet use.
• data theft
• fraud
• credit scams
• email scams
• illegal ***********
• cybercrime breaches national borders, existing criminal law powerless to tackle it
• extent of cybercrime hard to assess, but some suggest it will soon rival drugs trade in terms of profits

• something as small scale as fly-tipping, but on a global scale includes illegal trade of environmentally sensitive substances, trade in protected animals and unregulated logging and fishing
• environmental impact of green crimes can be huge - ozone depletion. Several financial costs - World Bank estimated illegal logging cost timber producing countries 10-15 billion euros per year

• governments break national or international criminal law
• funding of terrorism, war crimes, genocide, links with organised crime, corruption, use of torture, crimes against human rights
• conroversial as it is states themselves who define what is "justifyable" and what isn't.

the media plays a powerful role in amplifying deviance in society

• Interpretivists(interactionists) i.e Stanley Cohen(1972) argue the media helps to create the deviance it predicts or anticipates
• Amplification of deviance:
• media presents a distorted view of the level of crime
• distorted view creates public concern
• related incidents of crime and deviance are over reported and given more prominence
• keeps the issue or problem high on public agenda
• public wanted something done about the problem
• police are more aware of the problem, so they discover more crime
• police records reinforce the idea there is more crime and deviance

• percieved risk of being a victim of crime is amplified by over-reporting by media. Creates public panic/outrage. Cohen refers to this as moral panic
• Cohen developed idea of moral panics by studying Mods and Rockers in 1964, although new examples such as gun crime, asylum seekers etc
• state response to moral panic is often to introduce stricter forms of social control

the media plays a powerful role in amplifying deviance in society

• Hall et al(1978) - national concern about mugging in early 70's was a moral panic. Media claimed mugging was a new type of crime, but violent street crime has been going on for centuries
• some sociologists have suggested that the fear of global terrorism following 9/11 is another example of a current moral panics, and that terrorism threat has been exaggerated.

• Taylor(1997,98) - economic deregulation has given people more opportunity to commit crimes like fraud, money laundering, tax evasion
• globalisation and deregulation have made employment less secure and increased economic instability by reducing the cointrol states have over their economies. Increased unemployment and cuts in welfare have led to a rise in crime. People don't believe they will secure a real income.
• globalisation partly to blame for growth of drugs trade in poverty affected areas
• marketisation to blame for rising crime. Success becomes equated to owning expensive consumer goods - some turn to crime as a way of achieving this
• Taylor argued it's too late to turn the economic clock back, but attempts should be made to recreate shared values of community to counteract the process of marketisation