# Moral panic

- Term: General term
- Date: 1972
- Canonical: https://www.lanternhall.org/lexicon/moral-panic/

> A wave of public fear in which a group or activity is cast as a threat to society, with the danger exaggerated by media and campaigners. Fantasy games have been targets repeatedly, above all in the Satanic Panic of the 1980s.

A wave of public fear in which a group or activity is cast as a threat to society, with the danger exaggerated by media and campaigners. Fantasy games have been targets repeatedly, above all in the Satanic Panic of the 1980s.

**Origin:** Developed by sociologist Stanley Cohen in Folk Devils and Moral Panics (1972).

## Quick answers

**What does "Moral panic" mean?**
A wave of public fear in which a group or activity is cast as a threat to society, with the danger exaggerated by media and campaigners. Fantasy games have been targets repeatedly, above all in the Satanic Panic of the 1980s.

**Where does the term "Moral panic" come from?**
Developed by sociologist Stanley Cohen in Folk Devils and Moral Panics (1972).

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From The Lantern Hall (https://www.lanternhall.org/), a museum of fantasy literature and roleplaying games.