State Crime and Immorality: The Corrupting Influence of the Powerful

by Mark Monaghan, Simon Prideaux

Overview

This is the first book to examine the activities of UK and international ‘role models’ through the lens of state crime and social policy. Written by experts in the field of sociology and social policy, it defines the ideal state as a single, functioning whole that ensures uniformity in the name of legitimacy. It then details the ways that states do not constitute the ideal in terms of the dangers associated with the maintenance of legitimacy and state power. Anti-democratic measures, such as the invasions of other nation states, the idea that the media can both reinforce and influence the state and the problems of over-zealous policing of a state’s own populace, are covered.

Using the topical example of Rupert Murdoch and the activities of his media organisation to show how powerful individuals and corporations can and do exert political influence, the book provides a comprehensive discussion of state immorality and deviance generally and state crime in particular. It will appeal to range of academics and practitioners in broader disciplines such as criminology, sociology, politics and political science.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781447316756
Publisher:	Bristol University Press
Publication date:	03/01/2016
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Mark Monaghan is a lecturer in sociology, social policy and crime at the University of Leeds, UK. He completed his first degree in sociology at the University of Liverpool and then went to Leeds to undertake postgraduate study. His doctoral research centred on the problematic nature of evidence-based policy making when applied to heavily politicised areas.

Simon Prideaux is an associate professor of social policy, disability and crime at the University of Leeds. He has written widely on social policy and has a growing profile within disability studies. His interests take in comparative access policy, welfare discourses, conditionality and political ideologies.

Table of Contents

Introduction;

Defining the State, its Institutions, Allies and Protagonists;

The State, Corporations and Organised Crime;

Drugs and Thugs: Examples of Organised Crime, State Collusion and Limited Responses;

The Media as Both an Influential and Supportive Arm of the State;

Beyond the Borders: State Terrorism from Without and Against the ‘Other’;

Without and Within: State Crime in Northern Ireland (Violence, Collusion and the Paramilitaries);

Fighting the Enemy Within: Internal State Terrorism, Argentina’s ‘Dirty War’ (1976-83), the UK Miners’ Strike (1984-5) and the ‘Battle’ of Orgreave;

Conclusion: The Role, Nature and Control of State Crime.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A provocative and stimulating book and one that should be essential reading for anybody wanting a better understanding of the complex interplay between politics, the media, business and criminal enterprise." James Windle, University of East London

Editorial Reviews

A provocative and stimulating book and one that should be essential reading for anybody wanting a better understanding of the complex interplay between politics, the media, business, and criminal enterprise.

James Windle