Law and Public Disordder Article

List (bullets) the methods the police can now use to deal with public disorder.
• Water Cannons
• Arrested
• Rubber bullets

Answer the following using supporting evidence:
1. What are the reasons given for the police using such methods?
Should police feel they have no other option to restore order in the face of a sustained attack. The use of water cannon, rubber bullets ‘and potentially the use of firearms’ to deter looters and rioters.

2. What are the arguments against this?
They would rather put rioters in a prison cell rather than a hospital bed, this shows good policing. Using this dispersal equipment sounds good but all you are doing in an urban environment is pushing people from one urban area to another. You are not solving the problem.


3. Is the report biased or unbiased?
I'd day the report is unbiased. This is because there is no referance to youths being "hoodies". Since it is a news paper, it is made out that the police are doing the right thing and i completely agree with what is said. Police are being accused of struggling balance of being too hard or too soft with protesters.

4. What are the key messages and values given by the report?
The article name "Law and public disorder: Inside the secret bunker where the Met's top men work to keep rioters under control" gives across the message to people that they are always being watched, CCTV is heavily used allover britain and was used in the riots to point out offenders and put them behind bars.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-2108745/Law-public-disorder-Inside-secret-bunker-Mets-men-work-rioters-control.html#ixzz1pB5APxML

5. Do you think the article would start any social or moral panics?
I do not believe that this article would start any panics as it shows that the police are in controll and the riots end up dying out quite quickly as long as public order is in place.

Look at the images:
6. Do the images of the rioters refer to any particular social group?
The images of the rioters refer to the youth social group, hooded teenagers with masks. But there is also images of peaceful marches in central london by college students.

7. Is this a fair representation of the content of the article?
This is a fair representation of content because it shows strong images of both the rioters and the riot police. Images of violence give across a strong image of what is happening, for example a shop and flats blazing with fire.

8. What impressions do you get of the police from the images selected?
The impression i get from the police pictures is that they look like they are in control. But since there is a predicted drop of 16,200 officers in the coming future, their job to maintain public order when their is less police will be a struggle if riots occur. The images of the the police in riot gear make them look dominating among rioters.

9. As a young person in British society, how do you feel about this article?
I feel that the rioters have been given a fair voice however there is too much about the violent rioters and too litle about the peaceful ones. The majority of youths are not like that. The image of power represented by police is not very good, just stood there whilst buildings are ablaze.

10. If you were a reporter, would you do anything differently? Explain.
If i were a reporter. I'd make sure the report would not be biased and get views from those violent rioters and peaceful ones. That is how voices from the youth of today can be heard properly.

11. Who do you think is the target audience for this article?
I'd say the target audience for this article would be around people ages around 30-40, who would instantly judge youths as "hoodies" and "yobs".

12. Is it a fair representation of the social groups discussed?
There isn't enough representation of the youths which did not contribute to the riots and violence. Pictures of youths smashing up shops and setting off flares whilst wearing masks is not a fair representation.