Abstract
To date, there is no empirical research on the risk perceptions of Sydneysiders following the Cronulla riots nor are there any connections made between risk perceptions and ontological security in the mobile communication literature. This article addresses this gap by exploring the risk perceptions of individuals in the wake of these riots, specifically, their reactions to the new surveillance measures and policing of text messaging. This qualitative study uses empirical data collected from 30 one-on-one interviews conducted 12 to 16 months after the riots. To provide a theoretical framework for these risk perceptions Anthony Giddens’ notion of ontological security, the inner balance between trust and anxiety is used. The data analysis shows that while individuals risk perceptions are complex and contradictory, they use a range of methods to create a balance between trust and anxiety. This article argues that to manage fear in a present or perceived threat, individuals are disposed to mediate any actual or perceived risks by bracketing out anxieties to manage their everyday lives.
Highlights
Since the war-on-terror, information gathering and the monitoring of everyday life is pervasive and, in some cases, expected by the general public
A culture of fear is driven by “risk perceptions,” as Furedi asserts “fears about the future are linked to anxieties about problems today’ (2002, p. 18); risk perceptions are expressed through shared cultural beliefs and political judgments about an uncertain future (Wilkinson, 2001a, 2001b, and 2010)
After the Cronulla riots in December 2005, Sydneysiders risk perceptions escalated from the threat of further violence to terrorism
Summary
Since the war-on-terror, information gathering and the monitoring of everyday life is pervasive and, in some cases, expected by the general public. The label “of Middle Eastern appearance” has a history of use in Australian broadcast media dating back to the late 1990s and peaking in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in New York on 11th September 2001 (Collins, Noble, Poynting, & Tabar, 2000; Poynting, Noble, Tabar, & Collins, 2004) This relatively unremarkable squabble between seven young men at Cronulla Beach resulted in an outpour of public indignation. On 10th December, NSW State Police Commissioner Ken Moroney issued a statement saying that there would be no tolerance of antisocial or violent behavior, and advised everyone to ignore text messages and emails enlisting people to attend Cronulla Beach the following day In this public statement, Police Commissioner Ken Moroney said that his officers had launched an investigation into who was responsible for initiating the chain text messages (Australian Broadcasting Corporation [ABC], 2005a; Moroney, 2005)
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