The events were labelled the London 'riots’.
- What are the connotations of the word ‘riot’?
When somebody is rioting it usually means that they are rejecting authority, and it is usually a more violent protest. riots can be very aggressive and costly and are usually politically based as they are fighting against the order.
- Why not ‘civil unrest’, ‘dispute’ or ‘protest’?
They did not use the terms civil unrest or dispute or svn protest as these terms are simply to soft and weak to reflect the emotions and aggression which was shown. another reason why is because they might want to prosecute the people who where in the "riots" so they would give them a much harsher label to get their point across, so instantly people would believe that they are doing something wrong, because of the preconceptions which they have on riots.
One of the most popular images used by newspapers was the iconic image of a masked man on the streets of Hackney in front of a burning car.
Here is the image as it was used by The Guardian newspaper.
- Why was this image used by the newspaper?
This image was used by the newspapers as it clearly identified the points which they where trying to get across. because hoodies and track suits are commonly associated with teens and youths, this was the perfect image to show that the people who where doing these "riots" where teens and youths, because of the clearly identified attire. now they had clearly identified who is in the riots, they then show what they where doing. This is shown by the burning car in the background. showing the burning car tells us that the youths are causing significant and costly damage to other peoples properties and they show a lack of respect to the owner, as long as they cause trouble. Because the hooded "youth" is causally strolling past the burning cars it shows that they don't care, about what happening, and somebody who doesn't care about their scions no matter how violent and volatile it is "is a danger to society" and will burn it down.
- What does this image represent?
Overall the image represents the lack of respect of peoples property and clear violence which the youths are capable of, making them a danger to society.
The report accompanying the above picture in The Guardian read as follows:
The prime minister cut short his holiday and flew back to Britain as London witnessed devastating scenes of violence stretching the emergency services beyond limit on a third night of rioting in the capital.
Buildings were torched, shops ransacked, and officers attacked with makeshift missiles and petrol bombs as gangs of hooded and masked youths laid waste to streets right across the city.
The sheer number of incidents – including in Hackney, Croydon, Peckham, Lewisham, Clapham and Ealing – seemingly overwhelmed the Metropolitan police at times, who had poured 1,700 extra officers onto the streets.
Disturbances continued into the early hours on a breathtaking scale, and they spread outside London for the first time with riots reported in Birmingham and Liverpool.
David Cameron, forced to break off from holiday in Tuscany, was this morning due to chair a meeting of the government's emergency committee, Cobra. He was travelling on a UK military flight leaving Italy at 3am. Asked why the prime minister had now decided to return, a Downing Street source said: "The situation has become more serious."
Officers from Thames Valley, Essex, Kent, Surrey and City of London were drafted in to support the Met. But apparent "copycat" riots continued to spread in the wake of Tottenham's riots on Saturday precipitated by the fatal shooting by police of Mark Duggan, 29, a father of four, last Thursday. So far 225 people have been arrested and 36 charged.
The violence erupted in daylight in Hackney, east London, where police confronted rioters hurling missiles and setting fire to bins and cars. One officer could be seen lying on the ground after being struck on his shield by a missile.
In Hackney's Pembury Estate, the centre of the violence in east London, masked youths – both men and women – helped carry debris, bins, sticks and motorbikes, laying them across the roads to form a flaming boundary to the estate.
Several buildings were set alight in Croydon, south London, one massive fire consuming the 100-year-old Reeves furniture store. The fires were so severe that approach roads into Croydon were thick with smoke leaving some residents struggling to see or breathe. "Words fail me. It's just gone, it's five generations. My father is distraught at the moment. It's just mindless thuggery," said owner Trevor Reeves.
A bus was torched in Peckham as police struggled to respond to the spread of sporadic incidents. Witnesses said a 100-strong mob cheered as a shop in the centre of Peckham was torched and one masked thug shouted: "The West End's going down next."
A baker's next door was also alight. One onlooker said: "The mob were just standing there cheering and laughing. Others were just watching on from their homes open-mouthed in horror."
A trail of bins and abandoned vehicles were ablaze in Lewisham.
At Clapham junction, looters – some as young as 14 – moved from shop to shop laughing as they smashed shop windows and clearing shelves of stock, unimpeded by over-burdened police.
Tim Godwin, acting Metropolitan police commissioner, made a direct appeal to parents to get their children off the streets. "I do urge now that parents start contacting their children, and ask themselves where their children are," he said. "There are far too many spectators who are getting in the way of the police operation to tackle criminal thuggery and burglary." He said "significant disorder" had broken out in many communities. These included incidents in Camden, Bethnal Green where a Tesco was looted and two officers hurt, Stratford, Notting Hill, Colliers Wood and Dalston.
Reassuring Londoners police were there in numbers, Godwin added: "We remain steadfast and determined."
The unrest spread beyond London with West Midlands police confirming outbreaks of disorder in Birmingham city centre. Shops including a branch of Louis Vuitton had windows smashed and were looted. An unmanned police station in Handsworth was torched. Extra officers were being sent into the streets of Britain's second city.
Merseyside police also confirmed 'a number of isolated outbreaks of disorder," including burning cars and criminal damage in south Liverpool.
Boris Johnson, mayor of London, also cut his holiday in North America short and was returning overnight. Kit Malthouse, London's deputy mayor of policing, said: "I don't think anybody could have predicted this sort of horrendous spectacle." As the home secretary, Theresa May, broke off her holiday to return to London, she condemned the "sheer criminality" of the violence. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stephen Kavanagh said one-third more officers were available on Monday night than on Sunday, when shops were ransacked and torched in Brixton, south London, and trouble reported in Enfield, Edmonton, Walthamstow and Islington.
Kavanagh vowed to deliver "speedy justice" for Londoners, condemning the waves of looting as "disgusting behaviour, ripping apart people's livelihoods and businesses".
In a bid to contain the trouble , Scotland Yard introduced special powers in four areas – Lambeth, Haringey, Enfield and Waltham Forest, allowing stop and search without reasonable suspicion. The section 60 powers were invoked at midnight on Sunday. One incident of stop and search in Hackney was reportedly the catalyst for violence which erupted in Mare Street shortly after 4pm, and saw local hooded youths battle police.
The Guardian understands senior officers are prepared to add more areas to the list. The special powers have been perceived as targeting certain ethnic groups, thus fuelling tensions.
Meanwhile, the maker of the BlackBerry smartphones, Research in Motion, said it would co-operate with a police investigation into claims its popular BlackBerry Messenger service played a key role in organising the London riots.
Brixton bore the brunt of Sunday's violence. The Lambeth council leader, Steve Reed, said: "We are asking the mayor's office for additional police for tonight and the next few nights." Condemning the "copycat activity", he said: "Somebody described it as gangs of kids doing Supermarket Sweep. It was Curry's where they were after plasma screen TVs, and H&M and Foot Locker where it was clothes and trainers. It wasn't about social issues, it was an opportunity to go on the rob."
Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, visiting Tottenham, said the violence would leave "big scars" on the community. Surveying the wreckage after the torching of businesses and homes in Tottenham High Road, he spoke to Steve Moore, who lost his jewellery shop in Saturday's violence. "I'm devastated, it's completely gone. My shop just doesn't exist anymore," Moore told him.
Referring to the "copycat" violence across London, Clegg said: "Let's be clear, the violence we saw last night had absolutely nothing to do with the death of Mr Duggan. It was needless, opportunist theft and violence – nothing more, nothing less."
Boris Johnson released a statement describing the scenes of violence and destruction as "utterly appalling".
"I understand the need for urgent answers into the shooting incident that resulted in the death of a young man and I've sought reassurances that the IPCC are doing exactly that," he said. "But, let's be clear – these acts of sheer criminality across London are nothing to do with this incident and must stop now."
- How does the manner in which The Guardian have presented information potentially affect the collective identity of all young people in a negative way?
Just in second paragraph the guardian already starts to give blame to the riots to the youth. the guardian refers to the youth and only the youth so anything which comes after this paragraph is going to be about the youth. in the middle section of this article they focus a lot on the prim minister, and other positions being called back from their holidays. this shows that the problem had gotten so bad it became a national problem which required some of the highest in authority to stop all they where doing and divert their attention to these teens, and it also then refers them to being burdens to the police. This shows that overall that they newspapers is saying that young people are nothing but annoyances to the police and the public.
the last section where they talk about the relation of the riots to the murder trial was where the opinions are then truly formed as they say that the people who took part in the riots where not interested in social issues it was an opportunity to go on the rob." so this makes the youths also look like they have no morals as they would take advantage of such a horrific matter and belittle it by turning it in to a chance to steel some trainers. What the guardian does is separate the murder trials from the riots completely so it looks ike the riots was just a rampage of thieving youths who just found their chance. and most proper would take this preferred reading of the text as the people who read this news paper are mostly middle aged middle working to middle class people who dissociate them selves to the sort of people who are describes in the paper.
Secondly;
The Daily Mirror reported of “Young thugs with fire in their eyes and nothing but destruction
on their minds.”
This comment accompanied a front page with the headline “Yob rule”
- How has the event been represented by The Daily Mirror through their choice words and image?
The term young rule shows that the youth is trying to rebel against the government in some from and they want to have more control or power, but its the term yob when you brake it down which has a greater effect as it means rude loud and aggressive youth. slits not a matter of youth rule it that its the loud aggressive youths how are in this category. however they are the saying that everyone at these riots was young and only the young are to blame. they also use the term "fire in their eyes" this shows that they are angered and they would do anything at this stage therefor they are a danger to society, they are also most demonising them as they have fire in their eye which refers back to Stanley Cohen term of folk devils being created by the media.

Thirdly;
Max Hastings wrote an article in The Daily Mail with some controversial representations of
youth.
The article can be viewed by clicking here.
As you read the article, think about how youth are represented.

- Explain how the collective identity of youth is potentially affected by the article, using quotations to support your arguments.
