This book investigates how news media and social control institutions systematically construct a discourse of fear to manipulate public perception and expand state authority. David L. Altheide, a professor of sociology, utilizes extensive media analysis and historical data to demonstrate how the constant framing of danger and risk serves the interests of specific organizations. He argues that this manufactured environment of anxiety shifts public focus toward punitive social control and away from addressing systemic issues.

Experts in media studies and sociology frequently cite this work as a foundational text for understanding the intersection of mass communication and social control. Readers often note the academic density of the prose, which provides a rigorous framework for analyzing how modern news media shapes societal priorities.