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The growth of film 'piracy' has become an increasingly high-profile issue. Business groups, national governments, international organizations and law enforcement agencies have claimed that 'piracy' has undergone near-exponential growth, doing untold damage to the movie industry. This article attempts to critically examine this apparent 'epidemic'. Two contrasting types of explanation are explored. The first treats the rise in film 'piracy' as the real effect of a range of social, economic and technological changes. However, the second perspective takes a more critical stance towards 'official' discourse, and suggests that the 'epidemic' in fact ought to be seen as the product of shifting legal regimes, lobbying activities, rhetorical manoeuvres, criminal justice agendas, and 'interested' or 'partial' processes of statistical inference. I suggest that this latter reading of 'piracy' as a 'social construction' is a necessary and valuable counter to an industry-led discourse that tends to obscure rather than illuminate the complex array of processes at work.

The issue of how globalization processes contribute to social inequality is studied; in addition, the emergence of political resistance to globalization processes is examined. An overview of how economic, cultural, & environmental forms of globalization foster social inequality is presented. It is contended that traditional liberal thought has emphasized the role of the nation-state in resolving social inequality. However, it is claimed that the aforementioned forms of globalization illustrate the nation-state's inability to properly intervene. In addition, the popular assertion that social inequality is best treated by raising political discussion & mobilization from a national to a global level is rejected. Moreover, it is demonstrated that such escalation permits the resurgence of localist social & political movements. Although the willingness of global & local movements to serve the interests of egalitarianism is questioned, it is concluded that democratic & social justice movements must be negotiated within this matrix of global & local processes. 43 References. J. W. Parker

The issue of how globalization processes contribute to social inequality is studied; in addition, the emergence of political resistance to globalization processes is examined. An overview of how economic, cultural, & environmental forms of globalization foster social inequality is presented. It is contended that traditional liberal thought has emphasized the role of the nation-state in resolving social inequality. However, it is claimed that the aforementioned forms of globalization illustrate the nation-state's inability to properly intervene. In addition, the popular assertion that social inequality is best treated by raising political discussion & mobilization from a national to a global level is rejected. Moreover, it is demonstrated that such escalation permits the resurgence of localist social & political movements. Although the willingness of global & local movements to serve the interests of egalitarianism is questioned, it is concluded that democratic & social justice movements must be negotiated within this matrix of global & local processes. 43 References. J. W. Parker

This book gathers together the leading scholars in the field to explore issues and debates surrounding internet-related crime, deviance, policing, law and regulation in the 21st century. Contributions reflect both the global nature of cybercrime problems, and the international span of scholarship addressing its challenges.

The past several decades have seen the emergence of a vigorous ongoing debate about the 'politics of recognition'. The initial impetus was provided by the reflections of Charles Taylor and others about the rights to cultural recognition of historically marginalized groups in Western societies. Since then, the parameters of the debate have considerably broadened. However, while debates about the politics of recognition have yielded significant theoretical insights into recognition, misrecognition has been relatively neglected.

Fully cross-referenced, with extensive suggestions for further reading and in-depth study of the topics discussed, this is an essential reference guide for students of Criminology at all levels. Topics covered range across sociological concepts, the justice system and the different varieties of criminal and deviant behaviour in an easy to use A to Z format

This article explores the emerging phenomenon of 'staged kidnapping', a consumer-oriented experience in which individuals voluntarily subject themselves to abduction and associated experiences of detention, deprivation, interrogation and degradation. We explore the staging, presentation and consumption of voluntary abduction through an analysis of the online marketing and reporting of the phenomenon, to consider the ways new consumerist trends alter traditional notions of hospitality. We analyse the phenomenon's emergence within the twin theoretical frames of Beck's 'risk society' thesis and Lyng's account of 'voluntary risk-taking' as a form of 'edgework'. We argue that the framing and appeal of such experiences can be fruitfully located as an element in the reflexive production of the post-traditional self, a process that requires subjects to confront and manage (materially or symbolically) the conditions of risk and uncertainty that characterize contemporary inhospitable lifeworlds.