The epidemic of scandals unleashed by the Savile Scandal highlights the precarious status of relations of trust. The rapid escalation of this crisis offers insights into the relationship between anxieties about childhood and the wider moral order. This book explains why western society has become so uncomfortable with the exercise of authority.

Frank Furedi, author and broadcaster, is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the University of Kent, UK. He has written widely on the culture of fear. His work deals with the impact of fear on discussions of childhood, health, new technology and food, and investigates the interaction between risk consciousness and perceptions of fear and trust relations in contemporary society.

1. Introduction: Scandals, Panics and Crusades 2. Jimmy Savile: Man, Monster, Celebrity 3. Remembering the past: Good Old Days - Bad Old Days 4. Childhood at Risk: How Children Became so Precious 5. The Inflation of Abuse and the Rise of the Victim 6. Modern Demonology: Ritual Abuse, Conspiracy and Cover Up 7. The Crisis of Authority and the Cult of the Judicial Inquiry 8. Conclusion: How the Moral Crusaders Harm Us All