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Risk Stories in the Media: Food Consumption, Risk and Anxiety

Fuentes, Maria LU and Fuentes, Christian LU orcid (2015) In Food, Culture & Society 18(1). p.71-87
Abstract
Although media-fueled food scares are often described as linked to consumers’ food anxieties, previous studies of food consumption have failed to explore fully how foodscare reports add to consumers’ anxieties. Using a relational theory of risk and a narrative approach, this article highlights how food-scare reports, through various risk accounts, create anxiety-inducing stories where consumers are appointed as handlers of conflicting food risks. Based on material collected from a 2009 Swedish food scare, the article suggests that food-scare reports construct multiple conflicting risks. The analysis also shows that news reports make consumers responsible for handling these risks and, in addition, involve conflicting instructions regarding... (More)
Although media-fueled food scares are often described as linked to consumers’ food anxieties, previous studies of food consumption have failed to explore fully how foodscare reports add to consumers’ anxieties. Using a relational theory of risk and a narrative approach, this article highlights how food-scare reports, through various risk accounts, create anxiety-inducing stories where consumers are appointed as handlers of conflicting food risks. Based on material collected from a 2009 Swedish food scare, the article suggests that food-scare reports construct multiple conflicting risks. The analysis also shows that news reports make consumers responsible for handling these risks and, in addition, involve conflicting instructions regarding how consumers should handle the risks described. The article concludes that it is the combination of conflicting risks and conflicting prescriptions for handling those risks that feeds consumers’ anxieties. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
food consumption, risk, anxiety, food scares, media, narrative
in
Food, Culture & Society
volume
18
issue
1
pages
71 - 87
publisher
Bloomsbury Publishing
external identifiers
  • wos:000350523500004
  • scopus:84943546587
ISSN
1552-8014
DOI
10.2752/175174415X14101814953882
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
83e983c0-892c-40ed-bcd5-6c0bbb1d891c (old id 4938974)
alternative location
http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/bloomsbury/fcs/2015/00000018/00000001/art00004
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 13:05:42
date last changed
2024-06-05 07:34:09
@article{83e983c0-892c-40ed-bcd5-6c0bbb1d891c,
  abstract     = {{Although media-fueled food scares are often described as linked to consumers’ food anxieties, previous studies of food consumption have failed to explore fully how foodscare reports add to consumers’ anxieties. Using a relational theory of risk and a narrative approach, this article highlights how food-scare reports, through various risk accounts, create anxiety-inducing stories where consumers are appointed as handlers of conflicting food risks. Based on material collected from a 2009 Swedish food scare, the article suggests that food-scare reports construct multiple conflicting risks. The analysis also shows that news reports make consumers responsible for handling these risks and, in addition, involve conflicting instructions regarding how consumers should handle the risks described. The article concludes that it is the combination of conflicting risks and conflicting prescriptions for handling those risks that feeds consumers’ anxieties.}},
  author       = {{Fuentes, Maria and Fuentes, Christian}},
  issn         = {{1552-8014}},
  keywords     = {{food consumption; risk; anxiety; food scares; media; narrative}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{71--87}},
  publisher    = {{Bloomsbury Publishing}},
  series       = {{Food, Culture & Society}},
  title        = {{Risk Stories in the Media: Food Consumption, Risk and Anxiety}},
  url          = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/3155011/5469505.pdf}},
  doi          = {{10.2752/175174415X14101814953882}},
  volume       = {{18}},
  year         = {{2015}},
}