Buzz
A common belief is that Satan is on a mission to recruit, particularly through popular distractions targeting young people. When he isn’t supposedly influencing youth by embedding hidden messages in rock music, he’s reportedly altering their minds through games like Dungeons & Dragons. These are just two recent examples of things that ignited moral panics among worried parents, politicians, and social groups eager to find someone to blame. But these incidents are far from the first.
10. Pinball Machines
While many of us view pinball machines as innocent entertainment, New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia had a very different opinion. In 1942, he saw pinball as a form of gambling that was ruining America’s youth. He further claimed that pinball machines were controlled by the mob, just like most gambling establishments of the era. LaGuardia even used the argument that ‘pinball is the devil’s tool’ to gain support from temperance groups. In January 1942, he successfully pushed to have pinball banned in New York, even without money being involved.
LaGuardia orchestrated photo ops where he and police officers would smash pinball machines, echoing the same actions that were taken with alcohol barrels during Prohibition. He also exploited the Pearl Harbor attack, claiming that the metal used in pinball machines could be better utilized for military weapons and artillery. Soon after, other major cities like Chicago and Los Angeles followed New York's example and banned pinball as well.
In New York, the pinball ban lasted until 1976. When the ban was lifted, a skilled pinball player had to prove to the New York City Council that playing pinball required skill and wasn’t just a game of chance to score high.
9. Postboxes
Anthony Trollope was one of the most accomplished English writers of the Victorian period, but he also had a unique achievement—the introduction of the postbox in Britain. While he wasn’t the first to propose the idea, it was his suggestion that led to the postbox being adopted in the Channel Islands in 1854. Just a year later, postboxes appeared on mainland Britain. Eventually, the red pillar-box (which was initially green) became a British cultural symbol. Today, there are over 100,000 postboxes in the UK.
However, the immediate popularity of postboxes faced resistance from a group of traditionalists who disapproved of the newfound independence they offered to young women. Oddly enough, this group included Trollope himself.
With the introduction of postboxes, women gained the ability to correspond freely and privately. Before this, young women had to rely on their parents to send letters for them, meaning their parents had to approve of any potential romantic interests. Parents feared that the new ability of their daughters to connect with unsuitable men would tarnish their family’s reputation.
8. Teletubbies
A children’s show targeted at preschoolers, Teletubbies aired in Britain from 1997 to 2001. The show featured four toddler-like, anthropomorphic aliens, with colorful design elements both in the characters themselves and their surroundings. However, Tinky Winky, the oldest Teletubby, became the subject of controversy. He was accused of being a hidden gay role model because he was purple, carried a magic bag, and had a triangular antenna.
This perspective was mainly pushed by American pastor and anti-gay activist Jerry Falwell, who interpreted the purple color and triangular antenna as secret symbols of the gay pride movement. The show's creators denied any such symbolism, emphasizing that each Teletubby had a distinct, bright color, and argued it would be senseless to incorporate sexual symbolism in a show aimed at children aged 1–4 with extraterrestrial characters.
Although the Falwell-driven controversy began in 1999, the accusations about Tinky Winky’s hidden sexuality persisted. In 2007, a similar claim emerged in Poland after a children’s rights official criticized Tinky Winky for carrying a handbag despite being male. At the time, the Polish government was seeking to reduce the influence of homosexuality on children, and a psychological evaluation was ordered to assess whether Teletubbies promoted a gay lifestyle.
7. Strawberry Quik
In their desire to protect their children, parents often believe unfounded rumors, triggering moral panics over things that aren't even real. For example, around 2007, a rumor spread online suggesting that drug dealers were using coloring and flavoring to disguise methamphetamine as Nesquik strawberry powder (commonly known as “strawberry Quik”) to sell it to young kids.
While drug dealers sometimes color their meth to brand it, there’s no evidence to suggest that this was done to make it more appealing to elementary and middle school children. Despite this, many parents, schools, and local law enforcement agencies were swayed by the rumor. An investigation by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) debunked the claim, labeling it as an urban legend.
Nevertheless, the strawberry Quik meth myth continued to spread to other countries, and their law enforcement agencies ultimately reached the same conclusion as the DEA.
6. Dancing
Today, many people argue that certain dances are too sexual and corrupting the youth. While twerking may be the most recent target, moral panics over sensual dances have existed for centuries, with the waltz being one of the earliest examples.
A few centuries ago, two main issues were raised about the waltz. First, it was considered overly intimate, involving too much touching. Although people typically wore gloves, the close physical contact was deemed too risqué for 18th-century Vienna. Second, it lacked the structure and grace of traditional ballroom dancing. There was no specific pattern, and couples could waltz with little regard for the other dancers around them.
Initially, the waltz was a dance enjoyed by the working class in 18th-century German states. Gradually, it made its way into high society, and by the 19th century, it became one of the most fashionable dances worldwide. Despite moral objections from religious figures, the waltz's popularity continued to rise. It spread from Vienna to other areas, where it sparked similar controversy. In England, for instance, it was criticized as an immoral display for “prostitutes and adulteresses,” but not appropriate for respectable people.
5. The Telegraph
Newspapers frequently criticized the telegraph, possibly out of fear of becoming obsolete. (They later did the same with radio.) They argued that the telegraph's rapid news delivery was excessive. If it took just 10 days for news to travel from Europe to America and vice versa, what need was there to deliver it in 10 minutes? The traditional media labeled the telegraph as unreliable and shallow.
The US government was also skeptical of the device. When Samuel Morse proposed selling his telegraph system to the government for $100,000, they declined. Some politicians viewed the telegraph as a potential tool for harm, while others were more pragmatic, believing that the costs of setting up and maintaining a telegraph system between two cities would far exceed any potential profits.
4. LSD Tattoos
Long before the fear of strawberry Quik meth surfaced, there were concerns about LSD-laced temporary tattoos. These tattoos were supposedly aimed at children to hook them on the drug.
Beginning in the 1970s or ’80s, this tale spread from one parent to another via flyers. While the origin of the myth remains unclear, one source suggests a report from the Narcotics Bureau of the New Jersey State Police.
The flyers claimed that these tattoos often appeared as blue stars but were also found in the form of popular cartoon characters like Mickey Mouse and Superman. Allegedly, these designs made the tattoos more attractive to children. The flyers further warned that the LSD used in these tattoos had led to fatalities among children, as it was supposedly mixed with strychnine.
Aside from the fact that there are no recorded cases of such incidents, the flyers were filled with inaccuracies. First off, LSD is not an addictive substance and does not contain strychnine. Additionally, while LSD can come on blotter paper shaped like cartoon characters, it is typically chewed, not tattooed.
3. The Lightning Rod
The lightning rod is one of Benjamin Franklin’s often-overlooked innovations. Though he introduced it in the mid-18th century, it took several decades for it to gain acceptance, as the Church branded it heretical at first.
Church leaders viewed lightning as the wrath of God, and any effort to prevent it was believed to provoke further divine wrath. Their solution during thunderstorms was to send someone up the tower to ring the bells, hoping to appease God, though this practice led to many electrocution deaths each year. Attempting to ‘control the artillery of heaven’ with Franklin’s lightning rod was considered blasphemous.
Thomas Prince, a pastor in Boston, even blamed Franklin for the Massachusetts earthquake of 1755. He claimed that because God could no longer strike from the heavens, He caused the earth to tremble beneath them instead.
Luckily, Franklin had significant influence and influential allies. As a result, the lightning rod gradually became widely adopted. The fact that it also led to a noticeable reduction in the number of fatalities among church bell ringers equipped with lightning rods helped its cause.
In time, the practical benefits of preventing lightning strikes began to outweigh the religious opposition. In 1767, the same year that a church in Brescia, Italy, refused to install a ‘heretical rod,’ the building was struck by lightning while storing vast quantities of gunpowder. The subsequent explosion claimed the lives of 3,000 people and destroyed one-sixth of the city.
2. Chess
Many critics argue that video games waste time and encourage violent behavior, suggesting that people should instead engage in chess, an intellectually stimulating game. However, similar complaints about chess were heard 150 years ago.
In the past, some critics simply dismissed the game as dull and isolating: two players sitting in near silence for hours, resisting any interruptions or distractions. Many ridiculed the idea that chess could be viewed as an intellectual or strategic pursuit in any sense.
Scientific American cautioned against the 'dreary' nature of chess, advising that it should not be played by those in sedentary jobs or intellectual fields as it 'misdirects and drains their intellectual energy.' It was argued that since chess didn't 'contribute a single new fact to the mind' or 'inspire a single beautiful thought' and required extensive practice, young men were urged to avoid it if they wanted to be 'productive in life.'
The most vocal critics argued that chess could encourage violent behavior, particularly among those prone to obsessive tendencies. The militaristic nature of the game was out of the ordinary at the time. Furthermore, the intense significance attached to either victory or defeat likely led players to take the game too seriously.
1. The Phonograph
Many people were displeased when Edison introduced the phonograph. As expected, newspapers were quick to condemn this new form of media that posed a potential threat to the traditional written word.
The New York Times claimed that the phonograph would 'destroy all confidence' between people. The newspaper warned that the constant worry of being recorded would make individuals afraid to speak anything other than the dullest and most harmless words, even in the privacy of their own homes. They predicted that the recordings would capture children cursing, young men making inappropriate comments to women, and women gossiping about how unattractive their friends' furniture was.
As if that wasn't enough, Edison also invented the 'aerophone' (not the wind instrument), a device capable of amplifying sound so powerfully that it could be heard up to 6 kilometers (4 miles) away. The fear was that this would result in constant noise day and night, forcing people to take refuge in forests, ushering humanity back into a new Stone Age.
Musicians were also critical of the phonograph. John Philip Sousa, known as 'The March King,' was a vocal opponent of mechanical music, often stating that the phonograph would mark the end of music. Moreover, the phonograph enabled people to enjoy his music without compensating him for it.
