Satanic Panic in the 21st Century

Anna J. Brecke revisits the Satanic Panic of the 1980s in the context of contemporary conspiracy movements such as QAnon. Challenging the frequent dismissal of the Satanic Panic as a cultural fluke, this book places it in the sociocultural context in which conspiratorial narratives have been produced and circulated through various media channels, perpetuating rumors and stoking public hysteria about Satan, Satanism, and Satanic cults since the original “panic era” of the 1980s. Although quickly written off by many, Brecke contends that the underlying currents of these panics continue to live on, recently resurfacing in the cultural zeitgeist in a new conspiratorial context - QAnon.Through a survey of both fictional and (purportedly) factual treatments of the topic in American popular culture, Brecke identifies recurring themes in the unsubstantiated allegations being made, such as the hidden influence of vast, shadowy networks of demonic cults and the ritual abduction, abuse, and sacrifice of children. The cultural core of this hysteria, she posits, stem not from a fear of Satanism itself, but of some existential threat to the “right” version of the American family - as defined by conservative politicians and promoted in the media during the Reagan and Trump eras.