Panic (Bloodlands collection)

by Harold Schechter

Sociologists refer to these periodic alarms as “moral panics” and describe them as a form of mass hysteria, typically ignited by a handful of shockingly similar crimes that happen in rapid succession. Sensationalistic reporting in the news media—coupled with the doomsday pronouncements of moral crusaders—persuades the public that these incidents represent a new and terrifying threat to the social order. A distinguishing feature of moral panics is that the fear they provoke is far out of proportion to any actual threat.

In a widely syndicated article, Arthur T. Cremin, founder of the New York Schools of Music, declared that, through rigorous scientific experimentation, he had obtained definitive proof of the insidious effects of swing music, particularly on the young. Enlisting the aid of two adolescent volunteers, a boy and girl who had never met before, Cremin placed them “in a room where we could watch them without being observed.” A phonograph in the room “provided a program of good music, classical pieces and popular songs such as waltzes.” Enveloped in this uplifting atmosphere, the two youngsters “were friendly, but that was all.” Some days later, the same couple was brought back into the room. Instead of a phonograph, however, the room was now equipped with a radio tuned to a station playing swing music. The effect was striking. “They were much bolder,” said Cremin. “The boy took much more leeway in his actions, and the girl didn’t object.” Before long, they had shed all moral restraint. “They necked,” Cremin reported grimly.

Like other moral panics before and since, the sex crime hysteria of 1937 had far more to do with fantasy than reality.