Call for papers:
Representations of the Poor and the Politics of Welfare Reform: ‘Benefits Street’ and Beyond Recent public debate in the UK surrounding Channel 4’s ‘Benefits Street’ documentary has highlighted an apparent proliferation of media representations of unemployed and/or working class lives that emphasise themes such as dependency, laziness, anti-social behaviour and criminality. At the same time, welfare reform has become increasingly central to public debate and policy making in many countries across the world. This rapid response call invites sociological consideration of the relationships between contemporary cultural representations of the poor and political/ideological developments with respect to welfare and social security.