It has been suggested that moral panics have their origins in moral crusades such as:

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All of these moral crusades involved a societal fear or outrage towards a particular behavior or group of people that was deemed immoral or threatening to society. These fears were often exaggerated and led to moral panics, where the public became extremely anxious and demanded action to be taken against the perceived threat. The Prohibition Movement resulted in a moral panic around alcohol consumption, the European witch hunts and the Salem witch hunts resulted in moral panics around witchcraft and its supposed ties to the devil.

It Has Been Suggested That Moral Panics Have Their Origins