*
Week 4: Activism and the Press
* The news media and activists *need* each other.
* Activists need to get their message to supporters & pressure
policymakers.
* Need the media to mobilize supporters.
* Need media to validate the movement or the issues (i.e., treat it as
legitimate).
* Need the media to broaden the scope of a conflict. Larger
movements have more power, especially when it attracts more
diverse participants across multiple economic, racial, ethnic,
* Journalists need stories and news topics.
* However, there are *many* topics on a given day that could be
considered newsworthy.
* As a result, activists need the press far more than journalists
need them.
* This creates a power imbalance known as the “Protest Paradigm.”
*
* A paradigm is a model or pattern that explains typical occurrences.
* The “Protest Paradigm” describes typical patterns reflected in news
coverage of protests and social activism.
* The Press does not cover movements that do not engage in newsworthy
activity
* Activists stage events to attract media attention which they need to
distribute their message to broader audiences and to signal their strength
* Journalists then cover these staged events without generating substantive
information about the events’ background or the grievances or agendas of
the movement behind the protest.
* This is then a paradox—Movements must adapt and appeal to media logic
to receive coverage but when they do, protest coverage tends to
demonize protesters, characterizing them as menaces to society,
marginalizing their voices, and under or inadequately reporting the
grievances, demands, and agendas of movements.
*
*
* It is highly unlikely that social movements will be able to accomplish their goals
without news coverage.
* Activists must worry about the quantity of the coverage (how much news
attention they receive).
* Activists must also worry about the quality of the coverage (the type of news
coverage they receive).
* Understanding the relationship between journalists and activists requires
understanding the ways in which political journalism affects public opinion.
* Agenda Setting: The media do not tell us what to think but what to think about.
* Quantity of coverage—no coverage means that an issue is invisible
* Framing: Attributes of an issue emphasized in media directly influence public
opinion.
* Quality of coverage—negative coverage means that the public turns against an issue,
an organization, or an entire movement.
* Framing and agenda setting are necessary for the agenda building process.
* Agenda building: Process through which the policy agendas of political elites are
influenced by a variety of factors, including media agendas and public agendas.
*
* The media are not so useful at telling us what to think as what to think about.
* If it is important, it is being covered by the press. If not, then it is invisible.
* The “agenda” is just what is being covered today. Look at the front page of a newspaper
or news website—that is the agenda.
* Note—this is not about an evil “agenda,” where the media are trying to get you to
believe something.
* Remember, the media are not a single thing. Many different outlets compete with each other for the attention of
audiences.
* People have more interest in subjects that get more news coverage. At the same
time, journalists select stories that they believe the public will have greater
interest in.
* Front page of the NYT website
on September 2, 2021
* The Supreme Court allowing
Texas’s ban on abortions is
the top of the agenda,
followed by the deaths in
New York as a result of
Hurricane Ida.
* The newspaper is telling us
that this is important.
*
*
* Agenda-setting focuses on *amount* of coverage while framing focuses
on the *tone* of the coverage.
* Every story has a frame. They are unavoidable.
* News stories have an infinite amount of details associated with them.
Some journalists will focus on some details at the expense of others.
* Think of when you and a friend have told the same story. You probably
were struck by some element, your friend another. If you told the story
together, a more complete version of the event was relayed for the
audience. But if you told the story individually, there are some details
that would strike you as more important and others that your friend
would focus on.
* A frame includes:
* Problem definition
* Proposed cause of problem
* Moral evaluation
* Proposed remedy for the problem
* The effects of framing is that attributes of an issue emphasized in
media directly influence public opinion.
* News frames used by “mainstream” media can emphasize behavior or issues.
Behavior frames tend to negatively affect public opinion while issue frames
give the activists a voice and legitimize the movement.
* Behavior frames:
* Riot: emphasizes violent, deviant, and disruptive behavior.
* Confrontation: focuses on conflicts with authorities, police, and opposition.
* Even if no violence occurs, the coverage emphasizes the potential for violence, focusing on
how authorities are preparing for criminal behavior.
* Spectacle: highlights whatever is sensational or “out-of-the-ordinary” about a protest (such
as costumes, singing, dances, or other tactics that are less commonly used and make
compelling visuals). The focus is on drama, as well as individual actions and story. This is
the most common frame used in protest coverage.
* Issue frame:
* Debate: discusses the agenda and the demands of the protesters. Uses protesters as
sources, granting legitimacy to their claims.
* Behavior frames most common in coverage of indigenous peoples and racial
protests (both anti-racism and those upholding white/Western supremacy).
* Issue frames more common in coverage of protests about health, the
environment, and immigration.
*
*
* Activists try to influence three types of agendas
* Media Agenda—what is being discussed by the media
* Policy Agenda—the actions or procedures currently being promoted or discussed by
politicians & policy-makers
* Public Agenda—what the public wants to see happen in government
* All three agendas affect each other
* Public can affect media which can affect policy
* Example: public is concerned about health care costs → Media cover this concern→ Policy-
makers pass healthcare laws
* Policy-makers can affect media which can affect public
* Example: Policy-makers believe it is necessary to pass a tax cut → Media cover this → public
debates the policy of tax cuts
* Media can affect public which can affect policy
* Example: Journalist becomes aware of an issue and publishes a story → the public becomes
concerned about the issue and start lobbying government → policy-makers pass laws.
* And so on… (see Model on next slide)
*
Personal Experience and Interpersonal
Communication Among Elites and Other
Gatekeepers, Influential Media, and
Individuals
Spectacular News Events
Media Public
Agenda Agenda Policy Agenda
Real-World Indicators of the
Importance of an Agenda Issue or
Event
Social movements attempt to influence agendas on the outside, by
creating events too big for media to ignore, by gaining the support of
elites, or by being treated as legitimate (or even “elites”) themselves.
* Another way the news media can legitimize a movement is
through sourcing.
* Sourcing focuses on who or what is used as a source of news
coverage.
* For example, direct quotes, reports, statistics, etc. See example
below.
* Government officials most often used as
sources.
* If government officials support a movement
or protest, it is more likely to be portrayed
as legitimate.
*
From Vivian Wang, “It Feels Like We’re Just Waiting to Die’: Hong Kong Targets
Student Unions,” NYT, 8/1/2021.
* When are activists and social movement organizations more likely to get
favorable coverage?
* When they have more resources and more professional-style organizations
with defined leaders & goals
* When they can partner with other organizations that share similar goals
* Especially if one organization engages in dramatic tactics that captures media
attention while the other acts as a more legitimate, “serious” representative for a
cause.
* When activists’ demands are relatively narrow, in favor of a particular policy,
rather than completely changing power dynamics in society
* When they have elite support
* The legitimacy of elites vary. Political elites (policy-makers), authority elites (police
or military figures), and global or national business elites have the most power in
legitimizing a movement or a cause. Educational elites (such as professors) have
some power. Last in ranking are entertainment elites, such as athletes or
entertainers. This last category is good for attracting media attention (spectacle
framing) but has less power than other types of elites in legitimizing a movement.
