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Blame Frames

Abigail C Saguy

in What's Wrong with Fat?: The War on Obesity and its Collateral Damage

This chapter examines the main ways in which blame and responsibility for a perceived obesity epidemic are typically framed, including as resulting from bad individual choices, sociocultural factors, ... More

This chapter examines the main ways in which blame and responsibility for a perceived obesity epidemic are typically framed, including as resulting from bad individual choices, sociocultural factors, or genetics/biology. It provides both a detailed discussion of the internal logic of each of these frames, as well as the relative power of their advocates. Drawing on a comparison of 261 articles on overweight or obesity and 70 U.S. news articles on eating disorders—all published in The New York Times and Newsweek between 1995 and 2005—the chapter examines the extent to which there is greater tendency to evoke a personal responsibility frame when discussing obesity than when discussing other issues. It shows that U.S. news reports are more likely to blame people for being “too fat” than for having eating disorders that lead them to be “too thin.” Drawing on a comparison of these U.S. articles with 108 French news reports on obesity, the chapter further examines the extent to which an emphasis on personal responsibility is especially pronounced in the United States. It shows that, while the U.S. news media stress individual responsibility for obesity, the French news reports tend to emphasize sociocultural and individual factors more equally.Less

Murder, Honor, and Culture: Mediatized Debates on Muslims and Domestic Violence

Juliane Hammer

in Peaceful Families: American Muslim Efforts against Domestic Violence

This chapter analyzes debates about Muslims and domestic violence in mainstream U.S. media outlets and other publications. It traces the attempts at self-representation by Muslims and at taking ... More

This chapter analyzes debates about Muslims and domestic violence in mainstream U.S. media outlets and other publications. It traces the attempts at self-representation by Muslims and at taking control of the narratives that surround reporting on domestic violence (DV) incidents in Muslim communities. Central to discussions of Muslims and DV are the othering of Muslim communities through insisting on honor and honor killings as the only available frame and the simultaneous construction of Muslims as foreign to the United States through notions of culture that can include racialization as well as religious othering. The chapter then explores the connection between political goals and media production as they intersect with the lives of American Muslims and with the work of Muslim advocates against domestic violence. It also looks at a particular domestic violence murder in 2009, that of Aasiya Zubair, and its aftermath.Less

Introduction

Michael G. Lacy and Kent A. Ono

in Critical Rhetorics of Race

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the paradoxical representations of race in contemporary U.S. media culture. Racism ranges from everyday racism experienced by individuals in private ... More

This introductory chapter provides an overview of the paradoxical representations of race in contemporary U.S. media culture. Racism ranges from everyday racism experienced by individuals in private contexts to longstanding structural inequalities and conditions. Media indicates that the United States is a post-racial society, in which race and racism are passé relics of a bygone era. Yet, those same media bombard the audience daily with spectacles of racial violence and disturbing racist images that serve as evidence that race and racism are alive and well in the United States. Thus, this book shows that race and racism are very much part of contemporary daily life in the U.S. race, racism, contemporary United States, media culture, post-racial society, racial violence.Less

The War of Words: Winning Hearts and Minds

Jose V. Fuentecilla

in Fighting from a Distance: How Filipino Exiles Helped Topple a Dictator

This chapter details the continuous lobbying and organizing efforts of political exiles as well as their efforts to draw attention to their anti-Marcos and anti-martial law rhetoric. Reflecting their ... More

This chapter details the continuous lobbying and organizing efforts of political exiles as well as their efforts to draw attention to their anti-Marcos and anti-martial law rhetoric. Reflecting their bias for a free press and scorn for the controlled press in the Philippines, the major U.S. media consistently gave the exiles favorable coverage. By and large, the exiles had won the media war in the United States against the regime. The generally critical attitude of the U.S. media acutely troubled Mrs. Marcos. She summoned the American ambassador, Michael Armacost, to express her husband's “anxieties about his upcoming [1982] visit to the USA.” The regime countered as best as it could. During the first year of martial law, it ran colorful multipage spreads in influential U.S. business magazines such as Fortune and Business Week. The message: there was a new, much better investment climate in the country, and it was a safe tourist destination.Less

The Spirit of Geneva

in Apocalypse Management: Eisenhower and the Discourse of National Insecurity

This chapter describes the symbolic meanings of the Geneva summit. It is observed that the summit had created only one tangible outcome: a commitment to keep on talking. The U.S. media implored that ... More

This chapter describes the symbolic meanings of the Geneva summit. It is observed that the summit had created only one tangible outcome: a commitment to keep on talking. The U.S. media implored that the cold war still had to be waged with unabated fervor in spite of the new “spirit of Geneva.” The press reports made static balance the substance of “the spirit of Geneva.” President Dwight Eisenhower had his highest popularity rating ever in the Geneva summit. The triumph of apocalypse management may be due to the power of the news media. In addition, apocalypse management was appealing due to its innovative change and familiar continuity in public discourse. Furthermore, the public language of Eisenhower mixed reassuring words of optimism with words of anxiety.Less

“Electronic Sheets” and a New Progressive Counterpublic

Micaela di Leonardo

in Black Radio/Black Resistance: The Life & Times of the Tom Joyner Morning Show

This chapter lays out the shifting American political/racial mediascape and the TJMS’s place within it. The chapter further outlines the fissioned public sphere—majority outlets are at least ... More

This chapter lays out the shifting American political/racial mediascape and the TJMS’s place within it. The chapter further outlines the fissioned public sphere—majority outlets are at least minimally anti-racist/women’s rights/anti-xenophobic, but there is a consolidation of vilely racist/misogynist/xenophobic outlets across American media. It documents Tom Joyner’s announcement that the show will end in Autumn 2019, and the avalanche of horrified and hilarious crew and audience reactions. It also specifies the evolving political economy of music radio and the rise of music streaming services spelling its demise. Finally, the chapter speculates on the future of a synergistic cross-medium progressive public sphere.Less