TY - JOUR
T1 - Some dared call it torture
T2 - Cultural resonance, Abu Ghraib, and a selectively echoing press
AU - Rowling, Charles M.
AU - Jones, Timothy M.
AU - Sheets, Penelope
PY - 2011/12
Y1 - 2011/12
N2 - This study draws upon research on "indexing" and "cascading activation" to explore U.S. political and news discourse surrounding the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. Specifically, we systematically analyze White House, military, congressional, and news messages. In so doing, we incorporate scholarship on social identity theory to suggest why news media challenge certain White House frames but uncritically echo others. Our data demonstrate that White House frames were consistently challenged by Democrats in the opposing party, but that these competing congressional messages were largely absent in news coverage. These results challenge previous research on news coverage of Abu Ghraib. We discuss how these patterns align with and expand Entman's cascading activation model of press-state relations, and consider the implications for future scholarship.
AB - This study draws upon research on "indexing" and "cascading activation" to explore U.S. political and news discourse surrounding the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. Specifically, we systematically analyze White House, military, congressional, and news messages. In so doing, we incorporate scholarship on social identity theory to suggest why news media challenge certain White House frames but uncritically echo others. Our data demonstrate that White House frames were consistently challenged by Democrats in the opposing party, but that these competing congressional messages were largely absent in news coverage. These results challenge previous research on news coverage of Abu Ghraib. We discuss how these patterns align with and expand Entman's cascading activation model of press-state relations, and consider the implications for future scholarship.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=83155176244&partnerID=8YFLogxK
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U2 - 10.1111/j.1460-2466.2011.01600.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1460-2466.2011.01600.x
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:83155176244
SN - 0021-9916
VL - 61
SP - 1043
EP - 1061
JO - Journal of Communication
JF - Journal of Communication
IS - 6
ER -