Lindsey E. Blumell

What a Year! The Framing of Marriage Equality Through Media’s Selected Sources in 2013

The issue of same-sex marriage continues to be a focal point in U.S. media. The topic garnered a substantial amount of attention in 2013, with the repeal of Defense of Marriage Act, the legalization of same-sex marriage in eight U.S states and five foreign countries, and the passage of the Russian Anti-Gay Law. The question at hand is how U.S. newspapers framed these stories throughout the year. The authors utilized a qualitative content analysis of source quotes included in articles about same-sex marriage in The New York Times. The findings from this analysis reveal the use of not only the traditional equality master frame but also uncovered themes of children, inevitability, political evolution, and fear. The results also unearthed a lack of human interest perspective. This study adds insight into how citizens of the United States are exposed to (and may ultimately define) the issue of same-sex marriage.

Leaving the Past (Self) Behind: Non-Reporting Rape Survivors' Narratives of Self and Action

Using a symbolic interactionist framework, this study considers the narratives of non-reporting rape survivors. We use interviews to examine the complex processes that inform a survivor’s decision not to report. Rape is not interpreted as an isolated event; it is something that is seen as caused by, connected to, and affecting the survivor’s sense of self and agency. Rape forces the survivor to reconstruct a sense of agency in the aftermath of the traumatic attack. Rather than report the rape, the survivors constructed narratives that direct blame and accountability toward the “old self”. This less visible, yet still agentic strategy, allows the survivors to regain a sense of agency and control. As a result, a more positive, optimistic self can be constructed, while pursuing legal justice would force them to reenact an “old” self that cannot be disentangled from the rape.

She Persisted … and So Did He: Gendered source use during the Trump Access Hollywood scandal

After years of recorded misogyny, the release of an Access Hollywood tape on 7 October 2016 revealed Trump stating he grabs women by their genitals without their permission. This study examines the gatekeeping process of traditional and online media covering this issue, focusing specifically on source use. A content analysis (N = 847) of television, newspaper, and online media shows that television and conservative sources have the highest gender disparity in source use; whereas online media focus the most on female perspectives. Results also show that many Republicans paid lip service to Trump’s actions, but overall defended him—dismissing the severity of sexual violence while maintaining hegemony. Male sources had a positive relationship with defending Trump and a negative relationship with defending survivors. Female sources had a positive relationship with defending survivors only. Conservative and television sources defended Trump more than survivors; liberal, online, and newspaper sources defended survivors more than Trump. Overall, women are still marginalised within the political process by both traditional news media and politicians.