Date of Award
5-2022
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Communication, Technology, and Society
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dr. Erin Ash
Committee Member
Dr. Gregory Cranmer
Committee Member
Dr. Kristen Okamoto
Abstract
Mass incarceration has disproportionately affected many people; however, Black women have been routinely dismissed from the majority of prison scholarship and are at a particular risk through harmful stereotypes that serve as justification for their imprisonment. By examining their unique stance in the prison-industrial complex, this thesis draws attention to mechanisms to generate support for these women. Under the framework of framing theory and critical media effects, this research determined whether individual attribution of responsibility frames or societal attribution of responsibility frames affect individuals’ support for anti-mass incarceration public policies. According to the results, there were no effects between Black and white exemplars, nor societal and individual responsibility frames. Additionally, controllability did not appear to mediate the relationship between frames and race on policy support; however, there was a significant direct effect between political affiliation and controllability, as well as controllability and policy support. This study not only assessed whether attributions of responsibility apply to subsets of stigmatized populations equally (e.g., incarcerated Black women versus incarcerated white women), but examined the intersectionality of race, gender, and incarceration from a critical media effects lens.
Recommended Citation
Pool, Rebecca, "The Effects of News Framing on Policy Support for Incarcerated Black Women" (2022). All Theses. 3791.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/3791