Propaganda Magazine January 2014 | Page 23

Some have interpreted framing as dramatic fluctuations that indicate that opinions are too superficial to be indicative of public preferences. James Druckman and Dennis Chong - Professors of Political Science - researches focusing on political preference formation and communication (Cambridge University Press, 2010). According to Chong & Druckman (2007), public opinion often depends on how elites choose to frame issues; frames in communication can change attitudes by influencing the importance of the underlying selected range where theories of attitude structure and persuasion can be integrated.

Media framing used during the Iraq war

In 2003 a small coalition of allies, led by the United States and the United Kingdom, started the war without the United Nations approval and despite strong opposition from many countries, including Russia, France and Germany (Schröderframing &Vliegenthart, 2010). The media somewhat became known for framing this issue - differently in many countries - putting a negative spin on news so it would become newsworthy. According to Schröderframing &Vliegenthart (2010), in the US and UK the war reporting was more positive than on countries that opposed the war. Newspapers published on average almost 18 more articles per day in the UK and 20 per day in the US.

Conclusion

In conclusion to this article, attention should be paid to specifically to the practice of journalism and how it applies the theories discussed. In addition, professionals and researchers seem to be continuously monitoring how well the news media are presenting the “real facts” to the public. The fundamental statement of the agenda-setting hypothesis is that the media play a role in affecting how the audience perceives social reality. When it comes to framing, it simply tells the audience how and why and when to think about an issue. The examples presented support the idea that the media influence significantly and effectively the opinions of the public as it recurrently choose to remain selecting a path to report in positive-light.

Mass Media & Public Opinion