The Eurobarometer recently showed that for 41% of EU citizen daily newspapers are the main source of information about European topics. Also for those citizens, who decided on the adaption of the Lisbon treaty in the two nationwide referendums in Ireland. But as many media researchers showed, news coverage is biased (Entman 1993, Scheufele 2003). It has to be biased, because it is simply not
possible to report the whole reality in one article (Downs 1957).
One aspect of news bias is known under the term framing. Entman (1993: 52) defines to frame as follows “to select some aspects of a perceived reality and make them more salient in a communicating text, in such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/or treatment recommendation.”
A different framing of the same ballot can induce individuals to make different choices. Such effects are known as framing effects (Scheufele 2003, de Vreese 2005a. This paper follows these hints and examines the news coverage before the two Irish referendums on the Lisbon treaty. Applying a content analysis of the two most selling
Irish newspapers, The Irish Times and the Irish Independent, it aims to make statements about the framing of the treaty in the news and to give evidence if the question in the title just sounds good or contains some truth.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1 Research Question and Procedure
1.2 The Treaty of Lisbon
2. Theory
2.1 EU Referendums
2.2 The Media
2.3 Framing
2.4 Framing Effects
2.4.1 Equivalency Framing Effects
2.4.2 Emphasis Framing Effect
2.5 Framing EU Referendums
2.5.1 Equivalency Framing of the Lisbon Treaty
2.5.2 Emphasis Framing of the Lisbon Treaty
3. Method
3.1 Newspapers
3.2 Article Selection Process
3.3 Measuring Frames
3.4 Methodological Problems
4. Results
4.1 Presentation of the Results
4.2 Discussion of the Results
5. Conclusion
Research Objectives and Topics
This study investigates the influence of news media framing on the voting behavior of the Irish electorate during the two referendums on the Lisbon Treaty. The primary research objective is to determine whether the disparate outcomes of the 2008 and 2009 referendums can be explained by differences in how the media framed the treaty and the referendum itself, testing the hypothesis that voters are influenced by the salience of specific issue frames presented in news coverage.
- Analysis of framing theory and media effects in the context of European integration referendums.
- Comparative content analysis of two major Irish newspapers, The Irish Times and the Irish Independent.
- Examination of "equivalency" and "emphasis" framing strategies used in reporting on the Lisbon Treaty.
- Investigation into how issue salience and framing shifts between the first and second referendum influenced public opinion.
Excerpt from the Book
2.4.1 Equivalency Framing Effects
Equivalency framing effects appear if one situation or an issue is framed in two different but logically equivalent ways. I use the typology of Levin et al. (1998) to distinct these types of effects into three subtypes: Attribute framing, risky choice framing and goal framing.
The most basic form of an equivalency framing effect is the attribute framing. Attribute framing effects occur, when the evaluation of an object differs, whether the information given about it is framed positive or negative. An example gives the ‘baseball player experiment’ (Levin 1987). People have to evaluate the performance of a baseball player. Some get information about the percentage of shots made, others about the percentage of shots he missed. The players were significantly better rated by people given positively framed information (Levin et al. 1998: 159).
Another effect in the typology of Levin et al. (1998: 151) is the “standard view of framing” described as the risky choice frame. As the term suggests it mainly focuses on the choice a proband makes, given the same, but differently framed risky alternatives. The probably most quoted example in the framing effect literature is the so called Asian Disease Problem (ADP), an experiment originally carried out by Kahnemann and Tversky (1981). Nearly all replications of the study support the results. But none of them finds such a clear result (Levin et al. 1998, Stocké 2002, Scheufele 2003, Matthes 2007, Druckmann 2001). In this experiment two groups were confronted with the following story:
Imagine that the U.S. is preparing for the outbreak of an unusual Asian disease, which is expected to kill 600 people. Two alternative programs to combat the disease have been proposed. Assume that the exact scientific estimates of the consequences of the programs are as follows:
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter introduces the puzzling shift in Irish voter behavior between the two Lisbon Treaty referendums and outlines the research question regarding the role of media framing in this process.
2. Theory: The theoretical section explores existing literature on EU referendums, the role of media in democracy, and provides a detailed definition of framing, framing effects, and their potential to influence voter choices.
3. Method: This chapter details the content analysis procedure, including the selection criteria for the two analyzed newspapers and the methodology used to operationalize and code the framing statements.
4. Results: This chapter presents the empirical findings from the content analysis and discusses how framing strategies and issue priorities changed between the two referendum periods.
5. Conclusion: The conclusion synthesizes the findings, arguing that the shift in the referendum outcome was driven by a re-framing of the treaty issue into a vote on Ireland's position in Europe.
Keywords
Lisbon Treaty, Irish Referendums, Media Framing, Framing Effects, Content Analysis, European Integration, Voting Behavior, Second-Order Theory, Issue Voting, Media Bias, Public Opinion, Political Communication, Ireland, EU Membership, Referendum Campaigns.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this thesis?
The thesis examines how news media coverage in Ireland framed the Lisbon Treaty before the two nationwide referendums held in 2008 and 2009, and whether these frames influenced the shift in voter results.
What are the primary thematic fields covered?
The work covers political science, media studies, and sociology, focusing on European integration, electoral behavior in EU referendums, and framing theory.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to determine if the different framing strategies used by the media can explain why Irish voters rejected the treaty in 2008 but approved it in 2009.
Which scientific method is applied?
The author uses a standardized content analysis of the two most prominent Irish newspapers, The Irish Times and the Irish Independent, to identify and quantify specific framing statements.
What does the main part of the work address?
The main part covers the theoretical framework of framing effects, the methodology for article selection and coding, and the presentation and discussion of the empirical results regarding the framing issues found in the news.
Which keywords characterize this work?
Key terms include Lisbon Treaty, Irish Referendums, Media Framing, Framing Effects, Content Analysis, European Integration, and Voting Behavior.
How did the framing of the treaty differ between the two referendums?
While economic arguments were dominant in both, the second referendum period was characterized by a shift toward framing the treaty as a crucial decision regarding Ireland's standing and future position within the European Union.
What is the author's modification to the slogan "You vote what you read"?
Based on the findings, the author suggests modifying the phrase to "You vote about what you read about," reflecting that media framing significantly shapes the perceived subject of the vote.
- Quote paper
- Fabian Reichert (Author), 2010, You Vote What You Read?, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/192752
