Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor as framed by Spanish-language and English-language news media

Abstract

As Latinas assume greater roles in U.S. politics and the judicial branch, are media depictions reflective of these new roles or do negative minority stereotypes persist? This study compared the frames used by The Miami Herald, an English-language newspaper and El Nuevo Herald, its Spanish-language counterpart, during Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination and confirmation as the first Hispanic associate justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. The study explored whether the stronger media identification of the Spanish language newspaper influenced the types of frames used to depict Sotomayor’s rise to the high court. This investigation found that El Nuevo Herald emphasized Sotomayor as a successful woman and pioneer. The Miami Herald highlighted the ideological themes of partisan politics. As a result, the greater cultural identification with the audience may avoid manifest negative stereotypes, but may exclude this audience from political and judicial discourse.