Abstract
In this article, the authors employ work on events, framing, and social problems to develop an inductive approach to studying events. The article’s central premise is that tracing direct references made to events offers a fruitful strategy to investigate their framing cross-nationally and over time. The authors apply their approach to the case of 9/11 in American, French, and Dutch national newspapers (2001–2015). By combining word counting, topic modeling, and content analysis they examine the amount of attention given to 9/11, the issues to which it has been linked, and the implications attributed to it. The results indicate that the framing of 9/11 in the above three countries has been stable and uniform regarding foreign issues. There are however enduring, marked cross-national differences with respect to domestic issues. In France, 9/11 has barely been related to such issues; in the United States, the event has been connected principally to national security; and in the Netherlands, it has mainly prompted the problematization of Muslim immigrants. Because 9/11 has been a significant event many years after its occurrence, albeit differently so in each country of study, the findings point to the relevance of studying the framing of events cross-nationally and over extended periods of time.
Highlights
The terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers (New York) and the Pentagon (Washington, DC) on 11 September 2001 are generally considered important catalysts for policy shifts and societal transformations, including the introduction of the Patriot Act, the War in Afghanistan, the Iraq War, and the rise of anti-Muslim sentiments
What is an appropriate strategy for studying event framings? How do they differ among social contexts, and in what ways do they change over time?
Our study focuses on national newspapers, since they are central fora for political and cultural elites – politicians, journalists, public intellectuals, and scholars – to share their views on matters of societal importance and shape the public framing of events
Summary
The terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers (New York) and the Pentagon (Washington, DC) on 11 September 2001 are generally considered important catalysts for policy shifts and societal transformations, including the introduction of the Patriot Act, the War in Afghanistan, the Iraq War, and the rise of anti-Muslim sentiments. It is patently clear that 9/11 has been a significant event, yet identifying its specific transformative effects is a challenge. This is true for events in general: whereas we know that they are important and consequential, it is difficult to understand their meanings and impacts. Several scholars have in recent years made strides towards opening this ‘black box’ of events (Berezin, 2009; Sewell, 2005; Wagner-Pacifici, 2010, 2017). This body of work still leaves certain questions unanswered. What is an appropriate strategy for studying event framings? How do they differ among social contexts, and in what ways do they change over time?
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