Thematic Frame Research Articles

Engendering the Positive Image of the China Government through Flood Framing

The study investigated how the flood news in China is framed by the People’s Daily, an official newspaper of the Communist Party of China. The objectives of the study were to: (1) identify the frequency of thematic and episodic framing of flood events; (2) examine the frame dimensions used for framing flood events; and (3) determine the dominant valence of news articles on flood events. Altogether 180 articles on flood in the online People’s Daily (English edition) published from 1 January to 31 December 2023 were analysed. The results showed a dominance of the episodic frame (94.4%) compared to the thematic frame (5.6%). The main frame dimension is the attribution of responsibility but it is to highlight the capability of the government to take care of the people rather than to attribute blame for poor management. There was a dominance of positive valence (70.6%) compared to negative valence (26.1%) and neutral valence (3.3%). President Xi Jinping was portrayed as a “caring leader” and a “compassionate and hands-on leader” in dealing with the flood woes of the people.

Men’s Violence against Women as Portrayed in the Swedish Media: The Construction of Victimhood and the Role of the Perpetrator

Men’s violence against women is an international problem and while global and national initiatives have been created to better the criminalization process, the influence of news reporting on violence against women has not been successfully addressed in such policy. The aim of this study is to contribute to understanding how media frames violence against women in the Swedish context, which is both highly protective of crime reporting and where violence against women is a central policy and public discussion issue. A mixed methods approach was used in the analysis of 295 digital news articles that were published by four media outlets (Aftonbladet, Expressen, Svenska Dagbladet and Dagens Nyheter) within the period January 1st, 2019–December 31st, 2021. The study found that digital news articles first frame the issue of violence against women as episodic, but later transform into a thematic frame when follow-up articles were written on a given case. The study found a construction of victimhood by Swedish news media that allowed for two victim personas to be identified: the ideal victim and the ideal minority victim. In connection with the portrayal of the victim, the study also identified two different portrayals of the perpetrator: the ideal foreign perpetrator and the Swedish perpetrator. Both the description of the victim and perpetrator allowed for insights to be made regarding the role of racialization in news reporting and how this effects the framing of social issues. Finally, the study presented a set of news values that were most frequently found in articles that reveal several news factors of violence against women that contribute to the topic being seen as newsworthy.

Episodic versus thematic media framing of violence against social leaders and human rights defenders in Colombia.

Social leaders and human rights defenders (SLHRD) in Colombia have been under increasing attack for defending the rights of communities affected by violence. From 2016 to 2022, over 600 SLHRD were assassinated, resulting in a serious violation of both individual and community human rights. The media's portrayal of these attacks can shape public perceptions and influence efforts towards peacebuilding and promoting human rights. This study examines the media's framing of violence against SLHRD in Colombia between 2016 and 2020, a period marked by an escalation of violence after the signing of the 2016 peace accord between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). We analysed 1506 textual publications from seven media outlets using a lexicometric approach and identified two frames of news articles: episodic and thematic. Our findings suggest that the episodic media framing may present a simplistic and non-political perspective of the issue, which can impede peacebuilding efforts, while the thematic frame can raise awareness of violence against SLHRD and promote human rights defence. Our study highlights the media's significant role in shaping public opinion on violence against SLHRD, offering practical implications for advocacy and activism.

The Elections in Crisis: Media Coverage of the Postponed 2020 Presidential Elections in Poland

In Poland, the presidential elections were primarily scheduled on May 10th, 2020. However, due to the COVID-19 circumstances, the elections were postponed and eventually took place in late June (first round) and mid-July (second round) 2020. The aim of the paper is to examine media coverage of the postponed presidential elections in Poland. In particular, the paper explores frames used by journalists in their coverage of the postponed elections. For the purpose of this study we conducted a quantitative content analysis of news items from three TV newscasts, four radio stations, and three online platforms. The material was collected on May 10th (a day of primarily scheduled the first round of elections), and June 30th (a day when the results of the first round of postponed elections were officially announced). The findings showed that both amount of the news coverage and the main frames used by the media across time differed. Although episodic frame prevailed in the media coverage on both days. thematic frame was used more often in the media coverage on the day when voting was supposed to take place, than on the day when results of the first round of presidential elections were announced. On contrary, conflict frame was used more often in the media coverage of results of the elections than on a day without election. The political orientation of the media outlets affected the way journalist employed responsibility and consequences frames.

The role of entrepreneurial ecosystems in technological and social challenges

Although there is a common consensus about what an entrepreneurial ecosystem (EE) is, the question of how EE dynamics interact with technology and social change remains unclear. In this introductory article to our Special Issue on the role of EE in technological and social challenges, we systematically review the corpus of literature in this field of research. Leveraging bibliometric techniques, we present a review of the most influential papers and their key research topics, synthesized across four thematic groups: (i) university‐based EE, (ii) entrepreneurial innovation ecosystems, (iii) dynamic EE models, and (iv) digital entrepreneurship ecosystems. Within this thematic frame, a synopsis of the papers presented within the special issue is provided, highlighting their research theme addressed, theoretical grounding, and methods leveraged. We conclude this article by identifying potential future research questions that may be advantageous trajectories for the EE research community to address when advancing the field in the coming years.

Print media coverage of child maltreatment in Bangladesh: A content analysis

Newspapers can be a vital source of information in Bangladesh for investigating child maltreatment (CM), since the epidemiological data on CM is underestimated. Yet, there is little information on how CM-related content is covered in newspapers. To investigate the distribution and news framing of different types of CM cases, 2,957 news reports were collected retrospectively from six national (four Bengali and two English-language) daily newspapers published from January to December 2017. Berelson’s quantitative content analysis technique (only manifest content) was used to analyze the stories. From the descriptive statistics, this study showed that sexual (30%) and physical abuse (29%) were highly reported in Bangladeshi print media. Although 72% of newspapers focused on episodic events, only 27% of CM stories were reported using thematic frame. Individual-level causal (72%) and solution frame (53%) were more prominent, whereas societal-level solution frame (18%) were poorly reported focusing on the larger context of the society. We recommend that authorities take necessary steps to encourage journalists to cover more thematic news with societal-level solution frames to help prevent CM.

Eksplikaciya koncepta «holodnaya vojna» v videoigrovyh kibertekstah: osobennosti mediagrammatiki i ideologizaciya istorii

The article analyses historical video games whose narratives are confined to the “Cold War” thematic frame. Video games are treated as original cyber texts of modern screen culture which shape the current discourse of popular history. Emphasis is laid on both the ideological content of video game narratives and features of the media language in which they are publicly explicated.

Gender violence or tradition?: media coverage of child/forced marriage in US newspapers

ABSTRACT The news media play an important role in influencing public perceptions and raising awareness of an issue. This research analyzes media framing of child/forced marriage through an examination of six US national newspapers over a ten-year period. It probes how narratives are constructed based on issue perception, blame attribution, and protagonist perceptions. It finds that print media has afforded increasing coverage to minimum marriage age legislation in the US. Mediated by advocacy organizations and survivors, the discourse surrounding child marriage has used a thematic frame as a legal issue with the onus on the state to amend laws facilitating child marriage. Forced marriage of adults has been framed as thematic too, but regarded as a cultural imperative. This culturalization of violence prevents forced marriage from being recognized as gender violence. Thus, while the thematic framing is laudable, the type of thematic framing matters, especially concerning blame attribution and the perceptions of protagonists, to fully comprehend this form of gender violence.

Rethinking “again” girls at-promise: A vicennial response

ABSTRACT This article presents a brief commentary on Abrams’ Rethinking Girls “At-Risk” (2002) and uses a vicennial perspective to retrospectively explore the conceptual structure respecting adolescent female development. Acknowledging the change in collective ideological values and social normative influences, the piece comments on how certain theories and approaches argued by Abrams in the 2000s have either evolved or been phased out, and accordingly repositioned adolescent girls’ developmental experiences in the present-day dialogue. An up-to-date examination of contextual and sociocultural factors is put forward in this commentary, along with the three components summarized in empowering women’s agency today: participation, authority, and deliverance. What follows is a discussion of topical issues concerning recent global activities and milestones, with a particular attention to cyberactivism and the impact of COVID-19, for the understanding of the risks concerned with girls’ development and the enquiry into young women’s lives at the present time. This reflective piece is a useful conceptual basis in juxtaposition with Abrams’ article, providing those involved in adolescent female development with conceptualizations and a thematic frame of reference in tackling adolescent girls’ development, against the backdrop of cultural, political, and social trends.

Counterproductive effects of overfamiliar antitobacco messages on smoking cessation intentions via message fatigue and resistance to persuasion.

While smoking may result in various harmful effects, such as mental health issues caused by addiction, antitobacco messages have typically focused on the physical health consequences of smoking for decades. Prolonged exposures to these conventional messages may have not only increased awareness about the harmful health effects of smoking but may have also caused message fatigue and resultant resistance to persuasion. The latter effects, however, remain largely unexamined. Addressing this gap, this study examined the effects of overfamiliar antitobacco messages focusing on the health consequences of smoking on message fatigue and resistance to persuasion. In an online experiment, current smokers (N = 296) in the U.S. were randomly assigned to one of the four message conditions that manipulated a degree of familiarity in a 2 (thematic frame: physical vs. mental health) × 2 (valence frame: loss vs. gain) factorial design. The results show that a message portraying physical health consequences of smoking in a loss frame (i.e., overfamiliar frame) induced greater message fatigue than that in a gain frame. Message fatigue, in turn, was associated with higher levels of active (i.e., reactance) and passive resistance (i.e., disengagement) toward antitobacco messages. Reactance induced by message fatigue predicted less favorable attitude and lower intentions to quit smoking. Overall, message fatigue showed both direct and indirect effects on intentions, with the latter being mediated by reactance. Overfamiliar antitobacco message frames may activate greater message fatigue and resistance to persuasion, which may dampen campaign effects. The findings caution against the habitual use of conventional antitobacco messages. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Ildikó Enyedi: Testről és lélekről •

AbstractThis article is about Ildiko Enyedi's film “Testről és lélekről”. It proposes a semiotic analyse. Its thematic frame is a theory of the fantastic literature and film and refers to Tzvetan Todorov (part 1). Following Roand Barthes “S/Z” it discusses the codes in the film, the sequences and spaces in the film (part 2). In the next part the composition of the film comes into play (e. g. repetition, analogy). The fourth part is dedicated to the uncanny and fantastic element that are created by a lack of knowledge about the world in the and the figures of the movy. The article refers to Freud's “Traumdeutung”. Part 5 analyses the funktion of silence in the film on several levels (level of narrating, communication of the figures in the film). The film is seen in a post-romantic tradition which is in-written in “classical modernism”.

Religious and Secular Visions of Peace and Pacifism

Pacifism is a complex and significant moral, political, religious, and philosophical idea. There is an evolving conversation about peace and nonviolence that occurs among secular scholars, religious figures, and activists. This paper explores this conversation, while employing a five-part thematic frame of analysis that attempts to distinguish secular and religious visions of peace and pacifism. The result of this analysis provides a ready framework for making that distinction. But it also demonstrates that the task of distinguishing secular and religious approaches is complicated and difficult. The paper also shows, through a brief genealogy of pacifism, how secular and religious voices are in conversation with one another.

Translation and colonial landscapes: Ethiopia in A Time to Kill by Ennio Flaiano

This paper investigates the (un)translatability of landscape at the time of the fascist invasion of Ethiopia (1935) as narrated in Ennio Flaiano's A Time to Kill which was published soon after the end of the Second World War (1947). It examines the translations into French and English which were issued soon afterwards (1950) and the film adaptation of the novel (1989). It aims to analyse the causes for the limited international recognition the work received, notwithstanding the stature of the author as both a screenwriter (i.e., Fellini's La Dolce Vita) and playwright. The thematic frame is that of the resistance of a timeless space against colonial penetration. The protagonist's perception of the landscape is punctuated by disorientation, distorted vision and erroneous topography. Cultural remoteness and linguistic distance are enacted on different levels: the intratextual level in the narration; the interlinguistic level in the translation proper; the intersemiotic transposition on the screen; and the subsequent dubbing and subtitling. Likewise, the indefiniteness of spatial perception and shifting viewpoints in the novel weave through metaphors, self-questioning by the narrator, challenging translation and film adaptation. The voice-over effect is not activated, thus diluting climax, as the story is a first-person narrative. Moreover, due to the Derg regime, the film could not be shot in Ethiopia, which ruled out any recognition of the geographic, religious and cultural identity of the country.

Flipping the Frame: How Rudy Gobert Went From an Episodic Bad Actor to a Thematic Hero

Rudy Gobert’s positive COVID-19 diagnosis in March of 2020 started the process that led to American sports shutting down in the early days of the pandemic. After the diagnosis, video of him touching reporters’ voice recorders at a press availability went viral. This framing analysis in five mainstream newspapers finds that over the course of 72 hours, Gobert went from a bad actor to a hero in news copy as an episodic frame focusing on his actions gave way to a thematic frame about the virus and its effects on the country.

Women’s refusal of racial patriarchy in South African academia

ABSTRACT This paper explores the career experiences of women academics at three South African universities. To understand the experiences of women academics, we conducted an intersectional interrogation of the politics and practices of belonging in departmental cultures. The sample consisted of thirty women academics whose interviews were analysed through a discursive thematic frame. We found that while all participants experienced gender-based discrimination which hinders academic progression, the barriers experienced by black women academics are compounded by the intersections of race, gender, and motherhood. Patriarchal and racist institutional, disciplinary and departmental cultures served as further challenges to belonging. On the other hand, through counter storytelling and refusal, women created alternative spaces of sociality where suffering co-exists with pleasure, refusal and survival. Ultimately, the paper suggests refusal as a generative theoretical lens to surface the complexity of women academics.

In the Context of Transtextuality Relations Thematic Frame in Orhan Pamuk's Novels

Metinsel-Aşkınlık ilişkileri, yazınsal bir metnin kendisi dışındaki anlatılarla bir arada okunmasını mümkün kılan, büyük ölçüde eşsüremli gerçekleşen okuma edimine bağlı olarak ortaya çıkan ve bu okuma tecrübesine bağlı biçimde tespit edilen yazınsal ya da sanatsal ilgiler bütünüdür. Bu ilgiler, bilhassa Orta Çağ karnaval kültürünün edebiyata tezahürüyle edebiyatta söyleşim ve çokseslilik olgularıyla beraber izlenmekte; postmodernist metinlerle birlikte metinsel-aşkınlık ilişkilerinin estetik birer öge hâlini aldığı tespit edilmektedir. Metinsel-aşkınlık biçimleri, alıntılama, anıştırma, epigraf, içanlatı gibi göndergesellik eksenli ortakbirliktelik ilişkileri; öykünme (pastiş), yansılama (parodi), alaycı (gülünç) dönüştürüm gibi türev ilişkileri ve yenidenyazım çerçevesinde gerçekleşen metin-ötesi ilgilerden oluşmaktadır. Orhan Pamuk romanları, yenilikçi ve deneysel roman çizgisinde değerlendirilmektedir. Bu roman kuruluşunda metinsel-aşkınlık ve estetiksel-aşkınlık biçimleri birer estetik unsur olmanın yanında, kuramsal dayanaklar olarak romanların biçemsel çerçevelerini oluşturmaktadır. Gérard Genette’in metinsel-aşkınlık ilişkileri tasnifi temelinde ele alınan Orhan Pamuk romanlarında metinsel-aşkınlık ilişkileri, üst-metinsellik, yorumsal üst-metinsellik, ana-metinsellik ve göndergesellik ilişkisi ekseninde kurgulanmış ve bu eserler kanonlaşmış başka eserlerle anlamsal bir bütünü oluşturacak biçimde örüntülenmiş görünmektedir. Metni ve metin ötesini meydana getiren her bir ilginin, izleksel veya kuramsal bir anlamı teşkil edecek biçimde kurulduğu anlaşılmaktadır. Üst-metin ve yorumsal üst-metin çerçeveleriyle büyük ölçüde romancılığındaki kuramsal doğrultuyu sağlamakta olan Pamuk, göndergesellik ve ana-metinsellik uygulamalarıyla kendi roman kuramının izleksel çerçevesini oluşturur. Metinsel-aşkınlık biçimleriyle Pamuk, romanlarının temel izleklerini meydana getiren Doğu-Batı, eş-ruh ve baba-oğul izlekleri etrafında “kimlik” ve “kendilik” olgularını vurgular görünmektedir.

Environmental impacts of organic agriculture and the controversial scientific debates

The environmental impacts of organic agriculture have been controversially discussed in the scientific community for many years. There are still conflicting views on how far organic agriculture can help address environmental and resource challenges, and whether its promotion is an appropriate policy approach to solving existing socioecological problems. So far, no clear perspective on these questions has been established. How can this be explained? And is there a “lock-in” of the scientific discourse? The aim of this paper is to retrace the scientific discourse on this topic and to derive possible explanations as to why environmental impacts of organic agriculture continue to be assessed differently. To this end, a qualitative content analysis was conducted with a sample of n = 93 scientific publications. In addition, expert interviews were conducted to verify the results of the literature analysis. Two main lines of discussion were identified: first, the extent to which aspects of food security should be included in the assessment of environmental aspects (thematic frame); second, the extent to which net environmental impacts or possible leakage effects because of lower yield levels should be considered (spatial frame). It is concluded that the polarizing debate mainly results from the often-binary initial question (is organic agriculture superior to conventional agriculture?). Further, aspects that have been insufficiently illuminated so far, such as the choice of reference units or normative basic assumptions in scientific sustainability assessments, should be given greater consideration in the discourse.

„Irlandia Północna – stąd pochodzę”: Glenn Patterson, powieściopisarz i obywatel w pogoni za „nieplemienną” tożsamością

Northern Ireland’s socio-political milieu over recent decades “pressured” its residents to affiliate with one of the two strongly antagonizing identities. In 1998, the Good Friday Agreement was signed to terminate the conflict between the Catholic/ Nationalist and Protestant/Unionist side. The primary aim of that settlement was to establish a solid collective framework for securing mutual coexistence, but more importantly it endorsed the idea of a regional (reformed) identity to be shared by both communities. And inasmuch as the aforementioned societal consensus has been institutionalized, even if only on the very rudimentary level, then bidding farewell to political/religious (almost sectarian) sympathies has turned to be far more difficult. Glenn Patterson stands among those home-grown writers who have been struggling with the burden of such troublesome identity formations. Therefore, the paper’s main focus is to explore the setbacks Patterson and the like face when trying to acknowledge a distinctly new character of Northern Irishness. In doing so, he highlights that the sine qua non of any potential success consists in deconstructing/defying the deep-seated divisions of the Troubles. Mindful of the journal’s thematic frame of a timely consideration of the “Recovered Territories,” I intend to depict Patterson as an individual/author/citizen whose artistic endeavor has been constantly gravitating towards reclaiming the ground for [re]building he Northern Irish identity, and replacing the well-known (Catholic-Protestant/ Irish-British) dichotomies. Drawing upon two collections of Patterson’s non-fiction accounts, Lapsed Protestant from 2006 and Here’s Me Here from 2016, my article concentrates upon both the hopes and obstacles manifested during the post-Troubles context of an attempted tropism towards a more neutral/non-politicized Northern Irish identification, in hopes that the similar dynamics may also shed light upon the Polish context.

Aesthetics of the Excavations of the Spatial Environment in Nawal al-Sadwawi's Perception: Her Novel Imra'ah Inda Nuqtat al-Sifr/ Woman at a Zero Point as a Sample

The environment of the novel is both: its Place-and-Time truth, including everything that the place includes from nature and objects, and everything that Time includes as a moving sequence or time that has its frontiers and characteristics that are connected to the age that they belong to. This means that this environment is everything that is connected to the natural medium and the morals of the characters and their lifestyles. Environment in the novel has a special concept- it is a cultural concept that is not satisfied with the total natural circumstances that surround the human being in the novel, the total social circumstances that are connected to the human being and affect his life and create the events of this life within the story. [1] The value of the Place in Nawal al-Sadawi's novels is in its representation of a fundamental theme that defines the thematic frame of the novels deal with. Consequently, it is impossible to approach Nawal al-Sadawi's textual place without being pressed by its authority, which prevents this critical approach from originating from projection of the action on the texts, and makes it an exploratory operation and selection of these texts. Thus, the Places in which the major character exists and the action of the novel turn into an existence that imposes itself on the atmospheres of the text. In this way, the Place frame turns into an aesthetic pointer that justifies the dynamics of the action and achieves its process, because every event will inevitably have a Place to contain and refer to it.Ambiguity in literature is likeable due to its attraction to the reader's attention and his suspense, but if all the literary work is wrapped by ambiguity, it cannot convey its objective as it should. We can say that this is exactly what Nawal al-Sadawi applied in her novels as she had a balanced attitude regarding ambiguity, and she succeeded in it. [2] Keywords: Nawal al-Sadawi, excavations, place, time, environment, novel. DOI: 10.7176/JLLL/71-03 Publication date: August 31 st 2020 [1] Bachelard, Gaston (1980) The Poetics of Space . Translated as Jamaliyat al-Makan by Ghaleb Halsa. Bagdad: Dar al-Jahiz, p. 83. [2] Al-Sharoni, Yosuf (1986). Rihlati Ma' al-Riwaya . Cairo: Dar al-Ma'aref. pp. 88-89.

\u2018I don\u2019t talk about my distress to others; I feel that I have to suffer my problems...\u2019 Voices of Indian women with breast cancer: a qualitative interview study

BackgroundBreast cancer is the commonest form of cancer among women globally, including in India. The rising incidence in the developing world is thought to be due to increased life expectancy, urbanisation, and adoption of western lifestyles. A recent systematic review found that Indian women living in India or as immigrants in Canada experienced a range of psychological distresses both ameliorated and exacerbated by cultural issues personally, within the family, within their community, and in the context of faith, and only two of the five qualitative studies explored the experience of women with breast cancer living in India. Distress may also affect treatment compliance.AimThe aim of the study was to explore the psychological distresses experienced by Indian women with breast cancer living in Kerala, South India, during and after treatment and to understand better what helped to relieve or increase these distresses.MethodsIn-depth interviews were conducted with 20 consenting women undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Purposive sampling was used to obtain maximum variation in sociodemographic and clinical characteristics. Interviews were verbatim transcribed, translated into English, and back-translated to Malayalam to ensure that the meaning had not been lost. English data were analysed using thematic frame work analysis and synthesised to provide a deeper understanding of the individuals’ experience.ResultsThree major themes emerged from the data. The first major theme was ‘far-reaching psychological distress’. This included anxiety, guilt, anger, and depression in response to the disease and physical side effects of treatment and issues relating to body image, especially hair loss and sexuality. The second major theme was ‘getting on with life’. Women tried to make sense of the disease, by actively seeking information, the role of medical professionals, and their practical adaptations. Many found a new future and a new way to live normal. The third major theme was the ‘support system’ strongly based on family, friends, faith, and the community which affect them positively as well as negatively.ConclusionPsychological concerns related to disease and treatment are common in Indian women with particular emphasis on body image issues associated with hair loss. Family and faith were key support systems for almost all the women, although it could also be the causes of distress.