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" What is 'terrorism?' Social geometry and the media labeling of political violence "
Daniel J. Boches
Tucker, James E.
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Latin Dissertation
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| Language of Document
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English
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| Record Number
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804040
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| Doc. No
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TL48853
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| Call number
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1809794117; 10127452
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| Main Entry
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Stahl, Megan
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| Title & Author
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What is 'terrorism?' Social geometry and the media labeling of political violence\ Daniel J. BochesTucker, James E.
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| College
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University of New Hampshire
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| Date
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2016
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| Degree
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M.A.
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| field of study
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Sociology
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| student score
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2016
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| Page No
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138
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| Note
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Committee members: Dillon, Michele M.; Fox, Nicole S.
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| Note
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Place of publication: United States, Ann Arbor; ISBN=978-1-339-85489-2
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| Abstract
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Since the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, terrorism has dominated media discourse. However, what constitutes an act of “terror” has been the subject of much debate. This thesis proposes three theoretical formulations that explain and predict under what circumstances political violence is labeled “terrorism” in mainstream media outlets such as <i>The New York Times, USA Today,</i> and <i>Wall Street Journal.</i> Adopting Donald Black’s theoretical strategy of “social geometry,” I analyze the social characteristics and relations between and among participants engaged in acts of political violence including the attacker(s), victim(s), and third parties (i.e., media outlets). This analysis illuminates how media labels increase in severity as the levels of intimacy between the attacker(s) and victim(s) decrease. For example, attacks between residents of different cities are more likely to be labeled “terrorism” than attacks between neighbors. I also argue that attacks perpetuated by culturally unconventional attackers toward conventional victims increase the likelihood of severe media labeling. For example, an attack by a Muslim against a Christian in the United States is more likely to garner the “terrorism” label than an attack in the opposite direction. Finally, I argue that media labeling increases in severity when the newspaper reporting on the attack is socially close to the victim(s) and socially distant from the attacker(s). In other words, as the ideological slant of the newspaper becomes increasingly different from the ideological motivations of the attacker(s), “terrorism” is more likely to be reported. This thesis evaluates how race, religion, and social networks structure how mass media frames political violence.
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| Subject
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Sociology; Mass communications
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| Descriptor
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Social sciences;Communication and the arts;Media frames;Political violence;Pure sociology;Social geometry;Terrorism
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| Added Entry
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Tucker, James E.
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SociologyUniversity of New Hampshire
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