Ethnoviolence and the News Media

The news media appears to be people&s;s main source of information about current events. Two out of three Americans claim to follow current events regularly. This chapter presents a theoretical model for understanding the social process. A media frame is an organizing principle in which the news media selects a single component and through selection, emphasis, and exclusion make that stand for the entire picture. The primary focus of this model is sociological: Its central concern is how the media functions to maintain the subordinate status of minorities, deviants, and dissidents. Since everyday ethnoviolence is generally perceived as not newsworthy, it is worth asking why it is covered at all. Ethnoviolence is a potent example. Any enterprising reporter can go to the police blotter or the reports to human relations commissions to find stories.