Picturing Protest

Abstract

Images of collective action shape public understanding of social movement campaigns and issues. Modern media includes more images than ever before, and these images are remembered longer and are more likely to elicit emotional responses than are textual accounts. Yet when it comes to media coverage of collective action, existing research considers only the written accounts. This means that little is known about the extent to which images of collective action events conform to or diverge from the "protest paradigm," a pattern of reporting found in articles that tends to marginalize protesters and legitimizes authorities. The authors address this gap by analyzing newspaper photographs of one of the most significant recent cases of Indigenous-state conflict in North America-the 1990 "Oka Crisis." This 78-day armed standoff between Indigenous peoples and Quebecois and Canadian authorities was sparked by the attempted expansion of a golf course onto Mohawk territory. The mass media produced thousands of articles and photographs in their coverage of the event. This article uses these photographs to assess the manner in which images frame collective action and collective actors. The authors find that images of collective action frame these events differently and in a more nuanced way than do textual accounts. For example, while challengers are just as likely to be shown in images of collective action, they are less likely to be specifically named. In addition, officials are more likely to be shown in dominant positions, but certain groups of officials (particularly government representatives) are also the most likely to be shown as emotional and angry. These findings illustrate the sometimes conflicting messages depicted in images of collective action.A lone man carrying a shopping bag stands in front of and blocks a line of tanks. Four college students sit at a lunch counter. Soldiers surround a student as he places flowers into their guns. A Buddhist monk sets himself on fire as others look on. These descriptions will enable many readers to recall well-known photographs of collective action. Long after the historical details that surround these events are forgotten, these iconic images shape how the public understands the campaigns and movements from which the photographs were taken. Yet most scholars who study the media, social movements, and framing pay scant attention to these images, instead focusing on the written text that accompanies them. The lack of attention to the pictorial is a problem since like written texts, images also frame issues, causes, and movements. There is a strong likelihood that the frames presented in texts and images are not the same. However, the limited empirical attention given to images means that little is known about the media's representation and framing of this visual dimension of contentious action.

Framing post-disaster collective action as ‘good news’: Possibilities and tensions

“…The reproduction of hierarchy within media framing has likewise been observed in coverage of social movements, with negative and irrational aspects of collectives emphasized, while legitimating figures of authority (e.g. Corrigall-Brown and Wilkes, 2012;Dardis, 2006).…”

Research of visual political communication perception by youth: psychophysiological approach

“…demonstrated that visual images are the most important source of information designed to increase the memorability of a message and make it easier to process information [5]. Also, a number of experimental studies have proven that images contribute to a better understanding of campaigns and social movements [6].…”

Still Images—Moving People? How Media Images of Protest Issues and Movements Influence Participatory Intentions

“…Structural political factors (Opp 2009) as well as sociopsychological conditions of affected communities (van Stekelenburg and Klandermans 2009) have been emphasized by researchers exploring the formation of social movements and mobilization. Protest research has also acknowledged the importance of compelling imagery such as clashes with police (Gitlin 2003) and the visual iconography that movements employ to sway public opinion to win popular support (Casas and Williams 2018; Corrigall-Brown and Wilkes 2012; Mattoni and Teune 2014). There is a small but growing literature, as well, on the role of news visuals in mobilizing citizen involvement (Bas and Grabe 2016; Bucy 2020; Casas and Williams 2018; O’Neill et al 2013).…”

“…Research shows that media images are an important information source, attenuate selective exposure, and improve information processing (Bucher and Schumacher 2006; Graber 1990). Images also enhance political information seeking (Ryan 2012), encourage the sharing of news (Lilleker and Koc-Michalska 2017), and frame the understanding and evaluation of political actors and issues (Corrigall-Brown and Wilkes 2012; Krause and Bucy 2018). The reception of media images can thus have far-reaching consequences, including changes in candidate evaluations and political attitudes (Grabe and Bucy 2009; Powell et al 2015), voting preferences (Todorov et al 2005), and agreement with political systems (Bush et al 2016).…”