“Sincerely Held Religious Beliefs”: Media Representation and Rhetorical Strategy During Arizona’s SB 1062 Controversy

Abstract

On February 19 th , 2014, Republican legislators in Arizona passed SB 1062, a bill that offered constitutional protections enabling businesses to deny service to any client should that client's lifestyle be found to conflict with the "sincerely held religious beliefs" of the business owner (SB 1062). The bill had been authored by Cathi Herrod, president of the Center for Arizona Policy (CAP), a conservative Christian advocacy group. While Herrod claimed that the measures outlined in SB 1062 protected religious freedoms, opponents of the bill referred to it as the "anti-gay" bill (Herrod). Subsequently, the bill's passage sparked national controversy. A week later, on February 26 th , Arizona's then governor, Republican Jan Brewer, vetoed the bill. While liberal and centrist media outlets celebrated the veto, much conservative media lamented the bill's "mischaracterization" (Pitzi). 2 The debate over SB 1062 is emblematic of how American political media coverage has become increasingly polarized since 9/11. Media theorist, Gary Woodward writes: "Legislative politics is more partisan and bitter, intensifying feelings of a disconnect between citizens and their political institutions. In this frame, political life is often seen as a performance for the public by agents who in reality serve a different and privileged group of 'special interests'" (1). When Woodward describes political life as a "performance for the public" he suggests that such a performance is orchestrated to provide members of the public with the sense that they, the people, are politically relevant. However, the word "performance" suggests spectatorship rather than active engagement. Hence, Woodward argues that, as spectators, Americans are temporarily placated by-rather than engaged in and served by-the political process. Feeling "Sincerely Held Religious Beliefs": Media Representation and Rhetorical Stra...