Shaping a New Common Sense of Reform: Media Discourse on the California "Parent Trigger" Law

• In Event: 46.085 - Roundtable Session 15
  In Roundtable Session: 46.085-24 - Reading Neoliberal Political Technologies Against the Grain

Abstract

Under California’s “parent trigger” law, petitions by parents at low-achieving schools can force closures, reconstitution, or conversion to charter. The law’s political and symbolic importance as an instance of neoliberalism and flash point for polarized debate is indicated by national news coverage, a trigger-inspired feature film, and 70% approval rating in polls. How do media texts frame the California law and adopt reformist discourse? This qualitative study uses critical media and discourse analysis of Los Angeles Times texts to examine how media discourse both shapes and is shaped by a new common sense of education reform. We must better understand such media in order to reframe discourse in support of social justice and the public purposes of public schools.

Author

• Susan Auerbach, California State University - Northridge