Challenging Black Lives Matter: Countermovementsʼ Framing Strategies

• In Event: Networks: US Politics and Theoretical Advances

Abstract

This article theorizes differences between countermovements using the cases of White Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter, Police Lives Matter, and All Lives Matter and propounds two novel concepts to study these differences empirically. Cause diversity refers to the variety of issues a counter-movement considers. Consistency connotes the continuity of countermovements’ demands over time. We collected 1,567,894 tweets from Twitter between January 01, 2020, and December 31, 2021, to which we applied network analysis and natural language processing techniques to examine the frames used by the White Lives Matter, Police Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter, and All Lives Matter. By drawing on Laclau's concept of the empty signifier—a signifier that loses its meaning and credibility for simultaneously representing multiple claims (Laclau, 2001), we argue that the vaguer a countermovement’s frame, the emptier it becomes, and the more diverse the claims it makes. Cause diversity is in an inverse relationship with consistency. When countermovements simultaneously make diverse claims, such as All Lives Matter (ALM), some claims temporarily gain salience depending on what is trending in public opinion, and others fade. Hence, their claims have lower consistency over time. If, however, countermovements have a narrower cause diversity, such as Blue Lives Matter, their claims revolve around specific themes, allowing activists to convey a clearer and more consistent message.

Authors

• Basak Taraktas, Bogazici University

• Susan Uskudarli, Bogazici University

• Kadir Cihan Duran, Pennsylvania State University