Framing an Emerging Issue: How U.S. Print and Broadcast News Media Covered Sex Trafficking, 2008-2012

• In Event: Feminist Reflections About Contemporary Problems

Abstract

The research analyzes the ways in which newspaper and broadcast stories (n=789) have framed sex trafficking, a gendered issue, over time from 2008 to 2012, arguing that frames are most powerful when an issue is making its way into the public consciousness. Three issues dominated the frames in the studied period: crime, policy/legislative, and human rights. Although episodic framing was dominant, coverage shifted to be more thematic, suggesting the beginnings of a transformation in societal perceptions of accountability regarding this issue. The study found certain words and phrases were consistent over the five years, but noted a sharp increase in the ways that trafficked victims were described in terms of victim status and credibility. Findings illuminate the areas in which the type of frames used in sex trafficking stories is beginning to change, which may signal changes in understanding and approaches.

Authors

• Anne Johnston, U of North Carolina

• Barbara G. Friedman, U of North Carolina

• Meghan Sobel, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill