Underserved Communities and Digital Discourse

Getting Voices Heard

Edited by Victoria L. LaPoe, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Benjamin R. LaPoe II

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The authors thank their family, friends, mentors, and professors for assisting them in this academic journey, chronicling the history of underserved voices in media. The authors additionally send a special thanks to Liz and Ron DeMarse for the original artwork “Pluralism vs. Parts” designed specifically for this book and dedicated to Liz’s grandmother, who will forever support her.

Contents

Introduction: Community-Building in a Digital Era 1 Candi S. Carter Olson 1 “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is”: Social Media Use, Fake News, and Spiral of Silence Before and After the 2016 U.S. Elections 17 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson 2 “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature”: Perceptions of Topics That Were Appropriate or “Too Controversial” for Social Media Discussion Around the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election 39 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe 3 Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? Scholars’ Use of Social Media for Peer Communication 57 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe 4 Community Crisis and Coverage: Coping with Newsroom Compassion Fatigue 77 Victoria L. LaPoe, Mary A. Bemker, Candi S. Carter Olson, Mary T. Rogus, and Nerissa Young 5 Digital Crisis Community Communication: Tweeting the First Anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster: Responsibility, Recovery, and Commemoration 97 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller

vii viii Contents

6 Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs: Sticking It to the Mother Myth: Discussing Race and Gender in Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe Online 117 Benjamin R. LaPoe II, Victoria L. LaPoe, Daniel A. Berkowitz, and Mary A. Bemker 7 History and an International Community Perspective: “An Afternoon with Signor Lynch:” Roi Ottley’s World War II Frames 137 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard 8 The Black Press Tweets 157 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Katie Lever 9 Online Momentum: Priming in the Native American Press 171 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Victoria L. LaPoe 10 Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities: Going Beyond the Parachute Story 185 Victoria L. LaPoe, Rebecca J. Tallent, Tristan Ahtone, and Benjamin R. LaPoe II Conclusion: Clarity: Community-Building and Coverage During Convergence 205 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson Index 213 About the Editors 215 About the Contributors 217 Introduction Community-Building in a Digital Era Candi S. Carter Olson

Media creates community. Communication technology’s entire premise is based upon the supposition that human beings need to connect with one another, whether that’s in person or over long distances, and that the technology itself brings people together. Without the human element, communication technology cannot exist. New communication technologies, however, have continually been disparaged as being divisive or as breaking down social bonds, particularly at the beginning of their integration into society. Of the shift from orality to literacy, Walter Ong (1982) argued,

When a speaker is addressing an audience, the members of the audience nor- mally become a unity, with themselves and with the speaker. If the speaker asks the audience to read a handout provided for them, as each reader enters into his or her own private reading world, the unity of the audience is shat- tered, to be re-established only when oral speech begins again. Writing and print isolate (p. 72).

Literate culture is divisive precisely because we cannot imagine two readers of the same magazine as being a unity without calling them an abstract “audience,” Ong said, while people having a face-to-face conversation are in community with one another. New communication technologies create new ways for people to connect, and therefore, they restructure the ways that we interact and become a community. This creates unease and confusion as people try to conceptualize what it means to have a relationship within a new communication paradigm. Community, then, is the issue at the core of debates about new communication technologies. Do they create community? Or do they shatter it? Com- munity within the context of this conversation addresses any group of people

1 2 Introduction who are united by a shared set of values and identity, whether those people are in close proximity with one another or not. That idea of proximity is important when considering the idea of digital communities, which we will be addressing in this book. Within Ong’s concept of community, only people within the same basic area or those who share a language can possibly be united together into a group with a shared set of values and identity. If you cannot speak orally with another person with a shared language, then you cannot possibly be in community with another person. However, the internet and the ability to digitally connect with people anywhere in the world creates an ever-changing idea of community that is important for creating and sustaining cultures. Carina Chocano (2018) writes:

There’s an association that still lingers between a “community” and a physical location—the idyllic small town, say, or the utopian village, real or imagined. . . . But the countless, ever-multiplying communities of today are something different: not collections of humans functioning in unison but random assortments of people who do the same things, like the same things, hate the same things or believe the same things. Life online is absolutely full of communities. (p. 10)

Chocano (2018) argues that these communities, though, are controlled invis- ibly by large media companies that determine the tone and development of communities. Therefore, the communities are not so much organically formed entities as they are controlling powers that are invested more in money than they are in people. “They [the private companies controlling social media communities] eat away at the very thing that makes community worthwhile, until they’ve created something that’s not a community at all, but a simulation of one, a game with one winner and a community of losers” (Chocano, 2018, p. 11). The overwhelming claims of the internet’s divisive, isolating nature closely echo Ong’s words about the written word’s ability to divide and almost sound like history replicating itself. Researchers from Clemson Uni- versity and Texas Christian University found that “an individual’s tendency for online self-disclosure and online social connection led them to use the internet in more compulsive ways. If a person has poor face-to-face communication skills that individual will likely be more attracted to the social features of online communication, which can foster [compulsive internet use]” (“The Negative Effects,” 2012, para. 3). The fears of isolation and addiction highlighted by this article are echoed in multiple sources, both academic and pop culture, and, ironically, on the internet itself. Clickbait headlines scream, “11 negative effects of internet on students and teenagers,” “17 harmful effects way too much internet can do to you,” “The negative effects of internet addiction in children,” “The negative effects of internet addiction.” Introduction 3

In perhaps a reflection of the internet’s anonymous and divisive nature trum- peted by the headlines, many of these clickbait articles had no author listed. The last one by Dr. David Lowenstein, an Ohio doctor who says that he is a frequent radio and TV guest and contributor to national magazines and newspapers, highlights four particular issues for people to worry about when it comes to internet use: the breakdown of communication, the increased need for instant gratification, an inability to focus on the present, and, as is highlighted in most of these articles, the internet’s effects on children (Dr. Dave, 2014). Again, all of these articles and studies highlight what Ong said of written language, which is that it segregates rather than unites. Within this context, only face-to-face communication has the ability to link people and create strong community connections. In contrast, several studies have found the opposite of this fear, instead concluding that the internet has the ability to bring people together, although the structure of those relationships is fundamentally different than relationships we have seen previously. In other words, communication technologies are remaking our relationships, not breaking them altogether. “The evidence of our work,” write Rainie and Wellman (2012), “is that none of these technologies are isolated—or isolating—systems. . . . People are not hooked on gadgets—they are hooked on each other” (p. 6). Technology is facilitating relationships on a scale never seen before, so trying to conceptualize the ways that people are connecting with each other in a series of networks that are not necessarily known to one another but are connected by an individual is difficult to conceptualize for many people. Castells (2014) notes that today’s society is more “me-centered;” however, “individuation does not mean isolation, or the end of community.” Instead of gathering in person around a place, people are connecting in networks around ideas that interest them as individuals (para. 3). All of the fear about the death of social relationships caused by new communication technology is based on the idea that relationships necessarily need physical contact to exist and flourish. We are part of a group or a tribe because we are physically connected to one another. However, Rainie et al. (2006) argue that our contemporary relationships are based more on social networks rather than in-person connections. “The difference,” they argue, “is that a person’s network often consists of multiple and separate clusters. It could well be that most of a person’s friends do not know each other, and even more likely that neighbors do not know a person’s friends or relatives” (para. 12). Each of these separate networks, while potentially disconnected from one another, provide an individual with different kinds of support, even if the networks include far-distant contacts. Rather than destroying relationships, they say, “The internet is enabling people to maintain existing ties, often to strengthen them, and at times to forge new ties” (para. 14). Rainie and Wellman (2012) 4 Introduction call this “networked individualism.” They write, “In the world of networked individuals, it is the person who is the focus: not the family, not the work unit, not the neighborhood, and not the social group” (p. 6). Rainie and Wellman conceptualize the new networked individualism form of community creation as a group that looks much like the technology that drives it. It is personal, and yet people interact with a multitude of others who are also doing many things and maintaining varied other interactions at once (p. 7). This book explores the various ways that digital communication technologies are remaking or even destroying communities. When considering digital communities, we are discussing groups of people separated by broad distances and sometimes by language. They are only able to communicate because they have the technology of a computer and literate culture to unite them. The globally unifying power of electronic communication technologies has been theorized by many people, including, perhaps most famously, in 1964, Marshall McLuhan’s (1994) concept of a Global Village brought together into one conversation and sharing a set of values and identity only because of electronic media. Perhaps it is not a Global Village, but the current political state is certainly globalized. This idea is shown by a globally united economy and political institutions like the United Nations that are joined internationally, but also share “the universalism of a largely shared culture, diffused by electronic media, education, literacy, urbanization, and modern- ization” (Castells, 2010, p. 30). However, this globalization has created reac- tionary cultures as information cultures “blur the boundaries of membership and involvement, individualize social relationships of production and induce the structural instability of work, space, and time” (Castells, 2010, p. 69). This is perhaps where the hysterical musings of the clickbait presented previously are situated: It’s based within our cultural fear of losing identity. Castells (2010) argues that when drastic shifts in cultural identity happen, as is occurring through the globalization and forced interconnectedness provided by contemporary digital communication technology, people entrench in three ways:

When the world becomes too large to be controlled, social actors aim to shrink it back to their size and reach. When networks dissolve time and space, people anchor themselves in place, and recall their historic memory. When the patriarchal sustainment of personality breaks down, people affirm the transcendent value of the family and community, as God’s will. (p. 69)

Castells (2010) notes that the fast disintegration of the social norms that have been passed down from the industrial era, and the “fading away of the nation-state, the main source of legitimacy,” has resulted in a new form of resistance identity formation and the need to legitimize identities through creating new communities and networks via technology. “It is possible that Introduction 5 from such communes,” Castells (2010) writes, “new subjects—that is, collective agents of social transformation—may emerge, thus constructing new meaning around project identity. Indeed, I would argue that, given the structural crisis of civil society and the nation-state, this may be the main potential source of social change in the network society” (p. 70). Whether or not that change is positive or negative is unclear, or perhaps that potential depends on the network itself and how the individuals within the network use it to create identity and change within civil society. That potential for uniting individuals, particularly people who have been sidelined or ignored by mainstream media, in identity-creating, potentially society-changing networks, is the preoccupation of the chapters in this book. The internet’s capabilities to free subaltern publics and give them their own digital coffee shops and places to connect have been declared in several utopic visions. These range from the idea of the genderless, yet still feminist, cyborg, to the gathering of revolutionary groups overthrowing governments in movements such as 2011’s Arab Spring (Haraway, 2006; Castells, 2015).

DIGITAL HISTORY

Interestingly, even though this book examines contemporary digital culture, it also exists as a historical artifact. Because digital technology and the cultures that surround it are changing quickly, the groups and ideas highlighted throughout this book act as a snapshot of digital societies as they have evolved. The communities highlighted here may no longer exist, or if they do still exist, they probably have changed drastically. These chapters do not serve to try to predict the future of our culture as it is being driven by the ways we connect and communicate with one another via technology. Rather, these chapters examine the ways that various subaltern groups have used the evolving internet and digital cultures to create new networks that bridge online and in-person communication paradigms. These snapshots give an idea of the potential for digital technology to network people together into unified communities that amplify previously unheard voices. They capture the evolution of communication technology over the ten-year research period encompassed by the digital communities included in this book. They also reveal the ways that online communities bridge into real-world activities and activism, which means that what happens online doesn’t stay online. This book highlights digital media’s potential for stifling and further alienating unheard peoples, creating disaffected groups that are unified by their level of estrangement in digital networks that are sometimes heard and sometimes silenced. It also, however, shows the ways that online communities can empower underserved communities to speak out, organize themselves, and be 6 Introduction heard in policy-changing and conversation-changing ways. In this way, this current-day work examines recent digital history, but it also points to future directions for people who are embracing online communities in new and inventive ways to magnify previously unheard peoples. The work of producing digital histories is important precisely because contemporary technologies are ephemeral in ways not seen previously. Jeff Rothenberg (1999) was one of the first academics to identify the problem with preserving contemporary data. The technologies change quickly and the language used to design and create the texts is embedded within the technologies themselves; therefore, there is no way for future generations to access information stored on changing hardware, such as the floppy disk or the CD. Unless current developers leave a technological Rosetta Stone, or a way to translate all of the evolving data bits that create our contemporary digital languages, then all of the communication artifacts being created today will disappear and be inaccessible to future generations. Fleischhauer (2003) argues that the problem of preservation is not new to internet artifacts. He notes, “As moving image and recorded sound archivists know all too well, the issues of format volatility and the risk of sheer loss are of long standing. Analog magnetic recordings are poster children for the problems of format volatility and the risk of loss that characterize all electronic content, not just digital” (para. 4). Fleischhauer says, “volatility and loss” are the hallmark problems facing contemporary media historians and archivists (para. 5). Ankerson (2011) adds, “Even ‘saved’ websites bear their own bur- dens: broken links, missing images, 404 errors, and code written for outdated browsers. . . . The unique characteristics of the web and the peculiarities of the digital object will certainly require new ways of doing media history” (p. 385). Historians and librarians are working through these problems in unique and varied ways to try and capture the ephemeral artifacts of digital media before they disappear (Ankerson, 2012; Fleischhauer, 2003; Scott, 2005; VanCour, 2016). The Wayback Machine on the Internet Archive is perhaps one of the most famous places trying to capture internet history as its being made. The archivists for the Wayback Machine try to capture screenshots of websites, audio, and video as it is being distributed on the internet. Even this project, though, can only capture a section or a small snapshot of what a digital artifact was like at a point in time rather than producing full insight into what led to the artifact or all of the aspects that went into developing the messages and communities around the technology. As of May 2018, the archive boasted a collection of 279 billion web pages, 11 million books and texts, 4 million audio recordings, 3 million videos, 1 million images, and 100,000 software programs (“About the Internet Archive,” n.d.). Again, because the internet is changing quickly, these numbers will be outdated by the time this book gets Introduction 7 into a reader’s hands. The Wayback Machine’s collection of software programs could potentially solve the problem of translation posed by Rothenberg (1999) if later generations can understand the languages used to produce the individual programs. Even this large archive, however, comes with deficits in its collections that create problems for future generations trying to understand the contemporary moment. As Ankerson (2011) notes, “But this great breadth comes with the price of depth, consistency, and accuracy. Rarely are the entire contents of a site preserved and the ‘snapshots’ are often incomplete with missing images and broken links” (p. 386). These preservation problems are not wholly unique to digital products. Newspapers and print products can be lost to floods, fires, and the vagaries of time, and many newspapers and libraries have pushed to digitize their print content as a way to preserve the content for future generations (Gustafson, 2015). What is new is the rapid change and push for the new and innovative that pushes contemporary technology to destroy anything that’s considered passé, with no consideration for coming generations’ understanding of current conversations that are building future political and social structures. This is perhaps as big of a problem as the problem of preservation. We live in a greater milieu of apathy toward historicity as societies fetishize current social needs and speed up technological development while ignoring the preservation and durability of their quickly developing digital artifacts. This problem, which Pietrzyk (2012) calls “the pervasive cultural neglect of time,” is being driven by capitalism. Pietrzyk argues,

Virtually all of the scholars of social acceleration agree on the central role played by capitalism in driving the process of social acceleration. Likewise, from a medium theory perspective, one cannot evaluate the impact of new time-and-space annihilating technologies, including new media, without also examining the material foundations of society involving its means of production, distribution and consumption as well as the structured relationships related to them. (p. 128)

While this book is not centrally focused on the problem of material exchanges in terms of internet communities, the idea that media is a consumable product that is driven by material concerns is a central problem of community formation on the internet. As Chocano (2018) argued, perhaps the companies controlling the spaces where these communities are forming have a greater role in shaping and driving the conversations that are highlighted throughout this book than has been previously considered. If this is the case, then, preserving the conversations at a point in time, as this book does, gives perspective on the ways that communities are driven and change over time. This preservation project gives future 8 Introduction generations a way to conceptualize the way that political and social structures evolved because of mediated communities. Whether those communities evolve based on agentic works by the community actors themselves or by the companies controlling the technological access to those conversations is an overarching question that needs to be explored in greater depth. Chapter 3, which considers academic’s use or avoidance of social media, particularly looks at the way that material concerns—keeping a job, in this case—drive people’s desire to either use or avoid new communication channels. Other chapters, including those on the 2016 elections, the examination of nurses and motherhood roles in discussion boards about the TV shows Nurse Jackie and HawthorRNe, Black Twitter activism, and online audience-driven coverage of the first anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster, look at the ways that communities use new technologies as ways to subvert the conversations being driven by mainstream, money-making media sources. These complicate the argument that capitalism is driving community formation and conversations on the internet. This history, then, is the story of the different players and ideas driving the development of online societies. It also preserves a record of these community conversations in a way that is readable and accessible for future generations.

DIGITAL COMMUNITY CONVERSATIONS

This book explores the realities of the technological utopic communities and the media that have formed them. Within this discovery, chapters within this book discuss technological community case studies from business, strategic, and health communication perspectives, with ideas from entertainment to democratic participation to ethics involved in activism. The chapters explore issues that include the silences that occur because of harassment on social media and the was that bonds formed online spill over into real-world activism. The first chapters of this book are a series of studies that are built upon one another, although they are arranged in reverse order with the most current study first. The first chapter, “‘I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is:’ Social Media Use, Fake News, and Spiral of Silence Before and After the 2016 U.S. Elections,” examines the ways that social media is particularly challenging our political communities and the conversations that happen within those groups. The digital sphere is increasingly turning into an important political organizing space, as shown by the Women’s March in 2017 and the March for Our Lives and other gun-related protests in 2018, all of which were organized through internet communities. This chapter examines this social media discussion through a national Introduction 9

Qualtrics survey of more than 500 people to understand people’s awareness of fake news and trolling on social media sites and their reactions to either perceived or actual threats on social media sites. This study builds on a previous Qualtrics survey run around the time of President Trump’s inauguration that used a snowball sample of more than 340 people to examine people’s reactions to trolling before and after the 2016 elections. The most current survey explores how people’s awareness of social media, press freedoms, trolling, and the term “fake news” have changed over the intervening year. Perhaps most importantly, this study finds that while respondents to the 2017 survey said the internet should be used for political conversations, a significant portion of 2018’s respondents suggested that the internet should not be used for political discussions, which is a direct contradiction to the increasing use of digital spaces as organizing and grassroots-movement- building places by political movements. The second chapter, “‘Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature’: Perceptions of Topics That Were Appropriate or ‘Too Controversial’ for Social Media Discussion Around the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election,” shows the nascent rumblings of this “no politics” attitude from the first, exploratory survey by Victoria LaPoe and Candi Carter Olson in 2017. While this survey used a snowball sample and the sample in the first chapter was gathered using a Qualtrics’ panel, interestingly, both groups consistently indicated that politics and religion are topics that are inappropriate for online discourse. Both surveys consistently found that already disadvantaged groups—people belonging to gender, sexual, racial, ethnic, or ability minorities—are facing harassment and silencing themselves at higher rates than dominant groups. However, the 2017 respondents generally argued that the internet has become our new public sphere, and if people do not engage in political discourse online, then they are, in effect, silencing themselves and removing their voices from the political issues that are being driven by fast-moving, online debate and discussion. Therefore, people must engage in political conversations online. In effect, the internet is a village; rather than oral discourse, though, people are engaging with one another via blogs, social media posts, media discussion boards, videos, and other digital discussion options. The thought that a whole set of already subaltern publics could choose to silence themselves or could be silenced because of the threat of harassment is an important one to consider, particularly if digital discourse is driving our political democracies around the world. This chapter particularly asks what happens to democracy and democratic discourse when people are driven out of the mainstream conversation by harassment or the fear of doxing. Chapter 3, “Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Commu- nity? Scholars’ Use of Social Media for Peer Communication,” takes the conversation down to a specific group—academics—and examines the ways 10 Introduction that using internet support circles can advance academic careers at the same time as scholars fear expressing themselves online because of colleagues who have lost their jobs after putting controversial material online. While previous chapters explore the ways that the broader democratic discourse can be harmed by an external group, the survey and interviews used in this chapter dig deep into the career implications of a particular group of people deliberately choosing to disengage. On the one hand, academics, who were interviewed and surveyed in 2014 and 2015, repeatedly pointed to case studies of other people who had been excoriated publicly and driven out of academia because of their social media posts. On the other hand, research showed that people who engaged with colleagues online found communities of people who could support their work and help to break down the feeling of isolation that many academics feel because of small departments and highly specified research areas. As with the political research in chapters 1 and 2, this chapter argues that academia’s underrepresented groups—particularly women and racial and ethnic minorities—can find support online that may not exist within their departments. Therefore, to advance their careers and rise into higher positions within the academy, scholars need to engage with online communities. Many women who were interviewed noted that harassment was an expected part of digital excursions, but ignoring the trolls and engaging with colleagues and friends in a supportive, encouraging way could result in a community that helps a woman move forward in the academy. Discussion about professionalism, professional support communities and discourses, and internet harassment is continued in chapter 4, “Community Crisis and Coverage: Coping with Newsroom Compassion Fatigue.” In this chapter, researchers conducted an exploratory survey that serves as a case study of compassion fatigue and journalists and the ways that mental health may affect journalist’s abilities to serve their communities, no matter the media being used. This chapter explores journalists’ feelings toward the stories they cover and their stress after these reports are posted, published, and/ or aired. It also explores the ways that both primary and secondary trauma, or the ways that journalists relive tragic experiences through their source’s words and viewpoints, can cause PTSD, depression, anxiety, and other health struggles for journalists. A community mental health nursing and psychology framework is used to discuss journalists’ “after-story stress.” Chapter 5, “Digital Crisis Community Communication: Tweeting the First Anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster: Responsibility, Recov- ery, and Commemoration,” continues the professional discussion by looking at the ways that online communities fill holes in the mainstream coverage of major events. This chapter explores Twitter discourse of the Deepwater Hori- zon oil disaster near its one-year anniversary. Tweets were collected during the month of April—before, during, and after the anniversary of the largest Introduction 11 marine oil disaster in history. This study found that tweets followed a consistent pattern of themes that included recovery and responsibility. Additionally, the tweets mirrored initial coverage of the event thus showing an intermedia agenda. We also explored the role of social media anniversary coverage in society. Like chapters 1 and 2, this chapter challenges conversations about politics and public communication. This exploration, though, looks at the ways that minority publics can push unheard voices into the mainstream agenda, which has been a consistent way that subaltern publics have used the internet, as seen in the internet’s longest-running active hashtag, #Black- LivesMatter, 2017’s Women’s March, which was organized through social media activism, and, more recently, 2018’s March for Our Lives, which was organized by the survivors of February 2018’s Marjory Stoneman Doug- las High School shootings in Parkland, Florida, via social media activism. In many ways, this chapter shows the activist potential of the internet as social media users used online sources to push mainstream agendas. Sometimes, internet communities don’t need to push mainstream conversations so much as they need to create spaces for people to make connections and build niche conversations about issues important to their group. This is shown in the conversation built in online forums about the gendered and racial ideologies foregrounded by the television shows Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe, which is explored in chapter 6, “Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs: Sticking It to the Mother Myth: Dis- cussing Race and Gender in Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe Online.” These two programs explored the lives of nurses and their motherhood roles. In various ways, these two shows reinforced images of the good mother and bad mother myths, causing controversy among both nurses and other working moms. The digital community conversations challenged these myths and created nuanced conversations about motherhood, nursing as a profession, and the ideologies that surround motherhood. The digital spaces of community conversation boards allowed people from disparate backgrounds and spaces to gather, discuss, and challenge one another. The internet bridged time and space barriers in interesting ways that show the potential of digital communities to unite people who couldn’t meet in person but whose interests aligned in a way that made them partners in the overall dialogue. The internet spaces became publics united by interest, and space and time were not barriers to the discussions that were built and deepened through the blogs and websites. The final four chapters of this book challenge the ideas that minority voices are being removed from democratic discourse as posited in the first two chapters. The final four chapters examine the ways that subaltern publics, particularly racial and ethnic minorities, have used and continue to use a multitude of media to create villages that intervened in mainstream media coverage and confront and change prevailing ideologies. 12 Introduction

Chapter 7, “History and an International Community Perspective: ‘An Afternoon with Signor Lynch’: Roi Ottley’s World War II Frames,” does not address contemporary digital media communities. Instead, this chapter sets a foundation for discussing the ways that minority groups have historically used media channels to address both broader white audiences and their own communities. While Roi Ottley is a relatively unknown reporter today, his reportage across two prestige Black presses, the Pittsburgh Courier and the Chicago Defender, and for mainstream white papers, established a historical precedence for examining the ways that racial and ethnic minorities used their media megaphone to broadcast issues of importance to their communities. Mainstream presses have historically ignored issues of importance to minority communities, but reporters like Roi Ottley forced those issues onto the mainstream agenda in ways that focused attention. Today, even non- reporters are using digital media channels in much the same way, which is the issue explored in chapter 8. Chapter 8, “The Black Press Tweets,” particularly examines the ways that the Black Twitter amplifies community voices. This chapter seeks to answer questions about the Black press’ contemporary roles by exploring how they use Twitter to continue their responsibilities to amplify Black voices as part of the mainstream dialogue. While Twitter wasn’t available to reporters like Roi Ottley, Black Twitter users have employed this tool and other social media sites in ways that organize and drive minority issues onto the mainstream (i.e., “white”) media agenda in formative and transformative ways. This chapter shows how educators might apply discussions of diverse media to show different ways of covering nonwhite issues and communities. The historical reportage of Roi Ottley has echoes in today’s Black Twitter, which ensures that the media’s first draft of history includes minority voices as an integral part of the historical record. In the same way that chapter 7 establishes a foundation for chapter 8’s discussion of contemporary Black Twitter use, chapter 9, “Online Momentum: Priming in the Native American Press,” establishes a foundation for talking about Native American media with context and depth that is made more possible because of digital media channels. Native media has historically filled a void in mainstream coverage of Native American issues. Native Americans comprise 2 percent of the overall population (Rickert, 2016) and consistently, mainstream media often stereotypically frame or ignore Indigenous voices. Chapter 9 examines priming—a concept that explains the ways that repeated media images can train people’s brains to perceive images, people, and words, in both positive and negative ways—in Native news to see if that reportage triggered dormant racial attitudes. This important concept helps to understand the ways that outsiders perceive and react to online minority communities and their discussions of contemporary events that affect their Introduction 13 communities. It challenges audiences and reporters to go beyond surface stereotypes in their reporting, which is emphasized in chapter 10’s call for reporters to go to beyond one-time, drop-in stories that don’t give the full cultural and community context in Native stories. Finally, chapter 10, “Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities: Going Beyond the Parachute Story,” surveys the ways that Native media bring depth, experience, and knowledge to stories that mainstream media sources overlook when they parachute in on large, national stories, such as the grassroots Dakota Access Pipeline protests that began in early 2016. These protests drew national attention and people from a multitude of places, including as far away as New Zealand, to protest the building of an oil pipeline across the Standing Rock Indian Reservation without the tribe’s support. This chapter explores the ways that Native presses go beyond stereotypical portrayals and give historical context, providing multiple voices from across Indigenous communities. However, the pressures of journalism and ethics are particularly keen with digital media speeding up the dissemination of information about local issues like Standing Rock to a national and international audience. This chapter will consider responses from journalists who cover Indian Country to consider best practices for providing accurate and contextualized coverage. The conclusion of this book will provide some reflections on the ethics of journalists covering underserved communities and suggestions for future research. This section includes an appendix of sources that give researchers and journalists practical help for improving and advancing their work to include underserved communities. The potentials and pitfalls of digital media for minority groups are both huge, and this book aims to give mainstream media practitioners, educators, and researchers perspectives and tools to amplify and empower the voices of peoples who are currently underserved by the mainstream media. The opportunity to expand our democratic conversations is seemingly limitless if people are willing to fight those that would sideline people with whom they disagree and listen to the voices that have previously been relegated to niche or underground media sources. Together, these chapters provide a foundation for considering contemporary history in progress. They document digital conversation that may be captured partially in other ways, and then contextualizes those conversations within a broader cultural framework so that future generations can understand the communities that are building and driving social structures today. Technological communities are the human-connecting coffee shops of the twenty-first century. The conversations happening online spill over into in-person activity that’s transformative for political and social organizations that comprise contemporary democracy. By capturing and considering these communities as real connections that are influential for participants 14 Introduction and observers, this volume starts a conversation about the evolving nature of the online human experience and its connections with our mediated past and future.

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“11 negative effects of internet on students and teenagers.” (n.d.). Vkool. http://vkool. com/negative-effects-of-internet/. “17 harmful effects way too much internet can do to you.” (n.d.). Odyb.net. https:// odyb.net/disorders/internet-addiction-too-much/. Ankerson, M. S. (2011). “Writing Web Histories with an Eye on the Analog Past.” New Media & Society 14 (3): 384–400. Castells, M. (2009). The Power of Identity: The Information Age - Economy, Society, and Culture. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. https://ebookcentral-proquest- com.dist.lib.usu.edu. Castells, M. (2014). “The Impact of the Internet on Society: A Global Perspective.” MIT Technology Review. https://www.technologyreview.com/s/530566/ the-impact-of-the-internet-on-society-a-global-perspective/. Castells, M. (2015). Networks of Outrage and Hope: Social Movements in the Inter- net Age. Cambridge: Polity. Chocano, C. (2018). “What Good is ‘community’ When Someone Else Makes all the Rules?” New York Times Magazine. Dr. Dave. (2014). “The Negative Effects of Internet Addiction.” Dr. David Lowenstein and Associates. http://drlowenstein.com/2014/05/19/ the-negative-effects-of-internet-addiction/. Fleischhauer, C. (2003). “Looking at Preservation from the Digital Library Perspective.” The Moving Image 3 (2): 96–100. Gustafson, K. L. (2015). “Ethnic Newspaper Producers Face Archiving Challenges.” Newspaper Research Journal 36 (3): 314–327. Haraway, D. (2006). “A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist- feminism in the Late 20th Century.” In The International Handbook of Virtual Learning Environments, edited by J. Weiss, J. Nolan, J. Hunsinger, & P. Trifonas. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer. The Internet Archive. (n.d.). https://archive.org/. McLuhan, M. (1994). Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. “The Negative Effects of Internet Use.” (2012). Phys.org. https://phys.org/ news/2012–10-negative-effects-internet.html. Ong, W. J. (1982). Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word. New York: Routledge. Pietrzyk, K. (2012). “Preserving Digital Narratives in an Age of Present-minded- ness.” Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Tech- nologies 18 (2): 127–133. Introduction 15

Rainie, L., Horrigan, J. B., Wellman, B., & Boase, J. (2006). “What is the internet doing to relationships?” Pew Research Center. http://www.pewinternet. org/2006/01/25/what-is-the-internet-doing-to-relationships/. Rainie, L., & Wellman, B (2012). Networked: The New Social Operating System. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. Rothenberg, J. (1999). “Ensuring the longevity of digital information.” http://www. clir.org/programs/otheractiv/ensuring.pdf. Rickert, L. (2016). U.S. Census Bureau: Native American Statistics. Native News Online. Native https://nativenewsonline.net/currents/u-s-census-bureau-native- american-statistics/ Scott, B. (2005). “A Contemporary History of Digital Journalism.” Television & New Media 6 (1): 89–126. Sharma, A. (n.d.). “The Negative Effects of Internet Addiction in Children.” Parent Circle. https://www.parentcircle.com/article/the-negative-effects-of- internet-addiction-in-children/. VanCour, S. (2016). “Locating the Radio Archive: New Histories, New Challenges.” Journal of Radio & Audio Media 23 (2): 395–403.

Chapter 1

“I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” Social Media Use, Fake News, and Spiral of Silence Before and After the 2016 U.S. Elections Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson

Since the 2016 U.S. presidential election, the term “fake news” seems to have become ubiquitous in public discourse.1 A simple Google search on the phrase pulls up more than 7.3 million results with top news stories showing results from websites of organizations as diverse as National Public Radio, Forbes magazine, and The Post and Courier, in Charleston, South Carolina (Foley, 2018; Olson, 2018; Garcia-Navarro, 2018). A more nuanced Google search of “Fake News” and “Trolls” pulls up almost 3.5 million results, with top results warning that bots and misinformation campaigns using false information and direct personal attacks on people, or trolling, were set to increase and that this use of the internet would directly attack and undermine internet freedoms and digital democracy (Abeshouse, 2018; Cuthbertson, 2018; Terra, 2018). Countries as diverse as the Philippines, Egypt, Canada, Great Britain, and Spain reported concerns about fake news undermining their political systems and public discourse (n.a., 2018; Brown, 2018; Bon- nell, 2018; Booth & Birnbaum, 2017; Reuters staff, 2018). In addition, the connection between the term “fake news” and “trolling,” as shown by the number of Google results with these two terms, shows an increased awareness of personal safety and harassment on the internet as people struggle to reconcile their desire to interact with the conversations that form our digital democratic discourses and their need for safety and protection. Facebook’s current Product Manager for Civic Engagement, Samidh Chakrabarti (2018), noted in a January 2018 blog post, “While I’m an

17 18 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson optimist at heart, I’m not blind to the damage that internet can do to even a well-functioning democracy” (para. 4). Facebook, the current social media behemoth with more than 2 billion monthly users worldwide, was originally designed to connect friends and family, Chakrabarti wrote. However, “As unprecedented numbers of people channel their political energy through this medium, it’s being used in unforeseen ways with societal repercussions that were never anticipated,” leaving the Facebook designers and managers scrambling to keep up with and mitigate the “consequential downsides of social media on democracy” (Chakrabarti, 2018, paras. 6 and 8). Twitter, President Donald Trump’s favored social media platform, is facing the same dilemma. Greg Bonnell, a reporter for the Business News Network, said that he’d been on Twitter since 2006 or 2007, and, over the years, he’s seen that, “I’m getting less and less news and more and more hate” (Bonnell, 2018). Leanne Gibson, interim managing director at Twitter Canada, told Bonnell that there are half a billion tweets sent every day on that platform, a number that has grown 15 percent in the last year, “and it’s going to continue to grow” (Bonnell, 2018). Gibson noted that the flood of information on Twit- ter is heavily weighted toward politics and news, and that “Politics in general, it has a home and a place on Twitter” (Bonnell, 2018). However, because of the changes in the content of information and fears of fake information influencing those political conversations, Twitter has been actively trying to combat bots and users spreading misinformation and trolling other people. Gibson claimed that Twitter has seen a 40 percent increase in users blocking mentions and other followers in the preceding year (Bonnell, 2018). This chapter uses a Qualtrics national panel survey of 515 people to understand people’s awareness of fake news and trolling on social media sites and their reactions to either perceived or actual threats on social media sites. This study builds on a previous Qualtrics survey run in January and February 2017 that used a snowball sample of more than 340 people to examine people’s reactions to trolling before and after the 2016 elections. The most current survey explores how people’s awareness of social media, press freedoms, trolling, and the term “fake news” has changed over the intervening year. Using this data, this chapter examines the ways that trolls, the consistent labeling of oppositional views as “fake news,” and misinformation campaigns have caused people to partially or fully withdraw from online political conversations. If people are silencing themselves in a spiral of silence caused by overwhelming cries of fake news and perceived threats to their safety on social media, then it would follow that there may be some impact on who participates in our digital democracy, which has a real-life impact on broader political conversations and actions. For the purposes of this analysis, “fake news” will be defined broadly since it is used with impunity by people across the political spectrum. The phrase “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 19

“fake news” in its most literal sense refers to information that is blatantly false or incorrect. Most often, the term is used by a range of politicians from President Trump to a republican gubernatorial candidate in South Carolina; politicians and others use the term to discredit news sources that they don’t like or to undermine their opponent’s positions (Foley, 2018). A 2016 election content analysis of fake news, satire, and real news stories found that fake news tends to run long titles that “packs the main claim of the article . . . allowing the reader to skip reading the article, which tends to be short, repetitive and less informative” (Horne & Adah, 2017, p. 2). Fake news stories are closer to satire; however, fake news “has the intention to deceive, making the reader believe it is correct,” while satire explicitly identifies itself as humor rather than a real news source (Horne & Adah, 2017, p. 1). Howard et al. (2018) argue that junk news spread via social media can be considered a form of “computational propaganda” (p. 1). While legacy media sources, such as broadcast news channels and newspapers, still dominate American news consumption habits, the gap between the two is shrinking quickly. In 2016, the gap between those who primarily received their news from broadcast sources versus social media was 19 points; however, that gap shrunk to just 7 points in 2017, with 43 percent of Americans saying they often got their news online versus 50 percent who said they often got their news from the television (Bialik & Matsa, 2017, para. 2). Even older consumers are now getting their news from a mobile device or online. The Pew Research Center found that around two-thirds of people now use a mobile device for news, and 85 percent of Americans overall consume news on their phones or another mobile device (Bialik & Matsa, 2017, para. 4). Those with a college degree were much less likely (63%) to get their news from mobile devices versus those without college degrees and nonwhites (para. 6). Of all of those who responded to the 2017 Pew survey, more than half said they often see political news with some inaccuracies online (para. 7). According to a 2016 Pew Research Center survey, about two-thirds of Ameri- can adults think that made up news stories are creating confusion “about the basic facts of current issues and events” (Barthel, Mitchell, and Holcomb, 2018, para. 2). However, those same respondents are also fairly confident that they can spot fake news, with 39 percent reporting that they feel very confident and 45 percent feeling somewhat confident that they can spot false information (para. 3). This is the case even though 23 percent reported sharing a fake news story, and 14 percent said they had knowingly shared a fabricated report (para. 4). The use of propaganda and outright false reports is certainly not new in the media; however, new technology and communication streams, such as social media, have allowed misinformation to spread and influence public opinion on a scale never seen previously. Gaughan (2016) argues that while 20 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson previous elections have certainly featured misinformation and defamatory statements, the 2016 election was markedly different for four reasons: (1) fake news spread at a faster rate than ever before because of the internet; (2) in direct opposition to Pew’s respondents who said they would be able to spot fake news stories, Gaughan claims that internet users during the 2016 election cycle were “remarkably gullible when it [came] to fake news circulated around the internet”; (3) 2016’s junk news didn’t just attack candidates, it attacked the entire election process, casting doubt on the validity of the voting process; and (4) the candidates themselves, most notably President Trump, amplified misinformation, just like the shadow sites that were more blamed for the development of falsehoods (pp. 67–71). The Freedom on the Net 2017 report found an overall decline in internet freedom during 2017. This was directly caused by the manipulation of our online information streams (Free- dom House, 2018). Multiple studies have found that bots and fake news producers drove the online conversation leading up to the 2016 U.S. presidential election (Bessi & Ferrara, 2016; Howard et al., 2017; Freedom House, 2018; Silverman, 2016). In a study of what Michigan voters shared on Twitter leading up to the 2016 election, Howard et al. (2018) found that “46.5 percent of all the content that is presented as news and information about politics and the election is of untrustworthy provenance or falls under the definition of propaganda based on its use of language and emotional appeals” (p. 4). In fact, on the day before the 2016 election, the amount of information shared from professional news organizations relative to news shared in all other forms of political news and information fell to its lowest proportion during the campaign (p. 4). This result mirrors a Buzzfeed analysis of more than 15 million Facebook shares, reactions, and comments in the last three months leading up to the 2016 election cycle. In this analysis, the 20 top-performing false news stories received from sources that were either outright hoax sites or sites that were blatantly hyperpartisan received more than 8.7 million shares or interactions. In comparison, the top 20 posts from 19 major news sites only received 7.4 million shares or interactions (Silverman, 2016, paras. 2 and 3). A Yale University study found that increased exposure to false stories made audiences more likely to believe the content. Even if a viewer didn’t believe a story on the first viewing, subsequent viewings increased the likelihood of a reader believing that misinformation was, in fact, correct (Pennycook, Cannon, & Rand, 2017). Many people see the problem of misinformation, propaganda, bots, and trolling only increasing on social media in the future. Dipayan Ghosh, who previously worked for Facebook and now works for the Google-funded policy think tank New America, and Ben Scott (2018) argue that the problem of deceitful stories and trolling on the internet is not limited to one platform or one group, such as Russian spies. Instead, they argue, “The central problem “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 21 is that the entire industry is built to leverage sophisticated technology to aggregate user attention and sell advertising. There is an alignment of interests between advertisers and the platforms. And disinformation operators are typically indistinguishable from any other advertiser” (Ghosh & Scott, 2018, para. 3). While Ghosh and Scott identify several problems facing new media companies trying to combat toxic information cultures on their platforms, perhaps the clearest issue here goes back to what Brooke Gladstone (2012) calls media’s “Bad News Bias.” Bad News Bias essentially says that stories that are sensational or negative are more likely to catch attention. Therefore, they’re more likely to “sell” or bring in advertising dollars. As Ghosh and Scott (2018) note, social media exist to grab attention, which, in turn, brings in advertising money. If this is the case, then new media companies have a vested interest in not alienating misinformation distributors since those producers catch attention and generate income The increasing use of social media for news consumption, sharing of news from hyperpartisan sources, focus on negativity of all forms has a clear impact on individual user conversations and the broader democratic discourse happening across platforms. A 2017 Pew Research study of users’ perceptions of the future of online interactions found that only 19 percent of respondents expect the internet will be less shaped by “harassment, trolling and distrust” in the future, while a majority of respondents found there would either be no change (42%), and 39 percent said that negative posts would “more shape” the future of the internet (Rainie, Anderson, & Albright, 2017, para. 20). This negativity isn’t an anonymous occurrence. People who are the targets of trolls and fake news stories see real repercussions in their everyday lives. The Columbia Journalism Review interviewed four victims of online trolls and the impact on their lives. One victim, David Wheeler, is the father of six- year-old Benjamin Wheeler, who was killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elemen- tary School massacre. After he spoke out online, he found that people had set up fake Twitter accounts for him and his wife and worked to undermine his integrity by calling him an actor. He said, “The way this propaganda works is you take something insane and wrap it in a bit of truth, and then all of these people swallow it because it’s wrapped in a little bit of truth” (Berman, 2017, para. 10). This sort of undermining, Wheeler describes, hasn’t ended; within the past month, trolls have attempted to undermine Parkland, Florida, high school shooting survivors speaking out about gun rights; headlines like this one appeared on sites, such as PolitiFact: “Why you shouldn’t believe claims that Stoneman Douglas students are crisis actors” (Graves, 2018). Wheeler said Twitter eventually shut down the fake Twitter accounts casting him and his family as actors versus advocates; however, the damage that had already occurred had huge repercussions across the family’s lives. 22 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson

Wheeler spent 45 minutes on the phone with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly trying to get her not to run an interview with Alex Jones of InfoWars, which started the attacks on the Wheeler family. He said of misinformation producers, “When you look at this behavior, this unconscionable, devoid-of-any- kind-of-human-empathy behavior that has been directed at us, that’s mental illness” (Berman, 2017, para. 14). Among the several junk news and fake sites that Berman’s article reports, she highlights the repercussions of a fake report of election fraud in Franklin County, Ohio, and the impact of conspir- acy theories on a pizza restaurant in Washington, DC. The pizza restaurant incident in question was eventually dubbed “Pizzagate.” Reports circulated saying that the restaurant was a front for a child sex trafficking campaign run by democrats. The fake reports resulted in daily death threats for the owners and surrounding businesses, and it eventually escalated to Edgar Maddison Welch walking into the business with an AK-15 assault rifle on December 4, 2016, looking to rescue the children he thought were being abused there (Berman, 2017). Our previous research, which you can see in chapter 2, shows that women, LGBTQ2S+ peoples, and people with disabilities were more likely to report being the target of trolls before and after the 2016 elections. Our research also showed that those groups were more likely to choose not to engage in political discussions online, thus removing their voices from the digital public sphere and creating a spiral of silence around their perspectives. Spiral of Silence theory states that people fear isolation, so they’re more likely to stay silent if they disagree with what they perceive as the majority opinion in order to increase their own ability to be accepted by the mainstream and avoid being ostracized (Noelle-Neumann, 1974). This follow-up study builds on that research by expanding the identified groups of people to include race, ethnicity, and religion. In addition, it asks people to identify their awareness of fake news and press freedoms after the 2016 elections, along with their own information sharing habits before and after the elections. Through this study, the authors hope to build an idea of the ways that fake news and associated trolling and online harassment have shaped people’s perceptions of what they can and cannot discuss online and how those perceptions affect the conversations happening in our digital democratic sphere. Thus, the following questions will guide this study:

RQ1: How will respondents use social media to speak out or silence themselves before and after the 2016 election? RQ2: How has increased awareness of the term “fake news” and press freedoms affected people’s use of social media for political discussion? RQ3: What does participation or suppression of a “political social media voice” mean in terms of a democratic society? “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 23

METHOD

The researchers purchased a panel through Qualtrics. The survey company agreed to attempt to provide a diverse sample in terms of race, gender, sexuality, religion, age, ability, economic status, and partisanship. Researchers conducted quality checks on the sample in a pretest of the sample and after a full run of the survey. In an attempt to gain quality responses, Qualtrics added an engagement time limit to the survey; respondents had to interact with the survey for at least a third of the survey’s estimated completion response time. The launch of the study was systematic; this study replicated a previous survey conducted right after the 2016 presidential inauguration. The researchers used the same form of questions to track response about receiving feedback on political posts, social media activity, and level of sharing. This current survey did add questions that have emerged over the past year, such as the awareness of “fake news.”

Age, Gender, and Sexuality There were 515 respondents in the survey. The largest age for respondents was 65 or above (n=82), followed by 18–24 (n=78), 25–30 (n=70), 35–39 (n=64), 45–49 (n=42), 29–34 (n=41), 40–44 (n=38), 55–59 (n=36), 60–64 (n=33), and 50–54 (n=31). The majority of respondents identified as female (n=311) with male (n=202) being the next largest identified gender, followed by one respondent identifying as transgender and one respondent identifying as gender queer. Most respondents were heterosexual (n=456), followed by bisexual (n=22), gay (n=14), lesbian (n=9), asexual (n=6), pansexual (n=5), and other (n=3).

Race, Ethnicity, and/or Origin The largest group of respondents in terms of race/ethnicity and origin was white (n=369), followed by Black or African American (n=66), Asian (n=32), Hispanic and/or Latin-X (n=28), American Indian or Alaska Native (n=12), with two indicating specific tribes, some other race, ethnicity, or origin (n=8), and Middle Eastern (n=4). Respondents could fill in specifics next to each category.

Religion Respondents were also mainly Christian (n=205) and Catholic (n=95), followed by nothing in particular (n=43), atheist (n=40), spiritual (n=27), evan- gelical protestant (n=22), agnostic (n=20), Buddhist (n=13), other (n=13), 24 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson

Jewish (n=10), mainline protestant (n=10), Jehovah’s Witness (n=9), Muslim (n=9), Orthodox Christian, (n=7), Hindu (n=6), Unaffiliated (n=5), other faiths (n=3), world religions (n=2), and Historically Black Protestant (n=1).

Area and Region Those who live in the suburbs made up the largest area where respondents lived at 42 percent. Urban areas followed at a little more than 28 percent, and rural was only slightly smaller at a little under 28 percent. “Other” made up less than 1 percent. Like our inauguration sample, South was also one of the largest regions for respondents at close to 38 percent. Midwest was the second largest region at close to 23 percent, West (n=74), East (n=64), North (n=61), and other (n=4) followed—all less than 15 percent of the sample.

Employment, Education, and Income Most respondents worked full time (n=173) or were retired (n=106). Other respondents were unemployed (n=81), worked part-time (n=56), student (n= 40), self-employed (n=35), working without pay for family or business (n=12), disabled (n=6), homemaker (n=6), uncompensated laborer (n=2), or other. High school graduate or equivalent made up 27 percent of the sample (n=141). Bachelor’s degree was the second largest education level (n=95) at more than 18 percent, followed by 1 or more year of college (n=79), some college credit, but less than 1 year (n=66), associate degree (n=64), master’s degrees (n=42), 12th grade/no diploma (n=11), doctorate degree (n=6), middle school up to 11th grade (n=4), professional degree (n=3), elementary school up to 8th grade (n=3), and no schooling (n=1). Household income was widespread. There were eleven total income levels ranging from less than $10,000 to more than $150,000; from lowest to highest, income increased by close to 10 percent for each level. The largest income being from $30,000 to $39,000 and the second largest level included income from $20,000 to $29,000.

Ability/Disability The majority of respondents (n=388) did not associate with having a disability; however, almost a quarter of the sample noted they had at least one disability (n=127). Disabilities noted included other health impairments (n=34), multiple disabilities (n=31), emotional disturbance (n=30), orthopedic impairments (n=21), hearing impairment (n=16), visual impairment (n=15), autism (n=11), intellectual disability (n=9), specific learning disability (n=9), deafness (n=7), speech or language impairment (n=5), deaf-blindness (n=3), and/or traumatic brain injury (n=4). Respondents were asked to note all “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 25

Figure 1.1 Multiple Answer Question for All Social Media Use. Authors’ figure. disabilities that applied to them. Disabilities were described under the Indi- viduals with Disabilities Education Act (Lee, 2018).

Social Media Use The majority of respondents used Facebook (n=464), followed by YouTube (n=328), Twitter (n=238), Instagram (n=236), Pinterest (n=178), Snapchat (n=133), Google+ (n=133), LinkedIn (n=116), Tumblr (n=67), What- sApp (n=57), Reddit (n=49), Research Gate (n=5), none (n=6), or other (n=4) (see Figure 1.1).

RESULTS

While surveys, with appropriate sampling, may be strong in external validity, this measurement tool cannot directly speak to cause and effect like experi- ments (Dillman, Smyth, & Christian, 2007). As we discuss our results, this is a snapshot in time to gain information and to compare two large sample data sets: (1) a snowball online Qualtrics study right after the 2017 inauguration, and (2) a Qualtrics panel study a year after that inauguration, during high profile political times that included “fake news,” rumors of Russia interfering with the election, and the anti-sexual assault campaign #metoo.

RQ1: How will respondents use social media to speak out or silence themselves before and after the 2016 election?

In our 2017 and 2018 surveys, respondents aligned conceptually with the politics established in the President’s seat. In our 2017 snowball sample (N=338), our respondents were primarily Democrat and supported issues connected to the Obama administration, which had just ended. In this 2018 national survey, we did not ask political party, so as to not prime respondents 26 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson

(Authors, 2017). Instead we evaluated the qualitative responses and nota- tion of support to see if it aligned with the current White House efforts; we conducted this analysis in this manner, as the current presidency is not a traditional party appointment, but instead an on-the-stage and on social media presidential voice.

Echochamber? In 2017, the majority of respondents, 77 percent (n=394), reported that they did not receive negative feedback prior to the election. In comparison, the majority of our 2018 respondents also said they did not receive negative feedback; however, this percentage was lower at 56 percent. In comparison to the 2017 study, the 2018 respondents noted things such as if they supported the current president, they were told “they were racist,” and they were told, “Hill- ary Clinton was the only hope for America.” In 2017, respondents noted push back on topics such as women’s right to choose, while our current sample did not agree with a statement that they were more aware of sexual assault campaigns, such as #metoo, more following the election. The same 2018 group of respondents said they were not silencing themselves at 71 percent (n=366). Meanwhile, in 2017, respondents noted that they were not censoring themselves at 61 percent (n=182). The 2017 sample included 207 respondents who identified as Democrat and primarily female at 76 percent (n=243). Perhaps it is the echochamber of followers and those followed, as both data sets noted at 93 percent agreement that they did not deactivate accounts because of negative interactions. The 2017 study noted that 76 percent of respondents believe it is important to engage in controversial topics on social media; this number was slightly lower with the 2018 data set at 60 percent. While the majority of the 2018 sample said they were not censoring themselves, respondents did note items that they weren’t as comfortable speaking out on in terms of social media. They also noted they weren’t censoring themselves as much as before the 2016 election.

After the 2016 Election While many disagreed with censoring themselves—and almost the same amount of people who disagreed with censorship said they were doing it at the same level as before the election, even if that was no censorship at all—race led what respondents indicated as the highest level of censoring, followed by gender/sexuality, religion, immigration, hate crimes, disability, health, and other. Most of the other open-ended responses were “none.” If you compare the before election to after the election numbers you will see across the board respondents noted censoring themselves less after the 2016 election (see Figures 1.2 and 1.3). “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 27 Authors’ the 2016 Election Censorship. Authors’ Before figure. Figure 1.2 Figure 28 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson Authors’ After the 2016 Election Censorship. Authors’ figure. Figure 1.3 Figure “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 29

Interestingly, more people left qualitative statements describing trolling and bullying before the election than they did for social media use after the election. Many of the statements after the election focused on the political divides and their awareness of political issues.2 One writer noted, “After the election I avoided almost everything that had to do with Trump,” although there is no explanation as to why this person avoided everything having to do with Trump. Another respondent said, “I lost friends for my views,” although, again, there is no indication of what views in particular alienated people. Before the elections, multiple people wrote comments indicating that they had been trolled because of their political views that they shared on social media. While no one wrote specifically what threats they received, various people repeated that they had been threatened:

1. i got a lot of peple threatening me. 2. I was bullied . . . my family was threatened. 3. I had my account reported and taken down for reasons that does not violate facebooks terms. I had death threats from people. I had threats of physical violence.

People from both sides of the political aisle reported name calling: “Leftists calling me a Nazi for being anti-Clinton and Sanders,” and “Just people telling me that I was a ‘brainwashed millenial’ because of certain policies I said I supported.”

Feeling Thermometer Questions This study also asked feeling thermometer questions in terms of behavior and attitudes, before and after the election. The higher the degree, on the 0–100 scale, was the most favorable. Under 50 indicated not favorable and 50 was a neutral response. Of all the before and after election questions, only those that were noted as after the election scored above the 50 mark. This included awareness of the term “fake news” (M=65.68), attacks on Free- dom of the Press (M=54.62), and being more aware of bullying (M=48.90). We ran correlations for all continuous variables and found two-tailed significance at p<.01 for interactions for all the listed statements below. Before the 2016 election, I censored what I shared on social media; After the 2016 election, I censored what I shared on social media; Before the 2016 election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of religion; After the 2016 election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of religion; Before the 2016 election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of race; After the 2016 election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of race; Before the 2016 30 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of disabilities; After the 2016 election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of disabilities; Before the 2016 election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of gender and sexuality; After the 2016 election, I thought more about what I shared on social media in terms of gender and sexuality; After the 2016 election, I thought more about what I was posting on social media; After the 2016 election, I became active in sharing or participating in online gender-based initiatives, including hashtags such as #MeToo; After the 2016 election, I became more aware of the term “fake news”; After the 2016 election, I became more aware of bullying; After the 2016 election, I became more aware of attacks on Free- dom of the Press. Correlations were significant for all continuous variables listed here at p<.01.

RQ2: How has increased awareness of the term “fake news” and press freedoms affected people’s use of social media for political discussion?

While it doesn’t appear respondents are fleeing from social media and/ or censoring themselves since the era of Trump, it did appear from the 2018 national study—in comparison to the 2017 snowball sample—that respondents in both cases aligned with the principles of the parties in power. In the 2017 study, we asked for respondents to identify by a party. In the 2018 sample, we didn’t want to prime respondents by association to party lines; we analyzed party affiliation information based on responses in terms of support or lack of support for the current sitting president. “Fake news” (M=65.68) and Freedom of the Press (M=54.62) attacks were the leaders in what 2018 respondents noted being aware of after the 2016 election. The mean of fake news was much higher than the second highest awareness, which was “attacks on Freedom of the Press.” Other items we asked about included bullying (M=54.29) and #metoo (M=39.22). When asking about before and after behavior and attitudes, all means higher than 50 were connected to “after the 2016 election.”

RQ3: What does participation or suppression of a “political social media voice” mean in terms of a democratic society?

Respondents noted the awareness of fake news and press at a higher level than bullying or even the #metoo campaign. This would appear to speak to what officials in power promote and what media may even reinforce when attributing these terms to them. On a larger scale—and perhaps due to echochambers— in 2017 and 2018, groups weren’t leaving social media or noting a high level of censorship. There were certain topics respondents in 2018 felt more “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 31 comfortable talking about than others. The 2017 respondents felt it was more important to talk about controversial topics than 2018, while 2018 respondents noted they weren’t more aware of major societal issues, such as the ongoing #metoo campaign, or perhaps it didn’t fit respondents’ ideologies as a credible issue. The national data set just didn’t seem as concerned about having the harder “controversial” discussions on social media; it appeared it was more about sharing their opinion. Comparing the social media usage of 2017 to 2018, YouTube (n=167) rated number four for most common social media tool among respondents after Facebook (n=307), Instagram (n=175), and Twitter (n=174), respectively. While in 2018, YouTube (n=328) was a strong competitor to Facebook (n=464) for overall use; Instagram (n=238) and Twitter (n=236) still ranked in the top five in 2018. Perhaps the power of video may also be connected to what people saw, felt was salient, or avoided in terms of politics. As social media use changes, this is perhaps something to evaluate further. As far as behavior, most respondents were neutral to disagreeing on taking action on matters. This is interesting in a time of equality marches and protests that are related to youth, guns, race, and gender. This lack of activism seemed to be different from our previous study, where women’s marches were something highly discussed. Considering we are on the fiftieth anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s death and the release of the Kerner (1968) report along with the timely irony of level of protest and racial, gender, and other issues that have taken place in the United States this year, this lack of activism may speak to what people are willing to do or admit to doing. When reading the reason for the Kerner report and what has transpired in the country this past year, it appears that history has repeated itself in many ways; yet, some aren’t willing—or don’t consider it—important to take action in terms of equality. This unresponsiveness gets to the question of what people say they will do versus what people actually do, and it speaks to the action and outcome role within democracy and/or the spiral of silence (see Figure 1.4). One unique result of this survey that differed from our first results was the number of qualitative responses from people talking about hate and racism. One self-identified Mexican respondent called the current conversation divisive because it did focus on specific races rather than on racial diversity as a whole:

We as United States Citizens, should support diversity as a whole, not just focus on a certain race, because I believe that focus on only certain race, we are allowing, people to treat others wrong. For example, I’m Mexican, and I have been harrased for being Mexican, and pale skin, because all the negative media on immigration, I was harrased a lot. There for by gathering all race, we will be more United, and there will less space for hatered. In other words, “All lives matter.” A lets Unite, and respect one another movement. 32 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson Issues. Authors’ figure. Authors’ Issues. U.S. Connected to Current Activism of Level Figure 1.4 Figure “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 33

Another person revealed the cognitive dissonance that was clear both on our survey and in media reports circulating about race in America today. This person wrote, “I have nothing against any race or culture or sexual preference in people. But I think this issue of saying everything is racist has became a victim playing scam. The Civil Rights days are over we all have equal rights its time to move one and forgive the people of the past.” However, as our results show people from minority racial and ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ2S+ publics, women, and people with disabilities are more likely to be targeted by trolls on social media. Therefore, the idea that everyone has equal rights today, even on social media, is optimistic or naive at its best. Other respondents just noted that “hate” or “race” were issues: “Middle America, everyday Americans are tired of the hate. Even more so since Dur- ing and After 2016 elections.”

CONCLUSION

Our results show that our 2018 national sample is not interested in discussing controversial topics on social media, while our 2017 snowball thought that controversial issues were an important part of digital conversations. Interest- ingly, while our respondents reported that they had an increased familiar- ity with fake news and press freedoms after the 2016 elections, qualitative responses on the survey had only one person who specifically mentioned “fake news” as something they would not share on social media after the elections. While only 144 of our 521 respondents specifically mentioned content, they would not share on social media after the 2016 elections, two-thirds of those people overwhelmingly mentioned politics, political issues, and information about specific candidates and politicians as non-shareable content. And, many respondents who did not specifically mention politics, a political topic, or a candidate or office holder simply said “all,” “anything at all,” or, as one person wrote, “anything on the extreme side.” This desire to disconnect or to see social media as some kind of apolitical space is consistent with our findings from our first survey, which used snowball sampling to assess people’s stances on social media sharing and perceptions of safety before and after the election. On that survey (n=338), we found that the majority of our respondents thought political topics (n=88) were inappropriate, and our respondents also noted that multiple hot-button topics shouldn’t be discussed online, including religion (n=48), abortion (n=28), President Trump (n=20) and anti-Trump (n=7), immigration/refugees (n=9), and posts that were inflammatory in nature (n=33). Consistent with current findings, only four people in our first survey identified “false news” as something they would not share. This desire to see 34 Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson social media as an apolitical space seems anachronistic with contemporary usage of social media by individuals, politicians, and data mining sites as well as fake news producers that are deliberately using social media to drive political elections around the world. Facebook is the most recent target of individual ire after it was revealed that President Trump’s campaign hired a firm called Cambridge Analytica to gather political data for use in its campaign. Cambridge Analytica mined data from more than 50 million Facebook users, which it then used to “map personality traits based on what people had liked on Facebook, and then use that information to target audiences with digital ads” (Granville, 2018, para. 5). Using a now banned technique developed by Cambridge University’s Psychometrics Center, Cambridge Analytica asked users to take a survey and download an app. Once users downloaded that app, the technology “scraped some private information from their profiles and those of their friends” (Granville, 2018, paras. 6–7). As previously mentioned, the United States is certainly not alone in having its elections driven by digital misinformation and manipulation campaigns. One of the key findings of the Freedom on the Net 2017 study was that “online manipulation and disinformation tactics played an important role in elections in at least 18 countries over the past year, including the United States” (Freedom House, 2018, para. 1). Social media political conversations are big business. Not only are social media political conversations big business, they are also organizing widespread activist communities doing on-the-ground protests around the world, and individuals are using the power of social media in ways that bypass businesses like Cambridge Analytica. Teen survivors of a mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, used social media to reclaim the language around gun rights in the weeks after the massacre of 17 of their classmates. In the week after the shooting, one vocal leader, Emma Gonzalez, amassed more than 300,000 followers on Twitter, and three of her fellow student activists had more than 100,000 followers (Newcomb, 2018, para. 9). The students created a movement that included a school walkout, multiple marches drawing millions of people around the world, and online presences on social media and a website encouraging young people to vote (Alter, 2018; WSJ Staff, 2018; Marchfo- rourlives.com, 2018). In the face of the increasing politicization of social media, our respondents did say that they had increased their awareness of various issues. One respondent simply said, “i beccame aware of every political party issue,” and another survey taker said, “I became more aware of disability acts,” which would be pertinent to the various health reform acts brought up throughout 2017 as the Republican Party worked to repeal or change the Affordable “I Became More Aware of How Divided America Really Is” 35

Care Act. Other people found that their increased political awareness actually made them view other people negatively. One wrote, “After the 2016 election, I became more aware of people who are hiding that they are racist”; another wrote, “I became more aware of how scary gun rights’ activists are”; and yet one more person said, “Before and after the election, I became aware that ‘friends’ I had were racist, xenophobic and homophobic.” These statements reinforce what another person wrote: “After the election I became more aware of how divided America really is.” While this study appeared to lean more in support of the current majority, Republican Party, right after the inauguration, our earlier survey supported primarily the then-minority presidential group. This provides opportunities for diving deeper into this research for comparison and tracking, including in the area of ability, since close to a quarter of the current sample noted that they had a disability. While researchers and Qualtrics appeared to work for a diverse sample, diversity and more information on intersectionality is still needed among the majority of demographics to truly understand details tied to this topic.

NOTES

1. Authors contributed equally. 2. All quotes in the chapter are taken directly from the survey, and all typos are original.

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“Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” Perceptions of Topics That Were Appropriate or “Too Controversial” for Social Media Discussion Around the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe

In 2008, then-Senator Barack Obama swept to victory in the U.S. presidential election, causing him to be declared “The Social Media President” (Katz, Barris, & Jain, 2013).1 In 2010, the Middle East erupted in a wave of political uprisings that spread across multiple countries. This widespread rebellion, which is widely known as the Arab Spring, was attributed to organizers’ use of social media and mobile technology to organize and spread their messages across multiple cities and countries (“How Facebook Changed the World,” 2011). These two examples show social media’s increasing importance in driving political conversations around the world. However, in the wake of the 2016 U.S. presidential election, people said they deliberately avoided posting on controversial topics or engaging in political conversations to avoid conflict. In response to a survey a week after President Trump’s inauguration, which serves as the basis of this chapter, one respondent said, “I post very little and absolutely nothing political in nature.” Another noted, “I basically just post dogs and happy things. I’ve debated posting about how the media isn’t lying to anyone, but I’ve been too worried to actually put it out there.” If social media are becoming the basis of political conversations—even leading to uprisings—around the world, what does it mean when 2016’s presidential elections caused large groups of people to avoid participating in the discussions that are driving our political public sphere? This study specifically posits that social media serve as an underpinning of our current public sphere, even if they aren’t a sphere unto themselves. 39 40 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe

People’s participation in social media debates—or conversely, their choice to disengage—affects the current democratic conversation. In particular, this study examines who was connected to the 2016 election via social media, and who was alienated by social media politics. If certain groups of people— LGBTQ2S+ publics, women, and people with disabilities, in this study— were discouraged from participating in online conversations more often than other groups, we argue that the public sphere was skewed toward reinforcing dominant hegemonies and silencing nondominant voices. This is particularly troublesome when considering which topics our respondents said they were either discouraged from discussing or avoided altogether. This chapter uses a January 2016 Qualtrics survey that was distributed on Facebook and Twitter for analysis (N=338). While the survey was open to everyone, the authors specifically highlighted LGBTQ2S+ publics, people with disabilities, and women as specific participants to analyze whether these groups were particularly choosing to disengage from controversial topics online. A previous research study found that these groups universally avoided controversial conversations before and after the 2016 elections, causing a digital spiral of silence for these groups (LaPoe & Carter Olson, 2017). This chapter extends this research by examining topics people chose to avoid and the choice to disengage or engage in an internet-based. While the list of topics that respondents identified as too controversial for social media engagement was extensive, politics and religion were consistently mentioned across all of the survey sections. This raises the question of whether or not social media is valued as a part of people’s public sphere, or whether people’s perception of the public sphere as a place for democratic deliberation is shifting. If electronic media does not have a place in people’s perception of a public sphere where democratic debate occurs, then what is its value, if any, to building and sustaining political systems? Alternatively, are people who avoid posting about politics online simply removing themselves from the new political public sphere, thus silencing their voices in current global village conversations about who and what matters? This chapter uses the 2016 U.S. presidential elections as a starting research point, an exploratory study, to examine the ways that social media are influencing our democratic public sphere. This chapter provides insight into the impact of digital harassment and trolling and highlights the holes those silences leave in broader public conversations.

A DIGITAL PUBLIC SPHERE

The value of a digital public sphere for bolstering and sustaining a healthy democratic conversation is one that continues to divide both researchers “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 41 and digital users. A 2016 Pew Research Center study (N= 4,579), prior to the 2016 election, found those who are on Twitter and Facebook encounter similar political content, with 9 percent of users noting that they engage in politics at some level; in this study, Facebook users included more personal contacts, while Twitter users followed officials. The respondents indicated a range of political discourse in their feeds and also stated that political discussion elevated their stress. Users either blocked or ignored information that didn’t fit their ideology due to disrespectful and angry political engagements (Duggan & Smith, 2016). To put this in context, meaningfulness of political conversations, specifically on Twitter, is best described in a Pew study two years earlier: “The structure of these Twitter conversations says something meaningful about political discourse these days and the tendency of politically active citizens to sort themselves into distinct partisan camps” (Smith, Rainie, Shneiderman, & Himelboim, 2014). The perception that online partisanship is becoming increasingly toxic seems to be common. This view is perhaps best summed up by Alisyn Camerota’s August 2017 declaration that she was breaking up with Twitter. She wrote that Twitter used to be a place of joy for her. However, she said to Twitter,

You’re a shadow of your former self, the one I was first attracted to. It’s no fun to be with you anymore. You’ve become mean and verbally abusive. In fact, you gross me out. You’re a cesspool of spleen-venting from people who think it’s acceptable to insult other people in public and anonymously.

The “ew” factor of engaging in online political discourse caused a deep divide in our respondents about the value of online political engagement, with some saying that political deliberations on social media were useless and others saying that not engaging made people complicit with oppression. Others noted that it was important to participate because social media are the new public sphere. Whether or not social media constitute a new form of a public sphere is a matter of debate among both scholars and social media users. Penultimate public sphere theorist Habermas (1976) defined the public sphere as a space that develops and reproduces the conversations necessary to a democratic society. Historically, Habermas argued, the public sphere had an important commercial function in trafficking both news and commodities. Therefore, mediated transmissions have always had a role in developing and replicating the public sphere. However, as McLaughlin (1993) argues, even though women and oppressed groups, such as servants and apprentices, had some role in developing literary public discourses, “the eventual institutionalization of rational-critical discourse in the political arena cemented the formal exclusion of women and dependents from the ‘official’ public sphere” (p. 602). The public sphere of Habermas’s conception, then, is not inclusive of non-hegemonic voices. 42 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe

This work considers whether electronic media, specifically social media, give voice to counter-publics in a way that challenges and remakes democratic institutions. McLaughlin (1993) notes, “The emancipatory nature of the public sphere . . . is attractive to feminists; yet, its limitations provide impetus for feminist reconceptualizations” (p. 603). The ways that feminist interventions across media have formed and shaped the public sphere highlight why eliding women’s voices from social media can damage our broader conversations. In the introduction to her exploration of feminist narratives in the public sphere, Maria Pia Lara (1998) argues that women’s voices have historically remade the public sphere in ways that “provided (and provides) a much more comprehensive understanding than was previously available of how the realms of justice and the good life must be interconnected and how a critical view of them promotes transformation of democratic concepts and institutions” (p. 1). Pia Lara argues that women’s voices in the public sphere who have “emancipatory narratives” can allow nondominant groups to “expand their own-self conceptions and their definitions of civil society” (p. 3). The public sphere is a space where “feminist efforts to recover their lives” can be empowered because women are allowed to retell and restructure their stories in an empow- ering way” (p. 15). This positivism is challenged by examinations of counter-hegemonic groups and whether their discourses actually challenge the mainstream narrative or reinforce them. In her examination of South Asian women’s use of online groups to form a group identity, Gajjala (2004) wrote, “Cyborg- diaspora does not necessarily imply that the virtual communities created by postcolonials . . . are communities of resistance to hegemonic structures of westernization and modernity” (p. 14). The existence of a counter-public does not guarantee a disruption of the public sphere. However, Gajjala notes that media have always served to shape and grow diasporic identities, in particular (p. 16); the authors argue that social media have the same potential to shape and form women’s identities, as well, as women create shared communities that reinforce and extend women’s voices and insert issues of importance to women’s lives into the broader hegemonic public sphere. Many media theorists have proposed the idea that electronic media are a special epoch in media technology development because they collapse time and space, drawing people into relationship rather than isolating them in their own reading worlds. This was most famously summed up by McLuhan’s “Global Village,” which he laid out in his 1962 book, The Gutenberg Galaxy. In a 1960 TV interview about this theory, McLuhan said that electronic media have made the world “like a continuously sounding tribal drum.” A news event may happen on the other side of the world, such as a princess getting married, “and boom, boom, boom go the drums.” He said that “tribal” was the key word of the process because new media points away from “individual “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 43 man” and toward a “tribal man,” or the idea that all people are now living in community with one another and cannot be isolated as they once were with learning through book culture (Millar & O’Leary, 1960). Electronic media make us interdependent. While McLuhan saw this as collapsing the world into a smaller space, other theorists see these technologies as helping “to facilitate this stretching or extension of relationships” (Moores, 2004, p. 31). Electronic media allow us virtually to exist in multiple places. In essence, Moores (2004) states, “place, and experiences of being-in-place, can be plu- ralized in and by electronically mediated communication” (p. 32). Changing media actually redefine our social relationships and our notions of how people interact with one another. Meyrowitz (1986) explained that electronic media may actually “create new social environments that reshape behavior in ways that go beyond the specific products delivered” (p. 15). This notion is important because if the public sphere is about replicating conversations necessary to a society’s democratic potential, then mediated reshap- ing of the essential relationships that undergird a society would necessarily change the way that people have political conversations. While “new media are seen within these theories as transforming culture and modes of consciousness, they do so by adding to the spectrum of communication forms, rather than destroying old means of communication” (p. 19). Social media, then, may not constitute a full public sphere in and of themselves, but they exist as an important part of an expanding public sphere that includes many forms of communication, from orality, to print, to digital communication technology. They augment the broader communication patterns and technologies that constitute a public sphere. Social media seem designed for democratic conversations. Castells (2012) notes that the hashtag—a keyword that draws disparate communities into conversation on a topic—builds a space for debate, “which ultimate becomes a political space” (p. 11). The dialogue spaces created by social media norms like the hashtag are important for the development of a public sphere, argue Johnson et al. (2011). This is because “interpersonal discussion is key to a functioning democracy because of the role discussion plays in sound political deliberation,” Johnson et al. write (p. 188). Social media has political potential, an idea that has been reinforced by politicians across the world employ- ing Facebook, Twitter, and other channels to rally their voting troops. Effing, Hillegersberg, and Huibers (2011) found that in the 2010 and 2011 Nether- lands elections, politicians who engaged more with social media “got relatively more votes within most parties,” proving a positive correlation between social media use and political success (p. 31). In the wake of the 2008 U.S. elections, people began declaring a new participatory age in democratic societies as then-president Barack Obama successfully used social media to organize and distribute his policy messages. Harfoush (2009) declared 44 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe

Obama’s social media-driven win the harbinger of a new, rosier democracy that fostered greater understanding and participation among all citizens.

President Obama is an early pioneer in government 2.0, a new model where citizens contribute ideas to the decision-making process—to get them engaged in public life. When citizens become active, good things happen. We all learn from each other. Initiatives get catalyzed. People become active in improving their communities, their country, and their world. (pp. IX–X)

However, this upbeat view of social media’s potential to foster a stronger democracy is not shared by everyone. As the public sphere is a political construction, it is also a place for political struggle. The idea that a public sphere replicates oppressive and repressive messages is important when considering the ways public spheres normalize dominant ideologies. According to Papacharissi (2008), a public sphere is a space for cultural and “ideological reproduction” and “capitalist hegemony” (p. 231), thereby reinforcing the dominant opinion. Conversations like those that happen on social media do not necessarily have transformative power if they happen in isolation. Dahlgren (2006) argues, “It has been shown many times that groups and movements, particularly if they start with little power, will effect democratic change—have more impact on the power-holders who make decisions—via mobilization and collective action rather than through discussion” (p. 281). He continues to note that the idea that “conflict basically derives from inadequate communication” is a fallacy that conceals the fact that “civic agency must engage in a variety of practices beyond strict deliberation in order to come to terms with the often-prevailing imbalances of discursive and social power such as lobbying, mobilizing, bargaining, disruption and even civil disobedience” (p. 281). In other words, social media debates only work toward building a stronger public sphere if they are combined with other politicized actions. The argument that change happens through a combination of discussion mixed with other civic actions is reinforced by recent history that demon- strates powerful change happening because of online activist communities that used their digital communication to reinforce other forms of activism. Tufekci and Wilson (2012) argue that social media constitute an important part of a “new system of political communication” that stretches across both in person and online communication channels (p. 365). The Arab Spring is perhaps the most well-known instance of this happening. During the Arab Spring, organizers used a combination of online organizing and in- person work to topple totalitarian regimes from Tunisia to Egypt to Syria (“How Facebook changed the world,” 2011). As it is broadly accepted that social media is affecting political deliberation in many ways, it is important to examine whose voices are privileged in this “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 45 online public sphere and whose voices are left out either because they do not have access to the technology or because they are silenced either by others or themselves. As Papacharissi (2011) writes, “Without question, media will foster some form of social connection; more interesting questions lie in investigating who they connect, who they disconnect and how” (p. 309). With the idea that this study examines who was connected to and who was disconnected from the democratic public sphere by social media conversations during the 2016 U.S. elections in mind, here are the specific research questions isolated for this conversation:

RQ1: Were there topics that our respondents believed were too controversial to discuss on social media? RQ2: Did people receive more negative or positive feedback before or after the elections? Or were the feedback loops similar in both time periods? RQ3: Did our respondents avoid posting or withdraw from social media altogether after the election?

METHOD

Using an online survey program, Qualtrics, we collected responses from February 1, 2017 to February 17, 2017. The design of a survey asks respondents, in a way, to speak out on topics (Dillman, Smyth, & Christian; 2009; Stacks & Salwen, 1996). While we attempted to gather data during a sensitive and somewhat hostile political time, we also attempted to join large online conversations on social media and to provide open-ended questions within our survey that we could go back to and examine for themes. Within our open-ended questions, we inductively coded for themes. Inductive coding allows for researchers to “postpone the construction of conceptual definition until a pattern is identified” (Frankfort-Nachmias & Nachmias, 2008, 195). Holsti’s (1969) formula is used for intercoder agreement. The overall intercoder reliability was 0.95; reliability for too controversial of topics to discuss, 0.95 reliability for feedback received prior to the election; 0.96 feedback received after election and 0.93 reliability for posts avoiding after the election. Our survey included N=338 respondents. The majority of our respondents were aged between 35 and 40, n=68. The survey included primarily females (n=243) along with n=75 males. The majority of our respondents identified as heterosexual (n=284) with 19 respondents identifying as bisexual, 9 as gay, 3 as lesbian, 3 as asexual, 1 as pansexual, and 1 as other. Twenty-seven respondents noted that they had disabilities. The highest level of education was a professional degree, with only 27 respondents willing to give data on 46 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe their education. Respondents were primarily from the West and the South. Respondents were also primarily Democrats (n=207). As far as social media, most respondents noted using Facebook (n=306), Instagram (n=175), Twit- ter (n=174), YouTube (n=167), LinkedIn (n=161), Pinterest (n=120), and Snapchat (n=82). While the numbers of LGBTQ2S+ and people with disabilities responding to this survey was small, we are including their responses here to highlight the need for more in-depth future research with these groups. Again, if the public sphere shapes democratic discourse, then eliding the voices of LGBTQ2S+ publics and people with disabilities further marginalizes those groups and silences their voices. The survey was shared twice on Facebook and Twitter, with a week in between each share. Each researcher shared once on Twitter and once on Facebook. For example, if a researcher shared on Facebook during week one, she shared on Twitter the following week and vice versa for the other researcher. The survey was shared on the same days and roughly at the same time on each platform. Groups targeted on Facebook and Twitter included the following: Women’s Marches, NastyWomenEverywhere, Pantsuit Nation, Nasty Women Volunteer, Binders Full of Women, the Geena Davis Institute, Viola Davis, Ryan Gosling, Meryl Streep, Shailene Woodley, Mark Ruffalo, Kids with Special Needs, minority journalists groups such as Native American Journalists Association and Unity Journalists of Color, American Association of University Women, Association for Education in Journalism, and Mass Communication’s “marginalized-focused,” as well as larger groups (Minori- ties and Communication, Commission on the Status of Women, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer Interest Group, Mass Communication, and Soci- ety), and the Washington Post, the New York Times, Boston Globe, and CNN.

RESULTS

RQ1: Were there topics that our respondents believed were too controversial to discuss on social media?

Through open-ended questions respondents were able to provide an exhaus- tive list of too controversial of topics to post. The number one topic was broad: politics or political topics (n=88), followed by religion (n=48), none/no restric- tive posting (n=33), abortion (n=28), President Trump (n=20), immigration/ refugees (n=11), incite/combative or emotional posts (n=33), women’s rights/ gender (n=9), race/Black Lives Matter (n=9), LGBTQ2S+ rights (n=8), sexuality (n=7), anti-Trump (n=7), “X-Rated”/obscenities (n=6), Islam/Muslims (n=5), animal abuse/animal issues (n=5), false news (n=4), personal attacks “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 47

(n=3), avoid posting (n=3), posts only positive (food, animals) (n=3), sexism (n=2), violence (n=2), parenting (n=2), personal information (n=2), respondents did not answer seriously (n=2), equality (n=1), journalism (n=1), ideologies (breast feeding, paleo diet, vaccinations, etc.), bullying (n=1), mean about children (n=1), morality (n=1), and posts only academic articles (n=1). It is interesting that in these findings gender, race, and sexuality had the same amount of responses and these issues were noted above avoiding posts connected to “X-Rated” posts, animal abuse, and violence to children. A group of commenters argued that even disparaging and insulting discussions were important for supporting First Amendment rights and the development of a healthy democratic conversation. One writer said, “Empathy is absolutely essential and sorely lacking in our society so I’m a HUGE fan of unfettered free speech—ALL opinions warmly welcomed, even ‘controversial’ ones.” Another commenter took an academic stance closer to the Marketplace of Ideas—first proposed by Milton in 1644 and expanded by John Stuart Mill 1859—which says that the best ideas will naturally win out if they are allowed to be entered into an honest debate with weaker ideas with less validity. This person wrote, “Peer reviewed facts should be shouted from the mountaintops. Hateful/harmful rhetoric needs to be debated and debased.” There is an optimism to this viewpoint that challenging ideas makes them better. This concept was repeated across other people’s ideas as well, like this person who wrote, “People don’t question their own beliefs enough. A chance to defend them is a chance to re-think them.” Another respondent agreed with the idea that discussion brings understanding and noted that if these conversations do not happen online, they probably will not happen anywhere else today. The internet is where most people are able to have conversations today: “Most of us don’t have ‘dinner table’ conversations anymore and we need to be willing to engage with others however we can.” There is a faith in human nature inherent in the idea that debating controversial ideas will result in a progressive change in people’s thinking and that the resulting changes would, in fact, produce a stronger democratic society. In addition to raising the best ideas to the top of the debate, the group of our respondents that was optimistic about the internet’s potential to be a healthy democratic public sphere repeatedly highlighted the internet’s potential for organizing and informing people about activist and resistance movements: “Social media is the reason the Women’s March was so successful. Without social media, it would be more difficult to communicate, especially globally.” Like the academic commenter above, this person observed that social media can bring truth to light if people engage. It is also an arena to allow people to get involved in activism if they are not comfortable getting involved in other ways:

It is important to bring awareness to truth. So many people are ambivalent about politics and what really happens. They may get their informaton [sic] from 48 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe

fake news, or otherwise biased sources. Not that I have a lot of those contacts, but one can only hope that it might enlighten someone. Another reason is that sharing posts with likeminded people empowers those fighting for justice and encourages a grassroots movement to create a better, kinder, more compassion- ate world. Spreading truth and correcting falsehoods is important. We cannot afford bystander mentality any longer. Time to get involved, and one way to do so is to be active politically/important causes on social media.

The idea of disengagement turning people into passive bystanders was repeated across the commenters who believed in the internet’s potential to support and grow activist movements. This reinforces Dahlgren’s (2006) argument that civic agency is built through a variety of actions, only one of which is discussion. If it is, in fact, time for people to get involved, then conversations like those happening on social media are one way to do so.

RQ2: Did people receive more negative or positive feedback before or after the elections? Or were the feedback loops similar in both time periods?

When comparing respondents’ feedback prior to the election to after the election, name calling/blocked/defriending/ridiculed, pushback on opposing political views, and trolling were indicated about the same from those who responded. Eleven respondents noted that they had the same treatment overall before and after the election. Pushback on President Trump’s stances slightly increased following the election, positive feedback and joking declined along with respectful discussion. This question notes a possible spiral of silence. Respondents who participated in this question noted pushback on racism declined along with pushback on women’s rights, while personal attacks slightly increased. These personal attacks had real effects on our respondents’ mental and emotional health. One person said, “People basically went off on me to point I felt isolated because of my even mentioning Trump & I cried and cried.” Other people noted that they had to have multiple people block a troll before they could get that person to leave them alone. One person wrote, “I was trolled and stalked by a religious fanatic, i [sic] had to block him and have another friend block him because he continued to troll me through said friend.” Another person noted that she or he avoids abortion as a topic on Facebook so as to avoid negative interactions with family members; however, even on Twitter and Instagram, where she or he is more open to all topics of conversation, she or he doesn’t use hashtags, the universal social media language for finding conversations on certain topics, so that she or he won’t attract trolls. Trolling caused multiple respondents to censor their own voices on social media, even if they saw social media as powerful places for public debate and interaction, like this respondent: “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 49

It is pretty much the only open forum where the average person can voice their opinions; however, the problem with print is that tone is not conveyed and oft- times [sic] responses and posts are misinterpreted and feelings get hurt. As well, it’s difficult to determine if shared posts are fake news or real. I’ve pretty much stopped sharing anything for that reason. The one thing I dislike about social media is that you don’t know anything about the person on the other end (unless you know them personally). People feel free to be coarse, vulgar and mean- spirited in their words because of the anonymity. I hate that about social media. I hate the trolls. I hate the ugly things that are posted as responses and don’t read them—I made that mistake once. I’ve never heard such ugliness.

This respondent notes that social media are the only places for the “average person” to be heard. However, she or he has stopped sharing because it’s unclear if the posts are real and the trolls scared him or her away. Interestingly, some of the respondents to our survey were derisive about people with opposing viewpoints in our anonymous survey, which speaks to some people’s inability to separate their feelings from controversial interactions online. One respondent even used a disdainful, derisive, outdated term for people with mental and emotional disabilities to frame his or her opponents: “The drinkers of fauxnewz [sic] and other trumpian [sic] or republican kool-aid [sic] that are otherwise friends did comment negatively, often deri- sively, and usually conflating their retarded world view with reality.” Terms conflating outdated, insulting terms for disabilities were used for people across the political spectrum, with liberals repeatedly mentioning being called a “lib- tard,” conflation of “liberal” and “retard.” All of this rhetoric tries to indicate that people with the opposite viewpoint could only have that belief if they had some kind of mental or emotional delay. This language also dehumanizes people with disabilities and silences their voices as invalid.

RQ3: Did our respondents avoid posting or withdraw from social media altogether after the election?

Posts and actions respondents noted that they avoided following the election included not posting “political” posts (n=42), followed by anti-Trump posts (n=14), avoid sharing of all views (n=12), screening/hiding what others can see (n=10), religion (n=7), race (n=5), avoid social media (n=5), people “who attacked me”/relatives, posts only dogs/happy things, echo chamber/ just follow similar views (n=4), pick battles (n=4), gender (n=3), abortion (n=3), avoid posts seeking reaction (n=3), immigration (n=3), sexual orientation (n=3), nothing disrespectful to POTUS, only share/retweet (n=2), avoid fake news (n=2), don’t challenge posts (n=2), Islam/Muslims (n=1), environment (n=1), education (n=1), political jokes (n=1), posts only vague political jokes (n=1), and avoid none (n=1). Gender, race, and sexual orientation were 50 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe listed lower on this open-ended question compared to previous questions. By inductively coding an open-ended question, the authors were asking respondents to speak out at a higher personal level versus a deductive question on a survey. The decrease in our sample noting posts related to gender, race, and sexual orientation and the support of echo chamber and screening/ hiding of posts may speak to a potential silencing following the election. Those who responded to this post appeared to be attempting to protect themselves on social media following the election by not challenging or seeking action from posts and avoiding those with different views. When asked about engaging in controversial topics, respondents noted that controversial topics are good for engaging in freedom of speech and democracy. Some said being silent means you seem to agree. However, others argued that there needs to be a balance between free speech and safety. There were also concerns about trolls, personal safety, and anonymous attacks by people hiding behind keyboards. Some respondents believed that a single person cannot change people’s minds online and that users can become too moody and emotional while hiding behind keyboards. Many people mentioned the concept of “echo chambers” in their responses. The concept of the “echo chamber” says that people who only associate with others who agree with them just hear their own stances echoed back at them. As DiFonzo (2011) summarizes the problem, “People exist in like-minded social cliques, clans, or clubs.” Simply put, people gravitate toward others who most resemble themselves. While some commenters said social media reinforced echo chambers, others saw an opportunity to break down ideological walls, like this person who forces her or himself to engage online even if it is uncomfortable:

If we don’t post, don’t engage, we stay in our own echo chambers. Lately, I’ve been deliberately posting comments on the posts of friends who voted differently than I did. My posts are rational and nonconfrontational. My goal is to start a conversation and have them and their friends see me as a human, not one of “Them.”

In addition to the belief that engaging with people who may not agree allows a full diversity of ideas, this statement seems to indicate that discussing controversial ideas on the internet would diffuse volatile divisions and bring people closer to one another. The theme that online conversations are toxic ran across both people who think political conversations are necessary in digital public discourses and those who disagreed. One commenter noted, “People should be able to agree to disagree without the name calling, belittling and degrading behavior.” While another said, “It seems more attack and blame than honest conversation.” One thoughtful respondent noted that he or she does not feel the cour- age to post online because life already feels overwhelming. Adding online conflicts would be too much for her or his emotional and mental health. “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 51

Even as I limit my social media interactions, I can see how it has become an important public forum for sharing information and raising awareness. I wish I were braver about what I posted, but I work full time and have two small children, and I simply don’t have the time or energy to commit to exploring the full potential of this communication channel. So, I simply avoid engaging in it as a way of mitigating my own frustration and protecting myself from becoming a target. It’s selfish, but that is what I have the bandwith to do right now.

The idea of disengaging being a form of self-protection and healthy self-care ran through a handful of commenters. People noted their own mental health struggles with anxiety and depression as reasons for disengaging. Others mentioned drawbacks, like the potential for employer backlash and the overwhelming futility of the exercise, as reasons for silencing themselves online. As with the 2014 Pew study, our study found that people just seemed weary of the entire process of trying to discuss controversial issues online. “I think it can and should be done,” wrote one person, “But it should be done in a respectful manner. It often turns nasty too quick in social media. It would be nice to be able to discuss things in a neutral way.” Another commenter said, “We need to get out of our bubbles, but politely. I hate the tenor of the language (i.e., that some people feel they need to “win” when they wouldn’t be that way in person.” The “it would be nice” and the “they wouldn’t be that way in person” indicate a wish for an idealized public sphere where civil political debate exists, although it is unclear that arguments that happen online really are more confrontational than those that happen either face-to-face or through other forms of discussion. Even in condemning insulting behaviors in others, commenters fell into disparaging other people themselves. Those commenters included people who were understated in their dislike of other people’s comments. These responses included multiple people who questioned the people’s intelligence and ability to engage in high-quality conversations. The basic idea underlying these comments is that people should not be allowed into political conversations if they don’t have a certain level of educational attainment: “It’s important to express yourself. But folks are too ignorant.” The basic gist of many of these comments, which came from people across the political spectrum, was that people needed to silence themselves online. “Shut up for the sake of the public order” was the impression given by these respondents, which can be exemplified by these commenters:

1. “Most people should stop themselves from talking. This was true before the election. Intelligent debate is non-existent. It’s very depressing.” 2. “People are bullies—particularly sycophants claiming to fight bullies. Leave opinions to people paid to share them.” 3. “Social media is not to place to engage in meaningful, constructive discussion—too many wackos with uneducated, mean-spirited opinions.” 52 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe

Notice, though, that the first survey respondent agrees with the second respondent who says that people are too ignorant for an informed debate online. The second and third, however, condemn the bulk of online interactions as no better than playground brawls. Interestingly, the fear of being perceived as ignorant lead at least one of our respondents to silence him or herself: “I am not very political and don’t know much about politics, so I don’t make posts. I also wouldn’t want to look stupid.”

CONCLUSION

The crux of people’s debates about whether or not the internet is a new public sphere where they should be engaging in political conversations is encapsulated by two of the comments we received in response to the open-ended question, “Please explain your feelings about engaging in controversial topics on social media.” The first expresses a sense of futility and anger with online political conversations:

We’ll always be animals to each other. So what’s the point? It’s this kind of hopelessness spiral that makes me think that since we clearly can’t handle it, everyone should stay in their own little bubble—at least in the anonymous online world of social media.

While the first commenter seems to encourage echo chambers for the sake of civil conversation, the second seems to condemn people who do not post their political stances and deliberate oppositional ideas online, as if choosing not to post is a form of action, and an unacceptable one at that: “Silence is acceptance.” While these two commenters seemingly represent polar opposite stances, their ideas were echoed and amplified by almost every one of the people who chose to respond to this question, with a miniscule minority riding a midline response of “I don’t know.” The digital public sphere seems to inspire a deep schism between respondents, with very few people sitting somewhere in the middle with little to no stance on whether or not people should post about politics online. Ultimately, though, the question remains: If nondominant groups of people, including women, LGBTQ2S+ publics, and people with disabilities, are silenced on social media or silencing themselves on social media, how does this affect the formation of democratic institutions that are influenced by public sphere conversations? As mentioned previously, social media have emancipatory potential for women, but they particularly have equalizing potential for women politicians. Women politicians account for 22.7 percent of parliamentarians, and women have unequal access to traditional political “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 53 networks and media sources (Patterson, 2016, 13). However, social media “are a resource with an incredible impact, and unlike other resources (such as campaign financing, professional networks or traditional media coverage), they have a very low entry cost. This means that women, who are frequently at a disadvantage when competing for resources, have equal access to social media” (p. 4). Consistent with our findings that non-hegemonic publics are more likely to silence themselves if they find themselves facing harassment or trolls, “women in political parties which they perceive to be offering more opportunities to engage 35 percent more than do their peers who face more inequalities within their parties” (p. 4). Inequality in real-world interaction results in women disengaging online too. Therefore, both real-world and digital inequalities must be tackled if women find any emancipatory possibility in the digital public sphere. Understanding that perceived and actual inequality creates silences that impact the public sphere highlights the ways that the judgmental “silence is acceptance” comment is problematic. As our survey respondents indicated, subaltern peoples retreat from interactions for their mental, emotional, and sometimes, physical safety. This reinforces the findings of the 2016 Pew Research Center study that found 59 percent of respondents reported feeling stressed and frustrated by their interactions with people with whom they disagree (Duggan and Smith, 2016). In that same study, 37 percent of respondents said they were worn out by political content online, while only 20 percent reported enjoying seeing multiple political posts online (Duggan & Smith, 2016). In an earlier study, Pew found that 38 percent of women found their most recent experience of harassment extremely or very upsetting (Duggan, 2014). In addition, a Norton survey of Australian men and women’s social media use and experiences with online harassment found that digital harassment caused 1 in 5 women to feel depressed and 1 in 10 women to seek professional help for depression and anxiety. An additional 5 percent felt suicidal (“Norton study shows,” 2016). Silence is not necessarily acceptance for marginalized groups. Silence could mean self-protection. However, silence does mean a loss of power within the public sphere. As previously mentioned, Lara (1998) notes, women’s voices have inserted transformative ideas into the public sphere, including women’s self-defined stories, discussions of justice, and “the good life.” Our survey respondents indicated that social media as important to marginalized groups during the 2016 election cycle. Women were able to organize the Women’s March because they were able to connect and spread the word through social media. Social media became the national dinner table, as one respondent said. People were able to engage simply because they were on social media. As evidenced by people’s ongoing discomfort with engaging in civic dialogue online, social media have become an integral part of a broader public 54 Candi S. Carter Olson and Victoria L. LaPoe sphere but they do not exist as an independent public sphere in and of themselves. They work to reinforce a public sphere that extends across media and on-the-ground activities, like the various protest marches that have involved millions of people across the globe since January 2017. Social media are expanding the communication possibilities for democratic dialogue to exist. Civic dialogue is an important part of a public sphere, and the silencing effect of trolling and harassment online have troubling implications for the democratic potential of a digital public sphere. However, as evidenced by Habermas’s own conception of the public sphere was built on “masculinist gender constructs,” which meant that “exclusion of women” was a central tenant of the sphere (McLaughlin, 1993, p. 604). Based on this exclusionary foundation for the entire sphere, all political engagements have the potential to exclude broad groups of people based on geography and political and identity group affiliations. Discounting social media engagement as ineffective for this reason overlooks the discriminatory potential of all civic action and ignores this channel’s importance for increasing dialogue and supporting a broad range of social change activities. Social media bring its own level of anxiety, as people are not having face-to-face communication, but instead, at times, emotionally fueled screen debates. Add in the 2016 presidential election, one thick with emotion in regard to race, gender, ability, and sexual orientation, and it is no wonder those who were the “underdogs” in the presidential win turned to comfort posts: happy animals and recipes. Our study raises the question: can there be an open and fluid democratic debate on social media between the winning and losing party? Perhaps there is too much anxiety when not having interpersonal social cues on such pressing and high emotion situations for some social media users. And, perhaps, even when “in person,” these debates are too difficult, as funny memes and videos that circulated digital media with suggestions on how to avoid holiday political discussions indicate; in one case, suggestions ranged from “diffuse the tension with humor” to “create a diversion” (Cottrell, 2016). Future research should consider how people cope with distress from media use and how this ranges across various demographics and forms of media. Additional research should also consider a more diverse sample size and population in terms of race and political ideology to gain overall thoughts on the election.

NOTE

1. Authors contributed equally. “Absolutely Nothing Political in Nature” 55

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Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? Scholars’ Use of Social Media for Peer Communication Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe

In the United States, around 7 in 10 people use some type of social media, with 86 percent of people aged between 18 and 29, 80 percent of people aged between 30 and 49, and 64 percent of people aged between 50 and 64, and 34 percent of people aged 65 and older logging onto one or more sites (“Social Media Fact Sheet,” 2018).1 Increasingly, social media users are logging on “to keep up with close social ties,” resulting in 58 percent of U.S. internet users declaring that the internet was important for helping to maintain social relationships; internet users were also half as likely to be socially isolated than the average American (Pew Internet Project, 2014; The Digital Future Project, 2014, pp. 85–89). This is striking, as other studies found that social media use may also cause isolation (Turkle, 2012) and a decline in meaningful conversations (Turkle, 2015). These contradictory findings demonstrate a potential to create communities through social media but also question the quality of these connections. This study examines the potential of social media use among scholars for peer communication (i.e., not for teaching or class room use) and mutual support. This study surveyed 62 members and affiliates of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) of the 3,700-member strong professional U.S.- based Association of Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) (AEJMC History, 2015). It examined who connects with the CSW on its social media sites, why members and affiliated people connect with the CSW on certain social media sites, and whether or not they feel a

57 58 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe sense of belonging as a CSW community member because of their use of CSW-operated social media. We used a fine-grained survey to ask about reading and posting on CSW accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn as well as the CSW website. Understanding which social media are used and how to make connections within various academic demographic groups and how scholars use social media provides valuable insights for academics and scholarly organizations for peer-to-peer communication and engaging the public. Through this, academic conferences and nonprofit groups can learn how best to incorporate social media into an overall communication strategy that unites audiences of different ages and technical abilities into a more coherent community. Potentially, these insights can also aid scholarly organizations in developing and improving social media strategies for member recruitment and retention, while also informing individual scholars how to use social media for peer-to-peer communication and translating academic work for nonacademic publics. Finding new ways to increase recruitment and retention is particularly important for academic organizations that are interested in developing a more diverse member base and in fostering diversity among university facul- ties. Finally, studying the CSW is an opportunity to understand how some women scholars in particular use social media to create relationships that may contribute to improving their chances of staying and advancing in academia.

THEORETICAL APPROACHES: THE COMMUNITY-BUILDING POTENTIAL OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Two theoretical approaches are relevant for this study: media ecology and cyberfeminisms. Within media ecology, one strain of contemporary discourse surrounding social media cautions that social media can damage the quality of how people communicate with one another (Turkle 2012; 2015). Another strand has argued that social media have expanded the possibilities for different types of interpersonal relationships. Boellstorff (2008) observed that the idea of computers creating societies where “techno-hermits [were] firmly ensconced in lonely rooms, consoled only by the deceptively warm flicker of a computer screen” has been repeatedly found to be a fallacious narrative. He added: “Given the resilience of this narrative, one of the most surprising and a consistent findings of cybersociality research has been that virtual worlds can not only transform actual world intimacy but create real forms of online intimacy” (p. 156). While Facebook, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram were the most- used social media platforms in the United States as of 2018, this chapter Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 59 will break down information for Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn because those are the three platforms used by the CSW. Despite repeated criticism of breaches of privacy, Facebook remains the most widely used social networking site among Americans, regardless of race or ethnicity, with more U.S. adult women online on Facebook (69%) than men (67%); Facebook use also skews toward younger generations, with 88 percent of 18-to-29-year-old U.S. adults and 79 percent of 30-to-49-year-olds using the site (“Social Media Fact Sheet,” 2017). Equal numbers of U.S. adult men and women online use Twitter. Twitter use also weighs toward younger users: 36 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds use Twitter, compared to only 22 percent of 30-to-49-year-olds, and fewer in older age brackets; these percentages, again, show declining interest in the social media site from 2015 to 2017 (“Social Media Fact Sheet,” 2017; Dug- gan et al., 2015). Regarding race, a fifth of Hispanic, and nearly a quarter of Black and white adults online use Twitter (“Social Media Fact Sheet,” 2018). A quarter each, of U.S. adult men and women use LinkedIn. Use slants toward U.S. adults online between 30 and 64 years who are actively pursuing a career, with almost a third using the site daily. Regarding race, the proportion of whites using LinkedIn (26%) is almost equal to Blacks who use the site (28%), with fewer Hispanics using the site (13%) (“Social Media Fact Sheet,” 2018; Duggan et al., 2015). While these numbers demonstrate that social media are able to reach a broad audience, the idea that the internet supports friendships and business relationships is demonstrated by the annual Digital Future Project (2017) report. For the 2017 report, which summarized data from 2016, 62 percent of participants said that the internet was “important” or “very important” for maintaining relationships (p. 72). The number of participants who reported that “virtual” friendships had turned into “real-world” friendships increased; in 2010 participants estimated having an average of 2.4 friends whom they met online and subsequently met in person; in 2016, people estimated that they had six friends whom they first met online and then in person (p. 72). Considering electronic media’s potential for fostering (or destroying) relationships is important when considering how academics either choose to use or eschew social media. In The Gutenberg Galaxy, Marshall McLuhan (1962) declared that, as in an oral society, electronic media give people the possibility of interdependence, which “is the result of instant interplay of cause and effect in the total structure” (p. 21). Electronic media open the possibility of instant feedback. Such an instantaneous communication loop “is the character of a village, or, since electric media, such is also the character of global village” (McLuhan, 1962, p. 21). This theoretical “Global Village” forms a new space, transcending physical location and clock-bound communication. 60 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe

Electronic media, such as the internet, have the “potential . . . for constructing experiences of simultaneity, liveness and ‘immediacy’”; that are connected to “non-localized” or “trans-localized” relationships (Moores, 2004, p. 22). In other words, relationships that developed via online conversations do not rely on geographical proximity but can be just as tangible as face- to-face encounters. Indeed, Boellstorff (2008) claimed that “friendships are the foundation of cyber-sociality; the friend is the originary social form for homo-cyber” (p. 157). Similarly, Meyrowitz (1985) argued that electronic communication created the basis for a new kind of relationship that bypasses personal encounters but is shared with millions of people: “Electronic media have had a tremendous impact on group identity by undermining the relationship between physical location and information access” (p. 143). In an electronic communication paradigm, physical location provides only one kind of connection. While “live encounters are certainly more ‘special’ and provide stronger and deeper relationships, their relative number is decreasing. Many business, social, and even intimate family encounters now take place through electronic media” (p. 147). These opportunities to form relationships beyond encounters in physical space are also available for academics seeking support and connections with peers who are outside of their individual institutions but who share common interests. This is particularly important when considering that many academics see each other only once or twice a year at conferences. As Meyrowitz notes, these in-person encounters certainly give academics more opportunities for deeper networking; however, continued contact through social media can maintain and deepen these relationships across distance barriers. Just as important as considering the ways that electronic technology are, perhaps, creating relationships for CSW members, cyberfeminisms are relevant as they remind us to consider gender as an important axis of analysis regarding the use of technology, also in academe. For women academics, the simultaneity and immediacy of internet communication can be advantageous for dealing with issues directly related to gender in the higher education workplace. Women academics are still penalized for giving birth while climbing the ladder to tenure, full professorship, and high administrative positions; in contrast, men academics with children do not suffer from loss in salary or assumptions about their ability to research (Mason, Wolfinger, & Goulden, 2013). Women academics have “to cope with a profession fraught with ineq- uities” (Tulley, 2009, p. 108), but online connections can serve “as support groups with useful and immediate advice to navigate situations as they are happening” (p. 109, emphasis in original). Social media can give women an opportunity to discuss personal issues that also affect the professional sphere. Tulley analyzed a closed group online that grew out of the women’s shared experience as graduate students and demonstrated that online communities can Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 61 help women academics develop many of the necessary elements for a mentoring relationship and a feminist network. These elements (which she cites from Mary Zahm) included sharing expertise and personal experience; asking for and receiving specific advice and interventions to advance one’s career, such as how to navigate salary negotiations and writing letters of recommendation; sharing accomplishments and progress on goals and personal interests; and collaborating on projects, including writing projects or presentations (Tulley, 2009, p. 112). In sum, the ability to converse with other women academics in similar stages in their careers reassures and validates their experiences.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Despite data showing increasing social media usage among the general public, much of academe still view social media with distrust. Traditionally, peer pressure has discouraged scholars from communicating with the public via media, and by extension social media, as this has been perceived as dimin- ishing research time, which is detrimental to academic careers (The Royal Society, 2006), especially during the tenure and promotion process (Purdy and Walker, 2010). However, these attitudes have been changing as academics have felt pressure from their institutions and peers to create themselves as a “brand” (Duffy & Pooley, 2017, p. 2). Duffy and Pooley (2017) pointed to a number of pressures facing professors that have been increasingly prevalent over the past twenty years, including a turn toward vocational education and corporate-funded research, a burgeoning administrative layer at every institution, budgets that include massive cuts or hunts for increased revenue, and an emphasis on “measurable deliverables” from all university employees (p. 3). All of these pressures have compelled many academics to try to become public intellectuals of a new, Hollywood-like version of the professoriate, including appearances across several media sources and an impressive online profile. “Academics of all stripes are instructed to build their online personae and engage in personal branding—often by curating a strong social media presence” (p. 3). These pressures have been amplified by academic-centric social media sites, such as Academia.edu—which had 35 million users in 2016 and advertised more than 64 million users on its main website in July 2018 (Wagman, 2016)—ResearchGate, and university-specific sites curated by a combination of professors and digitally savvy employees whose entire job is to build and maintain professors’ online identities. Regarding U.S. higher education faculty members’ use of Facebook, a 2011 survey (which is the most recent data of this type found by the authors) with 1,920 participants across disciplines found that 99 percent were aware of Facebook and 45 percent used it for professional, nonclassroom purposes. 62 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe

Of those, 11 percent used it daily, 10 percent weekly, and 9 percent monthly; almost double the number of respondents used Facebook for personal (57%) rather than professional purposes (30%) (Moran, Seaman, & Tinti-Bante, 2011). This indicates that Facebook use remains challenging for scholars for peer communication. Academics must manage social media carefully as it “reflects upon them as people and professionals” (Veletsianos & Kimmons, 2013, p. 48, emphasis added). Veletsianos and Kimmons found in in-depth interviews with three faculty members at a U.S. research university that faculty members saw themselves on Facebook mostly as mediators between different groups, such as former, present, and future students; family; friends; and colleagues. This left faculty members to struggle with setting boundaries around which groups they interacted with online; how to interact with those groups; how to maintain meaningful conversations with all groups; how to oversee performance geared toward the different groups; and how to manage time efficiently. They concluded that faculty members improved their social media managing skills with practice but personal-professional tensions remained. They recommended training programs for doctoral students and faculty to learn “mindful participation” (p. 49) in social media. Across fields, however, scholars who used social media have benefited from communicating their work to a broader public. For instance, a survey of highly cited U.S. nano-scientists demonstrated that “interactions with reporters and being mentioned on Twitter, can assist a scholar’s career by promoting his or her scientific impact” (Liang et al., 2014, p. 781). More- over, such interaction “further amplifies the impact of communicating science through traditional outlets on the scholar’s scientific impact” (p. 782). With the development of such “altmetrics”—alternative ways to measure scientific impact—as demonstrated by Liang et al. (2014), and younger generations of academics growing up with social media around them, scholars’ use of social media to communicate with peers and the public is likely to increase, albeit continuing controversies over privacy breaches online may also dampen original enthusiasm for social media use. More crucially, public scholarship and social media presence are generally not considered among factors for evaluations for tenure and promotion. Veletsianos and Kimmons (2012) suggested an emerging model of a “networked participatory scholarship” in which scholars “share, reflect upon, critique, improve, validate, and otherwise develop their scholarship” (p. 766). Their model builds on parallel and previous models of digital, open, or social scholarship and strives to overcome biases against social media use by academics for peer and public communication. Examples of successful peer and public collaboration are two cases of recruiting assistants via Facebook. A group of ichthyologists used Facebook contacts to help them identify more than 90 percent of 5,000 fish that the Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 63 scientists had collected in Guyana (Smithsonian Science, 2011). Similarly, a paleontologist successfully used Facebook to recruit colleagues for navigat- ing an extremely narrow cave (Yong, 2015). These examples also demonstrate that adapting technology for peer and public communication varies by discipline, with the natural sciences currently being more accepting, followed by the social sciences and humanities (Anderson, 2003). In sum, this study contributes to filling a gap in research on social media use among scholars. It uses the example of the CSW of the AEJMC to ask how its members and affiliates use social media for peer communication and how they would like to improve this communication. This study adds to conversations about the ways that social media collapse time and space barriers for academics, particularly women, and can allow underrepresented groups in academia to find support networks, research aides, and discussion groups that can aid their careers in a variety of ways.

METHOD

The survey for this study followed the concept of Harley et al. (2010) in recognizing that “academic values embodied in disciplinary cultures, as well as the interests of individual players, have to be considered when envisioning new schemata for the communication of scholarship at its various stages” (p. iii). With several open-ended questions, this survey gave participants the opportunity to describe their values, interests, and ideas about how to use social media for communication among scholars within the CSW. This is especially useful because most research into scholars’ social media use thus far has employed quantitative methods and big data analysis (Veletsianos, 2012; Khang, Ki, & Ye, 2012). In 2013, the CSW selected its first ad hoc social media director since the commission’s establishment in 1973 (Women’s Words, 2013), committing itself firmly to integrate social media into its communication strategy with members and the public. The CSW has operated accounts on Facebook since January 2009, on LinkedIn since June 2011, and on Twitter since August 2011; the group established a website in January 2011 (CSW website, 2011). The social media director was elected to distribute messages from the CSW board and other members on these social media and on the CSW website. The CSW grew its number of Twitter followers from 230 in August 2013 to 935 in January 2018 (CSW Twitter, 2018). Similarly, the number of its Facebook group members grew to 356 in 2018 since its inception in 2009 (CSW Facebook Group, 2018); its LinkedIn group counts 111 members (CSW LinkedIn, 2018). Outside of LinkedIn, these numbers look strong, particularly since they outnumbered the 190 dues-paying CSW members, 64 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe as of December 31, 2017 (J. McGill, personal communication, January 2018). AEJMC as a whole has 3,700 members, draws 9,147 Twitter followers, and has more than 3,369 likes on Facebook (AEJMC History, 2018). CSW achieved its follower growth by posting information about conferences, articles, jobs, teaching material, and member contributions several times per week. On the Facebook group, primarily former and current CSW board members post information; on Twitter, the social media director and previous account manager tweet information, with other (board) members directing tweets toward the CSW stream. On LinkedIn, the social media director posts information almost exclusively. To recruit the highest number of participants possible among members and affiliates of the CSW, the survey was conducted online via Qualtrics. Questions asked about reading and posting experiences with peers via the CSW groups and sites on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and the CSW website. The three sets of questions included close-ended questions about social media use and frequency; open-ended questions about sense of community within CSW; and demographic questions to determine participants’ backgrounds. Authors textually analyzed answers to open-ended questions to detect emerging themes, issues, and desires for adjustment. A link to the online survey was sent to members of the CSW e-mail list and posted in the CSW Facebook and LinkedIn groups and its Twitter stream, with repeated tweets, e-mails, and posts calling for participants. A total of 62 participants completed the survey between November 2014 and February 2015. With 178 officially registered CSW members at that time (K. Place, personal conversation, February 6, 2015), the response rate was 34.8 percent. All participants were women. Their ages ranged from 25 to 67 years, and the median age was 48 (with 50 of 62 respondents disclosing their age). The majority of the respondents were from the United States (n=55), with five respondents indicating they were from outside of the United States or Canada. Two respondents did not answer this question. Of the 61 respondents who answered a question about race, a majority identified as white (n=50), with 2 identifying as Latina, 2 as African American, 1 each as American Indian and Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and 5 as other. The majority of respondents identified as having a Ph.D. or J.D. (n=45); several identified as having a master’s degree (n=13); 2 identified as having another type of degree, while one respondent identified having a post-doctoral degree, and 1 respondent a bachelor’s degree. Respondents indicated a variety of ranks: full professor (n=18), tenure-track assistant professor (n=18), associate professor (n=11), Ph.D. student (n=10), professor emerita (n=1), administrator (n=2), and other (n=2). Not all of the 62 respondents answered each question, which is noted when relevant. Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 65

This study was limited by its use of a web-based survey, which disadvantaged individuals who are not online or skeptical about using online tools. Further, this survey is neither representative of the CSW nor of other groups within AEJMC since it used a digital version of snowball recruitment through social media sites; nevertheless, it provides important insights into the social media use of scholars as an exploratory study that can aid individual academics and organizations to better understand challenges and opportunities of digital outreach.

FINDINGS: PREFERRING FACEBOOK AND A GENERATIONAL GAP

The core of this survey was interested in finding out CSW members’ awareness, usage, and connectivity to the organization’s social media accounts. For the most part, respondents used the CSW Facebook group over the CSW Twitter and LinkedIn accounts and the CSW website. Yet, we found that just using a social media site does not build community. A majority of participants (N=47) used Facebook (32), few used Twitter (5), the CSW website (4), LinkedIn (2), or another online tool (4) for reading announcements and information. Similarly, 30 (of 47 who answered this particular question) used the CSW Facebook group to post information, while only 14 tweeted information to the CSW Twitter account, and only 4 used the LinkedIn group to post information. Thirty-one agreed that the CSW Facebook group helped them gather ideas and materials for research, compared to the CSW website (17) and Twitter account (12) (see Figure 3.1). Slightly more (36) agreed that the CSW Face- book page helped them network with others concerned about gender and media, followed by Twitter (21), and the CSW website (15). Likewise, 37 agreed that CSW’s social media inform them about new developments in research regarding gender and media. Even more (43) agreed that CSW- operated social media kept them up-to-date on scholarship and professional opportunities; nine disagreed. Only 27 (of 57 respondents to this particular question) agreed that CSW- operated social media kept them informed about relevant CSW issues, 9 disagreed. Similarly, only 29 agreed CSW’s social media informed them about accomplishments of colleagues, 11 disagreed. More than two-thirds (39) agreed that CSW social media made them feel more connected to the CSW, 10 disagreed. Similarly, more than half (33) agreed that CSW social media empower them to be more involved with the CSW, 9 disagreed. Nevertheless, about a quarter (23) agreed that CSW-operated social media help them decide to obtain or continue CSW membership; 16 disagreed. 66 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe

Figure 3.1 Combined Responses of “Agree” and “Strongly Agree” to Online Tool Use. Authors’ figure.

Among the open-ended responses (n=31), the majority indicated satisfaction with the level of connection with the CSW via social media. Only six respondents indicated they were not aware of or did not have time and/or interest to use CSW-operated social media. Seniority and age may be a significant factor for these responses. For instance, one senior scholar wrote: “It’s great for young women in the field, less so for senior scholars like myself who lack time, interest, and orientation in social media. I have too much to do to spend time pursuing social media.” The little overlap between preferred communication methods among participants indicates that age might divide users into two circles with parallel conversations, with junior members/affiliates using social media more heavily and senior members preferring e-mail. This was reflected in responses to our survey. One scholar who used social media regularly noted,

I find the CSW social media program most helpful for networking. Facebook’s chat function gives me an outlet to contact scholars regarding a post, a call, or any other announcement and have a conversation rather than going back and forth via email. It also keeps me up to date with the scholarly agendas of the group members, which then allows me to ask colleagues about their work at conferences.

This person used social media for many purposes; other scholars who used social media to communicate similarly noted that the CSW social media pages have been instrumental in support of their work. One wrote, “As a Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 67 newcomer to academia, the Facebook group has been a nonthreatening place to ask all sorts of rookie questions.” Another wrote,

Social media have been a valuable tool for me to get to know other members and feel more connected to the community. For example, I learned about the mentoring lunch at AEJMC from Facebook and subsequently registered for it. I also appreciate receiving information about job opportunities and calls for papers.

Respondents also indicated that they would like to see more information about fellowships; paper calls for journals, conferences, and other publications; and mentoring opportunities. When asked about what respondents found most useful within CSW’s social media tools, respondents most frequently mentioned Facebook, followed by Twitter. Respondents wrote that they found the CSW Facebook group to be a safe space, had learned about the annual CSW mentorship lunch through the group, and found Facebook’s chat function to be convenient. Twelve (of 26 who answered this particular question) were satisfied with CSW’s current social media presence. Five suggested only using Twitter and Facebook because of personal convenience. Two said they suggested the communal conversation-friendly Facebook format would create a comfortable, safe environment. Others preferred e-mails or focused on one outlet only. One scholar found that the CSW’s “social media presence is already spread thin.” The preference for Facebook is in line with general usage statistics. Face- book was the most popular social media site across age and race at the time of the survey (Duggan et al., 2015). Despite the range of age in our participant pool from 25 to 67 years, and a white majority (50) with Asian, Native Amer- ican, Latina, and Black minorities, most participants indicated the use of the CSW Facebook group. All participants indicated they were women, which was in line with the majority of women online (77%) using Facebook at the time of the study (Duggan et al., 2015) and a majority of the CSW members identifying as women. Hence, professional use of CSW members of Face- book followed general use and demographics for U.S. adults online. Respondents had mixed answers regarding the ability of CSW social media to create virtual relationships. Some did not even know that the CSW operated social media; others commented that they lacked time or inclination to use social media to connect with peers. Yet others wrote that they found that CSW social media helped them to extend face-to-face interactions. For instance, one participant noted,

I believe that the CSW social media function to maintain and grow the connection we make briefly at annual conferences. By meeting people at conferences 68 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe

and then connecting on social media (or vice versa!) we build stronger relationships than if social media were not used.

This is in line with earlier media ecology theory that argued that electronic media would collapse time and space to allow for deeper relationships. In the case of social media for academics, social media allowed individuals to continue and grow relationships that they made briefly at an annual conference throughout the year. As noted by other theorists, though, electronic media can strengthen in-person relationships as several of our respondents noted. For instance, one participant wrote that she connected with CSW first through social media and then strengthened those connections in person:

The FB [Facebook] page is quite welcoming. I felt welcomed when I attended a CSW meeting at AEJMC because I mentioned that I had been following the FB page. I put some names with faces and made some awesome contacts.

These comments reinforced the idea that when CSW members used social media, they were able to cross between digital and physical encounters, to strengthen connections with peers, and in turn the CSW community. As most scholars meet with peers in their particular research field in person only a few times annually—dependent on funding and other responsibilities—social media were seen to offer a bridge for academics to extend those relationships beyond the time constraints of these intermittent face-to-face encounters.

ANALYSIS: CHALLENGES AND BENEFITS OF SOCIAL MEDIA AS PART OF COMMUNICATION STRATEGY

While this survey focused on a small group of academics, this study has implications for academic organizations and nonprofit groups. As part of a comprehensive communication plan, social media can bridge age, gender, and technological ability. For the CSW, focusing on Facebook and Twit- ter was seen as most effective for communicating with members who use social media. Yet, these social media only worked in conjunction with the CSW website, newsletter, and e-mail distribution list to reach all members. Results indicated that scholarly organization leaders should incorporate Face- book and Twitter more than LinkedIn, especially if their organizations’ members include young women. In the general public, Twitter was used more by younger men, and women and men seeking a career primarily use LinkedIn; Twitter and LinkedIn had lower engagement rates than Facebook at the time of our survey (Pew Internet Project, 2015). Yet, Twitter featured the highest number of followers for the CSW, compared to the CSW Facebook group, Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 69 which requires approval to join. It should be noted that it’s difficult to see why people follow the CSW on a social media site, but there could be confusion for some followers who connect with Twitter thinking it is another organization’s commission on the status of women, such as the United Nations. One of AEJMC’s (2013) key goals is to promote graduate student membership and prepare students for academic careers. A survey of 40 AEJMC- affiliated universities suggested that to prepare Ph.D. students for academic careers, students need to receive realistic expectations of their teaching- to-research-to-service ratio; mentoring and shadowing opportunities; more theory and methods classes; and more opportunities to write, present, and research in seminars and do more service (Christ & Broyles, 2007). Among 30 surveyed AEJMC-affiliated universities in the United States, of 918 doctoral students, 53.6 percent were women, 18.6 percent minorities, and 36.8 percent international students. Yet, faculty in the same journalism and communication programs included only 36.8 percent women, 10.8 percent minorities, and less than 1 percent international scholars. This clearly indicates problems in the pipeline toward a successful academic career in the United States for these groups (Salmon et al., 2006). Without these groups adequately represented among faculty, women, minority, and/or international faculty members are not available as role models and mentors for students of the same backgrounds. However, mentorship and supervision are crucial in launching and sustaining a successful academic career from Ph.D. student to full professor (Cramer, Salomone, & Walshe, 2004). These data on graduate students dovetailed with AEJMC’s (2013) goal to increase diversity within the organization; to include more members from multicultural and underrepresented groups; and to attract more international members. Caucasians and women dominate AEJMC’s Board of Directors (Moody, Subervi & Oshagan, 2013), with Caucasian leadership increasing between 2007 and 2011 and the number of minority leaders stagnating. This study posits that social media, when used effectively by organizations such as AEJMC, can aid in creating and maintaining meaningful relationships between scholars that could increase mentorship opportunities, which in turn could assist in retaining and strengthening scholars who identify with a minority or underrepresented group. Social media use by academics has mostly been studied regarding teaching (Veletsianos & Kimmons, 2013) and gathering data (Weller et al., 2014). Between 1997 and 2000, in 17 examined journals on communication, advertising, marketing, and public relations, 436 articles researched social media, focusing on the sites themselves—their uses, users, and effects—but rarely improvements (Khang, Ki, & Ye, 2012). While social media can provide tools and opportunities for scholars to communicate with peers and the public, how faculty members use social media for such communication remains understudied (Velestianos & Kimmons, 2013). 70 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe

The current generation gap among scholars using social media is remark- able. As Harley et al. (2010) demonstrated, for tenure-track scholars, it is important to collaborate and coauthor with senior scholars to gain an advantage in pre-tenure years. In turn, senior scholars at U.S. research universities said they benefited from younger colleagues’ knowledge of social media. Yet, the same study found that most scholars at research universities do not use Twitter or Facebook to share or receive information, with junior scholars conforming to their disciplines’ values and evaluations to reach tenure. Build- ing connections between senior and junior scholars, however, is a primary emphasis of CSW-operated social media. Several survey participants mentioned that they found CSW social media useful for forming relationships that they could then carry over into in-person connections at conferences and other venues. One respondent wrote: “Since mentoring has become a core aspect of CSW’s work, I would like to see the postings on social media driven by a philosophy of mentoring—so, posts that may foster mentoring and growth for women in the academy.” However, if senior scholars are not using social media as much as junior scholars, then a communication model that relies solely on social media will not be effective at forging relationships between different generations in academia. By relying too heavily on social media for communication, an organization risks that knowledge gained by older scholars might not always and sufficiently find its way to junior scholars. This might disrupt the knowledge- transfer process between generations of researchers. The connection between senior and junior scholars needs to be strengthened to keep and enhance a sense of community among all scholars, regardless of age or rank. As Banet- Weiser and Juhasz (2011) reminded us that “[feminist] scholars need to address political, economic and structural concerns together rather than in isolation to challenge the individualism of social media and consciously use these flexible sites as rich contexts for community and dialogue” (p. 1773). Hence, if an academic group wants to make social media work to the advantage of all members and affiliates, it needs to cross-post information via e-mails, listservs, and newsletters to connect scholars of different ages and stages of their academic careers. These communication paths also appeal to members who find social media to be a time-consuming form of communication. For example, one of our survey respondents noted: “I love the newsletter and information through email. It is more direct for me.” Logging into social media sites to retrieve information created an extra communication barrier for this person. Increasingly scholars may also have concerns over privacy breaches online, questions of decorum, and experiences of having to handle online abuse. Creating a broad-based communication strategy would allow organizations to draw together scholars who prefer not to use social media, like this survey respondent: “I prefer to receive email Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 71

(push communication) as I do not log onto social media or the web to see if there are CSW posts or updates.” Like the previous respondent, this scholar found that logging into social media sites seemed like an extraneous, time- consuming step, and she would not receive information if it were distributed solely through social media. With incoming generations of scholars growing up with social media, social media use among scholars could increase, but this may also depend on several ongoing developments such as factors for evaluating tenure and promotion applications; experiences with online abuse; and concerns over privacy. Social media use could bring the benefit of a higher visibility of disciplines and scholarly work to counter or contribute to public debates often based on insufficient knowledge. This, however, hinges on an appreciation of public scholarship within disciplines and recognition of such within the tenure-track and tenure system as engaging with shifts in time and energy commitments. The current system emphasizes publishing in limited-access academic journals; making knowledge public needs to become a value (Coo- per et al., 2013). Currently, such engagement is mostly interpreted as service within U.S. research universities (Harley et al., 2010) rather than as teaching (the public); research (dissemination); or a separate, alternative category of community engagement and good citizenry in society. But new ways to evaluate scholarship are evolving. Priem and Costello (2010) demonstrated that Twitter citations could become valuable within the tenure-evaluation process as they “represent and transmit scholarly impact” (p. 4). Similarly, Liang et al. (2014) showed that interactions on Twitter increased the scientific impact of a scholar. Yet, feminist scholars also cautioned academics to reflect on how much such self-branding feeds the “self-interested, entrepreneurial, self-promoting, individualist” undercurrents of the “neoliberal university” (Banet- Weiser & Juhasz, 2011, p. 1768). Banet-Weiser and Juhasz suggested using social media for feminist practices such as “public engagement in thinking out loud, honing a voice, self-naming, community-building, and stake- holding” (p. 1770). The question, though, arises how feminist values such as community-building and public engagement can benefit from social media use if the majority of academics use social media for mostly individualistic endeavors. Third, future research into the use of social media by scholars and their professional organizations should use qualitative methods more often. Inter- views or focus groups can drill deeper into how individual scholars make sense of their social media use and related experiences. This could be the next step for this study, in addition to extending to other divisions within AEJMC or other academic organizations for media, journalism, and communication scholars such as the International Communication Association, the 72 Stine Eckert, Candi S. Carter Olson, and Victoria L. LaPoe

National Communication Association, the Association of Internet Research, and the International Association of Media and Communication Research. As these academic organizations are invested in researching media and communication, scholars may have more connection with and use for social media than other disciplines in the social sciences, albeit, as noted earlier, scholars in STEM disciplines have been at the vanguard of finding creative uses for social media to further their research. While the uptake of two social media sites, combined with more mainstream internet tools, such as e-mail, listservs, and newsletters, aids the CSW to build and sustain community, this social media use also raises the question of how critically scholars reflect on the social media they use. It would be valuable for future research to ask scholars how they handle privacy and data exploitation issues in their professional use of social media.

CONCLUSION

Social media are a possibility for scholars to increase peer and public communication, as incoming generations of scholars will not know a world without them. Social media need to be incorporated by scholarly organizations to reach out to members who prefer these spaces to other tools or use them in conjunction with previous outreach methods. Social media offer scholars personal connections in between in-person meetings; they are not dependent on sharing space or time simultaneously. Moreover, social media use fits well with many academics’ flexible work times between in-person meetings. Because digital spaces can bring together people who share interests but who do not share the same space and time, they have the potential to become part of support networks for diverse and underrepresented groups in academia. However, the age gap in social media users, questions surrounding privacy, and concerns over what counts toward tenure and promotion are serious concerns that organizations need to address in their communication strategy with social media. If older generations are left out of mentoring relationship building, then new generations of women and minority scholars will lose the knowledge that the previous generation gained as they fought to achieve their positions. When taking the benefits into account without losing the ability to still critically research the social media scholars use, investing in and recognizing members’ and groups’ social media use can aid scholarly organizations such as AEJMC in reaching their strategic goals of building a more diverse, international, and multicultural membership; to enhance its web presence; to support scholarship online; and to ultimately help members with their careers and research. Digital Communication as a Promotion Building Community? 73

NOTE

1. Authors contributed equally.

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Chapter 4

Community Crisis and Coverage Coping with Newsroom Compassion Fatigue Victoria L. LaPoe, Mary A. Bemker, Candi S. Carter Olson, Mary T. Rogus, and Nerissa Young

It started with the death penalty. Witnessing executions was my first taste of that mixture of trauma and responsibility that make it hard to come to terms with this job. The constant, competitive pace of the work leaves little time to come to a personal understanding of the ugly realities you have to convey to the public, or the ways in which they change you. The more the newspaper where I worked downsized, and the more I was tasked with covering homicides and violent crimes, the more I told myself reliving those horrors with the victims and their families was just part of the job. But, sometimes you just feel like a vulture. —Graham Lee Brewer, High Country News and NPR, former reporter at The Oklahoman (Graham Lee Brewer, personal communication, June 1, 2018)

On June 1, 2018, “Too much bad news can make you sick” read the headline on CNN; the story discussed that 24/7 technology exposure to traumatic news reports may have physical effects on consumers from stomach problems to sleep issues (Pattillo, 2018).1 This finding may be alarming to some in itself. And taking a closer look, what are those implications for journalists who are more involved covering tragedy almost daily? Crises that the UN disaster monitoring system reports have quadrupled since the 1970s (Pattillo, 2018). It is the nature of the job. Journalists see and report on trauma, violence, tragedy, and people’s suffering daily. And like first responders, they often see the worst of it as it happens. But then they face the difficult decisions

77 78 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young of what to show and describe, under impossible deadlines that allow little time for personal reflection to absorb what they saw and heard. Studies have reported that 80 to 100 percent of journalists report having covered traumatic events, 55 percent of those events in the previous 12 months (Ananthan, 2017; Backholm & Bjorkqvist, 2012). It is not difficult to find the headlines that those journalists are referring to. From the New York Times: “After Sandy Hook, More Than 400 People Have Been Shot in Over 200 School Shoot- ings” (Patel, 2018); the Washington Post: “Number of fatal shootings by police is nearly identical to last year” (Sullivan et al., 2017); and “#MeToo: Harvey Weinstein case moves thousands to tell their own stories of abuse, break silence” (Schmidt, 2017). Each of the individual stories that lead to the aggregation in those headlines represents the work of dozens of reporters, photographers, editors, and producers. For the stories that went national, hundreds of journalists were drawn in. Ask some White House beat reporters and they may tell you that covering the Twitter president, Donald Trump, makes for long days. While previously on Friday afternoon the president’s press secretary would say, “The lid is on,” and mean that there would be no official news until Monday, the unrelent- ing 24/7 nature of social media, digital-streaming media, and real-time live television has changed the job of journalists dramatically, taking away the downtime after meeting traditional media deadlines to personally process the information they report. Most of the studies on how journalists have been affected by the content of the stories they cover or the stress of the 24/7 deadlines have focused on post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, and found that journalists often suffer symptoms after covering traumatic events (Aoki et al., 2012). PTSD is common among war correspondents who witness the same violence and horrors as the soldiers they cover or national journalists who parachute into major devastation and violence, story after story. But for most journalists, especially the thousands of local journalists, it is the daily drip, drip of crimes scenes, accidents, fires, child and sexual abuse, and the interviews with victims and families torn apart by those stories that impact their lives. Those stories individually probably are not enough to trigger PTSD symptoms, but the cumulative, ongoing exposure to lesser trauma and its victims also impacts them personally and professionally creating secondary trauma or compassion fatigue (Dworznik, 2018). Not all journalists suffer from PTSD; however, compassion fatigue, or the continued witnessing of suffering, has been connected to this profession. Com- passion fatigue from news coverage has been most often associated with news audiences exposed to repeated stories about tragic events, wars, natural disasters, refugee crises, and other ongoing stories that do not directly affect them (Taylor, 2017; Moeller, 2017; Dvorkin, 2006; Moeller, 1999). But little consideration is given to the journalists who produce those stories, and their hours of Community Crisis and Coverage 79 daily immersion in the suffering of others, often with few outlets to relieve the empathy they need to feel in order to create a story that will engage an audience (Dworznik, 2018). In a May webinar to the 2018 Native American Journal- ism Student Fellows, Graham Lee Brewer (Cherokee Nation citizen), a former NAJA student fellow, current NAJA board member, and journalist with High Country News and NPR, told the students that it is “really, really important to take care of your mental health” (YouTube Live, 2018). Brewer’s former newspaper, The Oklahoman, offered free counseling sessions, and he said he took advantage of every one of them. Brewer covered homicides, the death penalty, state government, and state legislature. He talked about how this was a taxing and competitive beat with quick deadlines, a lot to learn, and a large audience. To young and upcoming journalists, he noted that questions related to resources and support are good ones to ask on your first job interview, “You want to work at a place where you are okay raising your hand and saying ‘I feel overwhelmed’ and you want to feel supported by your peers” (YouTube Live, 2018). This study examines the extent to which journalists’ personal lives and professional work, in a variety of different media, may be affected by compassion fatigue. Considering the number of stories involving mass shootings, racial division, political upheaval, and natural disasters continue to increase, journalism should consider stressing self-care within its developmental and education process, just as the profession stresses objectivity and ethics.

LITERATURE REVIEW

On February 14, 2018, student journalists at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, hid in a photo closet as a single shooter killed 17 of their fellow students and adults at the school. Even as the group of school newspaper staff members for The Eagle Eye were survivors undergoing trauma from the incident themselves, they also had to be journalists, shov- ing their own emotions aside to report on the incident as it was unfolding. On a panel for the Newseum in Washington, DC, before the 500,000-person March for Our Lives in March 2018, 18-year-old senior Kevin Trejos said, “I had to be there for my friends. I also had to be there as a photographer [for the school newspaper]. In a way, it helped me escape the reality of it” (Walsh, 2018, para. 2). Another senior, coeditor-in-chief Emma Dowd, told the audience that she had a hard time squashing her own trauma to be able to do her job as a journalist. “I didn’t feel I was emotionally able to even go back in the school to retrieve a camera,” Dowd said. “I was an emotional hot mess” (Walsh, 2018, para. 5). In an interview with NPR, student journalist Christy Ma said of covering the vigil after the shootings, “It was really hard to interview students and take pictures of these raw moments because 80 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young we were feeling [it] as well. Fortunately, we had a couple of brave student photographers that took pictures to show the world what’s going on here in Parkland” (Lombardo, 2018, para. 10). Even as the students were struggling with their own fear and trauma, huddled in the photo closet, the students, who were working on a third-quarter issue, had a “stop the presses” moment, as someone said, “OK guys, we have to trash the whole issue” (Walsh, 2018, para. 8). Another of the paper’s coeditor-in-chiefs, Rebecca Schneid, told the audience that talking about emotions, which is something that most journalists are not encouraged to do because of the culture of the newsroom itself (Underwood 2011, p. 4), was an important part of the student’s experiences:

It is a balancing act between being a journalist and a survivor. Any journalist knows that sometimes it is very hard for you to cover something of a tragedy, and sometimes you have to talk about your own emotions too. When it is also your school, and it’s your family and your friends, that is a whole other level. (Johnson, 2018, para. 2)

The students, eleven of whom covered the March for Our Lives for the Guardian US, turned out their first accounts within days of the attack. They were having a first-hand experience with what perhaps most journalists come to see as a regular part of their job, as research shows that 80 to 100 percent of journalists have been in a traumatic event because of work, whether that’s a fire, a natural disaster, war, a car crash, or a school shooting (Smith, Newman, & Drevo, 2015, paras. 4–5). However, newsroom culture encourages a “keep a stiff upper lip” mentality for reporters in all situations, even though journalists experience trauma both as first responders and as secondary reporters who are listening to and writing about other people’s trauma. Underwood (2011) writes,

In particular, the culture of the newsroom and the posture of the typical urban journalist took on a cynical, hard-shelled tone by the late nineteenth century that fit with an opportunistic system of “scoop” seeking and news formulas that were exploitative of human tragedy. This meant that news writers were expected to deal with human pain only within the conventions of industrialized news reporting and where the ability to “handle” traumatic experience became one of the measures of the successful news professional. (p. 4)

Underwood (2011), who also worked for the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma at the Columbia Journalism School, wrote that this culture means that journalists are encouraged to suppress their emotions in a way that would reveal vulnerability and help them to heal (p. 5). While the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma notes that “Most journalists exhibit resilience despite repeated exposure to work-related events,” Community Crisis and Coverage 81 there is still a significant number of reporters who “are at risk for long-term psychological problems, including PTSD, depression and substance abuse” (Smith, Newman, & Drevo, 2015, paras. 7–8). A 2001 study of 140 active war journalists who had spent an average of 15 years in the field found that this group of reporters, who were actively reporting on traumatic situations daily, were at a higher risk of PTSD, depression, and excessive alcohol use than a control group of reporters who were not in war zones (Feinstein, Owen, & Blair, 2002). Trauma can cause several issues for reporters:

A journalist may seem more anxious, irritable, withdrawn, numb, depressed, sad, or angry, and the emotions may be either sustained or fluctuating. Physical symptoms can include sleep or eating disorders, a rapid heartbeat, sweating, panic attacks, headaches, nausea, and chest pain. Strained personal and work relationships are often common. So is alcohol or drug abuse. Other signs may include an abnormally intense focus on one’s work, as if one is trying, as with other compulsive behaviors, to avoid uncomfortable feelings. (“CPJ Journalists Security Guide,” n.d., para. 3)

Reporting on tragedies impacts all areas of a person’s life, both personal and professional. Journalists of all stripes, not just war reporters, face trauma, though, as exhibited by the experience of the Parkland student reporters, a group of reporters who should have had the most protected environment possible. However, even if reporters aren’t constantly on the scene of a tragedy, they can face a new type of trauma that’s been introduced by social media communities: trolling, doxing, and harassment. A 2016 report, “Exposed: Women Journalists and Online Harassment,” found that 41 percent of full- time women journalists reported being trolled, and 18 percent of freelance women reported being cyberstalked (O’Brien, 2016, paras. 6–7). A survey of almost 1,000 female journalists conducted by the International News Safety Institute found that nearly two-thirds of respondents had experienced trolling, harassment, and doxing; although for many of the women, “The majority of threats, intimidation, and abuse directed toward respondents occurred in the work place, and was perpetrated most often by male bosses, supervisors, and co-workers” (“Survey: Violence Against,” 2013–2018, para. 3). Swedish broadcaster Alexandra Pascalidou called this “warfare” at a 2017 panel at the International Journalism Festival in Italy: “Some say switch it off, it’s just online. It doesn’t count. But it does count, and it’s having a real impact on our lives. Hate hurts. And it often fuels action IRL (in real life)” (Ricchiardi, 2017, paras. 3–4). The inability to intervene in situations that seem like moral impera- tives can also impact reporters’ mental health and ability to do their jobs effectively. The International News Safety Institute studied the emotional 82 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young toll of reporting on the contemporary global refugee crisis. The Institute found that while reporters weren’t always displaying PTSD, “many reported difficulties related to moral injury, defined as the injury done to a person’s conscience or moral compass by perpetrating, witnessing, or failing to prevent acts that transgress personal moral and ethical values or codes of conduct. While moral injury is not considered a mental illness, unlike PTSD and depression, it can be a source of considerable emotional upset” (Feinstein & Storm, n.d., 4). Interestingly, while compassion fatigue and secondary trauma are associated with journalists becoming further disconnected from a story or the people they’re covering, moral injury “is strongly associated with journalists becoming actively involved in helping refugees” (Feinstein & Storm, n.d., 5). This impulse to deviate from the reporter role and become a helper can cause problems for news organizations, the journalist, and those on the receiving end of aid. “Guilt . . . can be a faulty motivator of behavior. So too can moral injury. . . . When the lines are blurred and journalists start regularly assisting immigrants emotions can unravel” (Feinstein & Storm, n.d., p. 5). Journalists with compassion fatigue stemming from trauma-induced PTSD and depression exhibit ineffective coping strategies:

Of note was the fact that the avoidance item “I stayed away from reminders of the trauma” was endorsed least often. Rather, the avoidance pattern incorporated such maladaptive strategies as “My feelings about it were kind of numb” and “I felt as if it hadn’t happened.” (Feinstein, Owen, & Blair, 2002, para. 25)

This fits with public perceptions of journalists as they “seem less than human; that they don’t bleed or grieve or experience things other people do” (Castle, 1999, p. 144). These statements summarize journalism’s problem with compassion fatigue, which has also been called “secondary trauma” or “vicarious trauma.” It is defined as, “your work-related, secondary exposure to extremely stressful events” (Stamm, 2005, p. 5). Symptoms include “having difficulty sleeping, having images of an upsetting event pop into your mind, or avoiding things that remind you of an event” (Stamm, 2005, p. 5). As previously noted, though, journalist’s compassion fatigue stems from both secondary and primary trauma, although it’s most often secondary trauma since most journalists arrive after an event has happened and have to reconstruct the event through survivors’ recollections (Castle, 1999, p. 144). In the field, this can lead journalists to seem or feel apathetic and disconnected from events in ways that alienate survivors and communities, particularly if a journalist doesn’t know the community or make an attempt to get to know the community. Journal- ists can make simple errors, such as misspelling names or creating “distorted Community Crisis and Coverage 83 chronologies,” and they can make news judgments about running images that retraumatize the survivors who are subjected to the images in the aftermath of the event. In addition, reporters suffering from compassion fatigue can seem callous to survivors by not showing empathy or sympathy during interviews (Kay, Reilly, Amend, & Kyle, 2011, pp. 2–3). There is growing awareness of the problem of secondary trauma and compassion fatigue as both a mental health and a professional issue for the media industry, and a growing number of think tanks and universities are starting to address the issue. A study by Dworznik and Garvey (2018) found that among 41 accredited journalism schools that responded to a survey request, only one had a course specifically dedicated to training students about the impacts of trauma in the journalism field. However, 35 other programs said they integrated trauma training in other parts of their curriculum (p. 7). Trauma training, Dworznik and Garvey write, needs to teach students to recognize symptoms of trauma in themselves and how it can impact their work (p. 3). The International News Safety Institute calls for newsrooms to have comprehensive support networks in place once reporters are on the job. Those support networks include training and conversations about emotional responses before a reporter is deployed to a story that is going to involve trauma, and newsrooms should help reporters establish clear ethical and moral parameters, while also mitigating the economic pressures that can “undermine the emotional health of journalists in the field” (Feinstein & Storm, n.d., pp. 8–9). Newsrooms also need to provide support to returning field reporters who are struggling to reintegrate into society and to make journalists aware of the supports that are available to them if they need further emotional assistance (Feinstein & Storm, n.d., p. 9). The Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma also reinforces the idea that journalists need further training before entering a field where they’re almost guaranteed to encounter a harrowing story:

Considering that most journalists will cover a trauma-related event at some point in their careers, and many will experience personal attacks involving intimidation and harassment, it is vital that journalists receive proper trauma and safety training during their journalism education before entering the workforce. . . . Trauma training that incorporates education on reporting and working in hazardous environments, how to interact with vulnerable or traumatized victims and witnesses in the aftermath of catastrophic events/ethical decision making and best practices, personal safety, and healthy coping/self-care repertoires is warranted. (Smith, Newman, & Drevo, 2015, para. 27)

In addition to increasing reporter resilience and reducing mental health issues among professionals, further support and training for newspeople before they 84 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young enter the field can result in reports that support communities that are healing: “The media can help a community’s healing process following a tragic event. Having their stories told sensitively and accurately can help survivors reconnect with their lives and community, and validate their feelings about the event” (Kay, Reilly, Amend, & Kyle, 2011, p. 3). Many resources exist to help develop strong trauma curricula, as well. In just one example, The Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma Asia Pacific, in conjunction with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, released the video and associated teaching notes, “Getting It Right: Ethical Reporting on People Affected by Trauma,” in 2014 (McMahon, Ricketson, & Tippet, 2014). Many resources have been around for decades, as well. In 1999, Castle found several programs for newsrooms to emulate as they looked to develop support services for their employees, including peer-support services and trauma-interview training through the Queensland University of Technol- ogy’s School of Media and Journalism. By looking at examples, high schools, universities, and newsrooms can find effective tactics for helping their professionals both cover a tragedy and recover from it themselves. This past July, Parkland students spoke on a panel in Miami at a co-hosted conference by the National Association for Hispanic Journalists and Native American Journalists Association; the high school students reminded professional journalists that victims are human and need to heal, even while news deadlines loom (Hotulke, 2018). Native American Journalist Association college student fellow, Hunter Hotulke, asked to cover the panel and included the following in his story: “The high school students encouraged journalists to be mindful of the feelings and to approach these tragic events with a human perspective” (para. 7). Hotulke concluded his piece with a survivor quote: “Put yourself on their level and come with the idea that people have good days and bad and should be respectful of people’s feelings,” said (Rain) Valladares (para. 8). A college student journalist chronicled a high school student-led discussion on an industry struggle that includes costs for both interviewee and interviewer. This chapter does not include a cause and effect study; instead this is an exploratory study to learn more about the role of compassion fatigue and journalism. The following research question guides this chapter: If one can develop compassion fatigue by overexposure to tragic stories, what can be said about the journalists experienc- ing the event and/or sharing such information?

METHOD

In research, a case study may be made up of many data sources to investigate a topic. With this study’s heuristic nature—attempting to understand the implications of trauma within the journalism profession—we thought this Community Crisis and Coverage 85 method appropriately fit this study. An advantage of case studies is that they allow for future research ideas to bubble up (Wimmer & Dominick, 2006). Supporting the method of a case study, in this chapter, we draw on news article interviews, expert discussion, and open-ended responses to an online survey to understand journalists’ experiences with trauma and compassion fatigue on the job. Through Qualtrics, the researchers crafted questions specifically for journalists, addressing issues associated with compassion fatigue (Figley, 1995; The Compassion Fatigue Awareness Project, 2017). The survey included open-ended questions with 55 total statements. We did not include forced responses on each question as we wanted respondents comfortable with sharing information. Drawing from the literature review to answer our exploratory research question, we addressed the following topics within our survey:

• struggles with the separation from work at home; • feelings of trauma and/or distraction related to news story or events; • feelings of stressed/depressed/on-edge connected to news stories; • feelings of being tired/drained/hopeless/overwhelmed connected to news stories; • alarming thoughts about stories; • difficulty remembering facts connected to victims, natural disasters, and/ or other trauma; • feelings of easily frightened or startled; and • avoidance of activities and places (including digital media) that remind them of traumatic experiences from news events.

The survey was sent out in the spring of 2017 through social media. It was e-mailed to organizations and/or tweeted at and posted to social media organizations connected to journalists, such as Broadcasting Education Association, Society of Professional Journalists, Radio Digital Television News Association and Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, Asian American Journalists Association, Native American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, National Lesbian Gay Journalists Asso- ciation, and Unity Journalists of Color. While the sample size for a quantitative study was very low (N=34, which included partial answers and 18 complete surveys), the study had rich comments on the open-ended questions. There are two possible schools of thought on the sample size: (1) journalists didn’t feel comfortable talking about it; or (2) the survey just didn’t get in enough hands of journalists and/or provide enough benefit in their already busy lives. Maybe it was just seen as another thing to do. We did have close to half of the total respondents begin the survey and then stop; perhaps the 86 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young topics were too uncomfortable. We will never know, but this may serve as a signal that sensitive topics of this nature may be best researched one-on-one where a rapport may be built. Only 18 respondents opted to give their demographic information and complete the full study. The majority of our identified respondents were within the age range of 25 to 40 (n=11) and held bachelor’s degrees (n=13). Respondents were primarily white (n=13); however, our survey included Latina/Latino (n=1), Native American or Alaska Native (n=2), and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (n=1) respondents. Interestingly, most respondents were identified as male (n=10), followed by female (n=8). All journalists were from the United States, except for one Canadian journalist. Most respondents worked in smaller news markets 71 or higher (n=10), while we had one journalist who was a freelancer, and, therefore, did not have a market size specification. Journalists noted they worked in print (n=9), television (n=8), digital (n=6), and radio (n=1).

RESULTS

The results of this study should not serve as a diagnosis for the respondents or the journalism profession. Instead it hopes to explore what journalism—a profession all about people—may possibly consider to move forward and fully embrace self-care. Of those who answered this question, the majority of respondents agreed (77%) that they found it difficult to separate work life from other areas of their life. Thinking about work all the time was a major issue reporters noted in open-ended questions. They said journalism was a twenty-four-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week job. They wrote that their struggles included the following:

• Separating my job, a journalist, from who I am as a person. Journalism is a 24/7 job that requires you to be constantly “tuned in.” • All of the crisis going on. • Thoughts of subjects’ tragedy can play on the mind • Unplugging from my email, feeling sad about things I cover, frustrated with city problems.

Respondents discussed unplugging, putting down the phone, and having a dark sense of humor because of the stressful newsroom environment. More than half of respondents (56%) agreed that they empathized to the point of feeling the trauma that others described as part of the news event. Close to 17 percent were neutral, while more than 27 percent disagreed. Community Crisis and Coverage 87

• It depends on the trauma they’re describing. If it has to do with sexual assault or some tragedy involving children, then I will feel that more acutely than other kinds of trauma. • I don’t know that I feel the trauma so much as a sort of despair at my inability to help based on either the enormity of their trauma or the observer position that being a journalist puts you in. • I wouldn’t say this happens often but you can’t help but be affected by some of the stories you cover. I generally don’t internalize that trauma but there have been a few times (2–3) when what I’ve seen made a lasting impression. • If painful empathy is trauma then yes. But you put it aside, and work on. Later, it reappears. • It is just there. Used to be able to separate

Stories about crisis and people surfaced as specifics that journalists described— stories about children, sexual assault, victimization, and/or losing a loved one unexpectedly. The range of emotion respondents described included empathy, sympathy, grief, and helplessness, in terms of victims covered. Close to 45 percent of respondents agreed that they could be distracted by thoughts related to other’s trauma, while 22 percent were neutral, 28 percent disagreed, and 5 percent strongly disagreed. When it came to the journalists’ own mental health, they acknowledged strong emotions in terms of feeling depressed, stressed, and on-edge a good deal of the time because of their work; more than half (61%) agreed to this statement, 17 percent felt neutral, 17 percent disagreed, and 5 percent strongly disagreed. Interestingly, more respondents (72%) noted feeling tired and drained because of their work compared to emotions associated with their work. Newsrooms are accepted as stressful environments and journalists are taught to be objective, so maybe empathizing is not acceptable to acknowledge. More than half of respondents also noted feeling overwhelmed by their work and sometimes reported feeling hopeless:

• Journalism is a demanding profession and many people are counting on me to come through for them. If I fail, it becomes a blemish on who I am as a person because journalists so often draw their identity from what they do. • After a day covering a juvenile murder case, all I did when I got home was sit on the couch, eat too much and drink wine. I didn’t feel like talking to anyone or even getting ready to go to bed. I just felt numb. • I have a hard time leaving stories behind. If something affects me deeply, I think about it for a long time. It’s hard to get over. • When things are going well at work, I’m confident and content. When things are not—whether that be an impending deadline I’m not quite ready 88 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young

for or a particularly difficult subject—I’m closed-off and contrary in my personal life. • The hostility and/or resistance of subjects toward my journalistic inquiries can cause feelings of frustration, rejection, like we are lower life forms. • There are days I come home exhausted, more often emotionally than physically. But there are many more days when the work invigorates and inspires. • If there is a major traumatic event, for example a mass shooing [sic], in which there are several days of follow up it can become difficult to cover something that heavy several days in a row.

Most respondents (78%) disagreed with having alarming thoughts—either when they were awake or sleep—about stories that they were connected to. One respondent did agree that she/he had alarming thoughts and noted the pressure of being a journalist. They wrote, “Am I getting everything right, did I get this person’s name right, what if I have to run a correction, etc.” Journalism includes integrity and respondents disagreed (89%) that they had difficulty remembering, the main staple of their job, facts connected to victims, natural disasters, and other trauma. Respondents noted the opposite that covering traumatic stories imprinted them with particulars of the trauma.

• I’d say just the opposite: Those details become seared into my brain. • I can remember most of the particulars of the more tragic situations I sometimes cover.

Journalists also disagreed that they generally felt easily startled or frightened (78%) and that they avoided activities, places, and events, including digital media, that reminded them of traumatic experiences they reported on or that their news outlet covered (76%). While most did not avoid activities, respondents did note particular instances when they were uncomfortable—again, associated with people, specifically young life and death.

• I do tend to avoid reading stories involving tragedy when victims are children. • I did have to cover a funeral once and I never want to cover one again. We had the family’s permission, but it still felt wrong.

One respondent ended our survey with the following, when we asked for any additional thoughts or comments: “It’s a very real skill to leave work at work and not bring traumatizing events home. I’ve often thought of the questions in this survey and I think it comes down to separation and being able to see the trauma for what it is.” Community Crisis and Coverage 89

Journalism is a first-responder job. Reporters are often first to the scene following, and sometimes even before, emergency workers. Being first on breaking news such as fires, murders, disasters, and investigations is professionally honored and expected as part of reporters’ work requirements. In some cases, it is even used to assess and measure job performance. While our survey sample was small, our open-ended qualitative responses seemed salient by highlighting stressors of the overall job and the long-lasting emotional struggles.

DIALOGUE, DISCUSSION, AND FUTURE RESEARCH

To connect health practice, professionalism, and research, the authors invited Nerissa Young, adviser for the multi-award-winning Society of Professional Journalists student chapter at Ohio University to discuss self-care. Young has been cited in professional and academic work for the past seven years, stressing how the teaching of how to manage trauma should start in journalism school. As an adviser and instructor, she includes self-care within her professional roles. Within this dialogue and discussion, she shares her thoughts and ideas on how we can move an exploratory case study like this one forward. While this may not be a traditional format for an academic piece, the authors believe that these sort of exploratory discussions are essential in a stressful field such as journalism, with sometimes small staffs and quick turnarounds It is the building of a bridge of interdisciplinary knowledge that will help us understand and impart knowledge of very complex matters such as trauma and journalism. Young wrote,

I handed the photo to my editor. “This is the one I think we ought to use,” I said. He looked at the photo and then at me. “Nerissa, we can’t use this,” he said. “Why not?” I asked. “Look at it,” he said and handed it back to me. I looked again and asked, “What’s wrong with it?” The photo showed a U.S. Marine kneeling beside a dead Iraqi soldier, whose head and limbs had turned black. One could see the puddle where his life fluids had collected near his body. I thought the editor was just being squeamish. The only other photo we had was of the U.S. Marine in his formal portrait, a photo that did not show what he actually did on the ground during the first Gulf War. What was obvious to my editor but not to me was that I was suffering compassion fatigue, or what I call losing one’s humanity. It took two more years before I took the ultimate step to correct my problem—leaving daily reporting for the classroom. 90 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young

But even that first higher education posting didn’t go very well because I had too many unresolved, stressful events that I hadn’t dealt with emotionally. I am not alone, but I am in the minority because I am willing to talk about it. Much is made about foreign correspondents and the post-traumatic stress they may suffer from covering wars, famines, disasters, etc. But few people acknowledge the very real distress that reporters in underserved communities experience. It’s easier to leave. When a good reporter leaves an underserved community, the repercussions are just as long lasting as the emotional distress that causes the reporter to leave because the next reporter may not have the same connection to and compassion for the community. Community journalism is a special calling and one that is just as difficult or more so as working for a major news organization. Community journalists know if they mess up, they will hear about it at the post office, the PTA meeting, church, or the grocery store. Communities often see their journalists as one of their own, and the members are not bashful about holding their reporters accountable. Those who work for a community news organization see the connectedness of the county commission to the school board to the monthly jobs report to every facet of the community. These reporters know their people because they live and work among them in close quarters every day. Real community journalism is a love affair in which journalists often practice tough love in their reporting because, as a member of a community, they want it to thrive. But the very thing that binds reporters to their communities can become the thing that pulls reporters away from them. The photo of the Marine and the dead Iraqi soldier did not faze me. A year later, I began the process of leaving the newspaper for which I worked. I knew three generations of Joe’s family. I taught school with his parents and aunt. I knew his grandparents as long-time members of the community. I knew Joe because he was a gifted young man in a small community. Word gets around. When Joe suffered a brain injury after a drunk driver crossed the interstate medium and crashed into the subcompact car in which Joe was a passenger, I didn’t really know how to report it. The wreck happened in an adjoining state, so criminal charges were handled well outside the courts I covered. Joe spent weeks in a coma. I responded as a community member, reaching out as friends would do and adding my prayers to those of many others’. The injuries were dramatic. Joe’s doctors told him he would have to rebuild his cognitive skills, meaning he would again have to crawl before he could walk. My family members formed two teams for Joe’s patterning exercises that were meant to simulate crawling. Enough community members came forward to form enough teams that each team was on duty once every two weeks. I watched Joe’s progress and waited for the day I could write the story about his return to college. He and his friends were on their way to the beach for Thanksgiving break when the truck hit their car head-on. Community Crisis and Coverage 91

I never got to write that story. Instead, I wrote a five-paragraph, unbylined brief that Joe had taken his life. I sat in my home office writing the story, seeing the faces of his family members as I agonized over every word. Tears rolled down my cheeks and dripped onto the keyboard of my laptop computer. “Why are you doing this?” echoed in my head. “Because it’s your job,” echoed back. I don’t know whether what I dealt with after Joe’s death qualifies as survivor’s guilt because I am not a clinician. I do know I had the same dream nearly every night for a year about the last time I saw Joe alive. He was in a café celebrating his father’s birthday. I was sitting outside with my Bible open on the table and studying my Bible school lesson for the night. Joe came out the front door, and I recognized him. Even after the therapy, he had a noticeable limp. “Sit down and talk to me, Joe,” I said. We conversed until his father came out of the café. I greeted his father, said my goodbyes, and the two of them walked away. Within two weeks, the sheriff summoned me to his office and told me Joe was missing. He asked whether I could write a missing-person story for the newspaper. I took down what few details he had. I walked to the parking lot below the courthouse and first called my mother. “Pray for Joe,” I said. “He’s gone missing.” I then called my editor to get the story slotted for the next day. None of us knew Joe was already dead. His body was found within 48 hours of my conversation with the sheriff. The sheriff called the next morning with the bad news, and that’s when I began the task of writing those five paragraphs. I could not shake the thought that I had been looking into the eyes of a dead man that day at the café and just missed it. I had failed Joe, and I had failed my faith. In my dream each night, I wanted to get to the part where I said, “Jesus loves you, Joe,” and he didn’t take his life. Yet, every night, I woke up before I got it said, and the very real outcome punched me in the face. It took five years to exorcise the dream demons, and I left daily reporting after the first three of those years. Only after I wrote about his death and the effect it had on me could I begin to make peace with it. I am not alone. In the case study conducted for this book, more than three of every four journalists surveyed reported they have trouble separating their work lives from other aspects of their lives. That’s no surprise in underserved communities. One of the survivors of the February 27, 2012, shooting at Chardon High School in Chardon, Ohio, was the school board president’s son. Small communities aren’t bound together by linear chains that connect one link to another at one point but by helixes where each component simultaneously touches multiple components across the community at the same time in intricate layers. Even if one wanted to, it’s impossible to avoid those connections and avoid being touched by any single event. 92 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young

Good journalists must, to some degree, subvert their humanity. For example, when interviewing a family member who has just lost a loved one, the reporter cannot allow herself or himself to be so overcome by emotion so as not to be able to finish the interview. The reporter must allow the source to emote but not himself or herself. However, when turning notes into a story, the reporter must recapture that humanity to tell the story in a compelling way that relates to other humans and serves the community’s interest in the event. More than half of the journalists interviewed for this case study reported feeling others’ trauma as a result of covering a story. Another 44 percent said they’ve had distracting thoughts about others’ trauma after an interview. Nearly two-thirds reported feeling distressed a lot. More than half feel overwhelmed and hopeless. And one in five have alarming thoughts during waking or sleeping hours about stories they have covered. It’s no wonder. A psyche that is constantly turned off and on will, of course, have difficulty knowing when to feel what. Each person is affected differently by trauma. Not everyone who sees or experiences trauma will suffer from post-traumatic stress (Kessler, 1995; Kes- sler et al., 2005). Post-traumatic stress may occur when unchecked stress builds over time (McMahon, 2001; Pyevich et al., 2003). The reporter becomes the frog in the pot. If a person puts a frog in a pot of boiling water, the frog will jump out of the pot. If a person puts a frog in a pot of water that is room temperature and gradually increases the temperature, the frog will boil to death. Too many journalist frogs are boiling to death. They are self-medicating beyond their abilities to remain healthy, they are turning into automatons, or they are leaving the profession. Good journalism is too important to lose good journalists. This author argues the research is clear: News affects the journalists who cover it. While one could propose this subtopic or that to put a finer point on how and in what way, the most helpful thing that could happen right now is for newsroom management to recognize this well-documented reality and spend some resources on their human resources—the people producing their news products. • Give journalists permission to feel and to feel bad when they cover the hellish things that are regularly reported by news media. • Provide counseling support en masse when a school shooting or disaster strikes, but also make sure counselors are available to reporters one-on-one during the daily coverage that piles up. • Train middle managers to notice the signs that a journalist needs support, i.e., irritability, inability to focus, absenteeism, lack of interest in personal hygiene, and others. • Be flexible with scheduling. Sometimes a reporter who has been in a disaster scene for three or four days or covering a sexual assault trial needs a weekend off. Community Crisis and Coverage 93

• Allow a reporter to refuse a story if covering it would provide undue stress, i.e., covering a child murder trial if a reporter has a child near the same age. • Recognize that reporters who lose their humanity cannot cover humanity. In other words, they will no longer be good reporters. • Recognize that the value of the news product derives from the people who produce it. Even the mules in the coal mines got Sundays off because the mine owners realized the mules went blind if they worked seven days a week. Future research should focus on the following: • Replicate this study with a larger sample size. The strength of numbers is in getting the attention of those who can actually change what is happening— journalists, newsroom managers, and owners. • Replicate this survey with men only. Men AND women are affected by news coverage. More than half the respondents were men, which shows that work-related trauma is not “just a woman thing.” A survey in which only men are surveyed would be informative as newsrooms predominantly comprise men. • Ask women why they leave newsrooms at a much higher rate than men. Is that related to trauma or other factors such as pay disparity, newsroom sched- ules, child rearing responsibilities? In their key findings from the continuing series of journalist surveys conducted by Indiana University, authors Lars Willnat and David H. Weaver noted the difficulty in retaining women in newsrooms (The American Journalist in the Digital Age, 2013). “Compared to the U.S. civilian work force in 2012, U.S. journalists are considerably less likely to be women (37.5% vs. 46.9%) and even less likely than the overall U.S. managerial and professional work force, which included 51.5 percent women in 2012. . . . Among U.S. journalists with fewer than five years of work experience, women almost match men working in the profession with 49.4 percent. However, this relatively small gender gap grows continuously with years in journalism. . . . The largest gap is found among journalists with 20 or more years of experience, where only a third (33%) are women.” • Conduct a survey in which journalists are asked whether trauma is the reason they left a newsroom. Research often points to low pay, long hours, job demands, lack of work/life balance, layoffs, shrinking financial resources, lack of newsroom support for covering the news, and others as issues, but there is scant research to determine whether a direct link exists even though anecdotal evidence is fairly common. Nineteenth-century humorist and newspaperman Finley Peter Dunne said, “The newspaper does everything for us . . . comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable.” News media managers and owners must realize that journalists are sometimes the ones most afflicted by the news, and they must do more to comfort the journalists. —Nerissa Young 94 LaPoe, Bemker, Carter Olson, Rogus, and Young

NOTE

1. All authors contributed equally.

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Digital Crisis Community Communication Tweeting the First Anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster: Responsibility, Recovery, and Commemoration Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller

Twitter has taken on a vital role in reporting and commenting on the news of the day. During the 2012 Democratic National Convention, First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech averaged 28,003 tweets per minute at the peak (Camia, 2012). At the same time, the 2012 Olympics brought unprecedented use, with early championship games resulting in 15,000 tweets per second (Associated Press, 2012). Even as the games approached, countries across five continents reported they couldn’t log on to the social media site. Instead they received an error message and apology, rather than the chance to place their informational, critical, or pithy 140 characters online (Associated Press, 2012). In October 2017, President Donald Trump said that he wouldn’t be president without Twitter, arguing that social media is a “‘tremendous platform’ that allowed him to bypass what he claimed was unfair media coverage and speak directly to voters” (Baynes, 2017, para. 2). Twitter has grown from 30 million users in 2010 to 330 million active users in 2017 (Statista, 2018). The Pew Research Center (2018) estimates that about 7 in 10 Americans use social media for news media consumption, entertainment, social interactions, and other purposes. While young adults dominate across platforms, 78 percent of people aged from 30 to 49 and 64 percent of people aged from 50 to 64 use social media. This shows in usage numbers. Facebook logged more than 2 billion users for the first time in 2017. YouTube, which is owned by Google, has 1.5 billion active users, and 97 98 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller

Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, has more than 800 million active monthly users (Pew, 2018; Statista, Number of Facebook, 2018). When it comes to the distribution of information, newspapers and television struggle for circulation and ratings, while social media such as Twitter and Facebook continue to exponentially grow (McMillan, 2011). While research on Twitter has explored the amount and types of users, use during current news events, the conversational practices, online learning, and brand power (Boyd, Golder, & Lotan, 2010; Dunlap & Lowenthal, 2009; Jansen, Zhang, Sobel, & Chowdury, 2009), there is limited research on how crisis coverage lives on through the medium beyond the initial event. There- fore, the purpose of this study is to find out if and how people use Twitter to commemorate the anniversaries of significant past news events. The goal of this study is to identify the anniversary themes and to acknowledge if there is a difference in tweets between organizations and individuals. The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil disaster was evaluated to explore the use and content of Twitter during a significant news event’s anniversary. From April to July 2010, millions of gallons of oil leaked into the Gulf of Mexico following an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig. The explosion killed eleven people and started a gusher nearly a mile under water that would become the largest marine oil spill disaster in history. The last significant spill was the Exxon Valdez twenty-one years earlier (Ravitz, 2010). The initial event and the sustained coverage resulted in hundreds of thousands of tweets ranging from facts to pictures to outrage. A year after the Horizon explosion, mainstream news coverage was relatively silent, but social media was not. As the one-year anniversary approached, social media users from politicians to activists to everyday people, had been reporting and commenting for weeks—giving essentially continuing coverage of the year-old disaster. The most popular tweet of 2010 (controlling for Justin Bieber’s tweets) was Stephen Colbert’s June 16th tweet, “In honor of oil- soaked birds, ‘tweets’ are now ‘gurgles’” (Associated Press, 2010). With the growth in the medium and the significant interest in the disaster on Twitter, this chapter will conduct a qualitative analysis of tweets during the month of April, one year after the Deepwater Horizon disaster to evaluate use and themes.

LITERATURE REVIEW

When the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded, killing eleven people, no one expected the event to turn into a prolonged, sustained tragic event; ironically, on the day of the explosion, management was celebrating the excellent safety record of the rig (Burdeau & Mohr, 2010). Almost 90 days and 200 million gallons later, it was the largest maritime disaster in U.S. history and an oil Digital Crisis Community Communication 99 sheen larger than many U.S. states covered the Gulf of Mexico (Miller, Rob- erts, & LaPoe, 2014). The disaster itself was a complex event with many layers. Scientists tried to get a grasp of the size and depth of the disaster. Journalists attempted to figure out how to report on a complicated ongoing disaster within short news holes. British Petroleum’s (BP) path to capping the underwater well was fraught with unpreparedness and failures allowing for all media and the public to assign blame and demand action. Additionally, and perhaps most importantly, the disaster created the possibility of negative effects on the Gulf’s ecosystem for decades to come. The Gulf itself is a source of life and livelihood for many coastal residents. The disaster shut down fisheries and shrimperies along the coast (Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe, 2014). Tourism businesses across Louisi- ana, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, and Texas wondered when they could reopen and invite tourists back to the now tar ball-filled beaches. The endan- gered brown pelican, Louisiana’s state bird, writhing in oil from head to toe, became the powerful and emotional image that symbolized the disaster. As the anniversary approached, new scientific studies were released about negative effects of the disaster on fish and shrimp. Additionally, the first criminal charges related to the case were levied against a BP engineer for destroying information. The new information coupled with the ongoing uncertainty of the disaster’s effects resulted in communities and individuals using Twitter to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the disaster.

Exploring Themes of Disaster In disaster news coverage, stories are often placed within certain themes or frames, whether intentionally or unintentionally. Semetko and Valkenberg (2000) wrote a seminal piece on framing in which they outlined common themes found in news coverage, such as conflict, human interest, and attribution of responsibility—all of which are transferable to disaster coverage. Additionally, Perez-Lugo (2004) argues that some frames are actually special roles of the press in disaster, including management, social utility, linkage, and recovery. Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe (2014) found two of these themes present in a content analysis of the initial oil disaster television news coverage that are again worth exploring because these frames easily translate a year later into anniversary themes: responsibility and recovery.

Responsibility As disasters strike and progress, if the response or recovery are slow, the media, stakeholders, and the public search for a party to blame. For example, the levee failures and slow response to Hurricane Katrina on the local, state, 100 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller and national levels created a round of finger pointing that continues to this day. Lawsuits brought by flood victims against the Army Corps of Engineers for the failure of the levee system made the front page of the New Orleans’ Times-Picayune in September 2012, more than seven years after the hurricane made landfall. For a man-made disaster, such as the rig explosion and subsequent inability to cap the well, the assumption is that “man made it” and therefore attribution of blame is appropriate and expected. Attribution of responsibility is a common frame in disaster coverage and was evident in a study that explored how sources contributed to frames as functions of media as outlets covered this crisis (Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe, 2014). In the content analysis, attribution of responsibility was salient within both the first and sixth week of news coverage. The television news outlets suggested both BP and the government held responsibility, and they relied heavily on political analysts to tell that story.

Recovery The recovery role outlined by Perez-Lugo (2004) is the phase after impact. Individuals and communities have assessed damage and need to assess how to move forward. They have questions about where to get help and find solace in those who are going through similar circumstances. They look to the press for answers and camaraderie. In the oil disaster study, sources that addressed the impact of disaster, damage reports and updates, assessments on extent of damage, and short-term and long-term recovery plans, were used to fulfill the recovery role. Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe (2014) also compared the use of sourcing between national and local outlets and found local outlets relied more on state officials and scientists. In fact, the local media focused mostly on recovery, which matched their community audience and role compared to the larger scope of the national networks’ audience. The local media has a responsibility to serve the community in which it operates and help that community recover in the aftermath of disaster.

THE ROLE OF ANNIVERSARIES IN SOCIETY

Anniversary coverage of a tragic event can often fall into the themes of recovery and responsibility. Kitch (2003) believes anniversaries and commemoration have a role in society displayed through consistent mourning rituals. Press commemoration of a tragedy, Kitch argues, has become one of the rituals crucial to our collective identity. Kitch states that there is a change from the media’s goal of information-transmission to more meaning and representation. Journal- ism has a language shift, she argues, and becomes more historic literature than Digital Crisis Community Communication 101 regurgitation of facts (Kitch, 2003). The public relies on the telling and retelling of the story by others because most are not witnesses to tragedy. We experience it from afar, especially in a case like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that occurred 100 miles offshore and washed ashore on inaccessible marshes. Kitch (2009) posits, “Summary Journalism” is characterized as permanent, personal, memorial, visual, and collectible. Permanent is the switch from journalist to historic record. Personal is the anniversary story through the lens of the individual, either a “great man” or a regular person. Again, memorial is the language of our rituals, eulogies, and commemoration that often takes on a spirit of consolation. The fourth characteristic of “memory media product” is visual. We repeat emotional and dynamic pictures that command attention and thought and tell the story without words. And finally, these summary media products are collectibles. People go out of their way to purchase “special issues” and they become almost like a personal photo album of the event. All of these characteristics of a media product help in the healing of society, which are part of the recovery process and the assigning of blame. To move forward, we often have to look back and this includes looking back through media coverage (Kitch, 2009). When media commemorate an event with “anniversary coverage” this allows for an explanation as to why such an event happened, shouldn’t have happened (blame), or will not happen in the future (recovery). The press must look forward only by looking back and at the progress made at the anniversary. Kitch argues anniversary coverage is media products designed as collectibles. Social media fulfills some of the characteristics, but not this one. Tweets are fleeting—constant, yet ever changing—not something you save, but something you keep current. News organizations reproduce key images of an event, but also add narratives and images to construct not only meaning about an event, but the preferred history to be remembered (Kitch, 2009; Kitch, 2007). So it is no surprise that news consumers might possibly reproduce on social media these same narratives and history. The role of meaning-making goes back to rituals. When a catastrophe strikes, it allows for a culture to agree on an overarching group value and identity (Carey, 1992). Through symbols or images and storytelling, the media and a culture can create news-making to have a preferred and acceptable shared meaning of an event (Kitch, 2007; Kitch, 2003; Lule, 2001; Berkowitz, 1997; Bird & Dardenne, 1997; Carey, 1992)

SOCIAL NETWORKS AND CRISIS COVERAGE

Social media has been influential in critical moments in history from breaking news to natural disasters. During the 2009 Iranian protests, the State Depart- ment of the United States asked Twitter not to upgrade its network so that 102 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller there was no down time for Twitter users who wanted to protest the Iranian presidential election (Grossman, 2009). In Iran, when protests were high and the newspapers were blank, Twitter filled the void, was mobile, and ran rampant with outrage. With tragic events, such as the 2012 Colorado theater shooting, which resulted in 12 people dead and 58 injured, eyewitnesses turned to this microblog to give first-hand accounts and to upload video on YouTube (Schwarz, 2012; Warren, 2012). On Twitter, tweets created a timeline as the tragedy unfolded. Friends even learned that those they knew were killed during the 2012 Colorado theater shooting through posts on Facebook and Twitter hashtags (Schwarz, 2012). Following the disaster, media, witnesses, and friends contributed to a social media tribute for the lost lives on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube (Warren, 2012; Preston 2012). More recently, students have documented school shootings live on social media. After the February 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, students used Twitter to mobilize a national anti- gun movement, to respond to politicians talking about the tragedy, including responses to President Trump, and to express their own fears, anger, and sorrow. Their social media use drew attention from mainstream media outlets across the United States and abuse from those opposed to the students’ anti-gun message (Da Silva, 2018; Griggs, 2018; Meyer, 2018; Pasquini, 2018; Watkins, 2018; Zurawik, 2018). During a natural disaster in Japan, Twitter users broadcasted crisis messages faster than any professional news medium. In the case of a Japanese earthquake, Sakaki, Okazaki, and Matsuo (2010) used tweets to pinpoint the geographical spread of this disaster. They found that Twitter users broadcasted this information faster than it would’ve appeared on television airwaves; tweets about the Japanese earthquake occurred within a minute to 20 seconds. Again, the use of Twitter in a crisis is undisputed. The purpose of this study is to look at the use of the microblog postcrisis, in a commemorative manner.

SOURCES OF TWEETS

During this time, there was almost an elite and incestuous hierarchy to Twit- ter. Celebrities followed celebrities and bloggers followed bloggers (Wu, Hofman, Mason, & Watts, 2011). Many of the “elite” users had a large number of followers; this is why they seemed to make up a large number of tweets within the overall microblog (Wu, Hofman, Mason, & Watts, 2011). Journalists, for instance, did not retweet nonprofessionals; instead they used it for promotion, to express opinion, and to provide transparency to their job (Lasorsa, Lewis, & Holton, 2011). Similar to norms and routines of traditional news organizations, event-driven news is the most common covered Digital Crisis Community Communication 103 story type that was predictably covered, despite technology changing, even when news became unpredictable (Livingston & Bennett, 2003). Journalists additionally use the microblog as an instantaneous market research tool, as editors decide on their stories and website content based on what is being discussed on social media (Ahman, 2010). And even though Twitter has many uses, the point is that millions of people, stakeholders in tragedy at some point in their lives, use it. Hermida (2010) argues that emergent systems like Twitter create an “always-on” type news system or ambient news system. Users are more aware of news because it is always on, and this includes retelling the story of past events on anniversaries. This exploratory study seeks to identify the themes in the anniversary coverage of the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster within Twitter. Did the same themes emerge when compared to initial coverage by television? Not only do we want to identify themes, but we also want to determine if there is a difference between the tweets of citizens and organizations or affiliated Twitter sources. By exploring what is present in the Twitter coverage, we can begin to understand the emerging importance of social media in commemorative coverage.

RQ1: What were the dominant themes on Twitter concerning the first anniversary of the BP oil disaster? RQ2: What was the difference in BP oil disaster tweets between elites and regular citizens? RQ3: How were the anniversary themes on Twitter different or similar to the themes of the initial television coverage of the BP oil disaster?

METHOD

Tweets were collected for the month of April 2011, including the three weeks leading up to the April 20 explosion anniversary and the last week of the month. This mirrors other Twitter research that also captured tweets for sixty days (Yardi & Boyd, 2010). The gathering of tweets resulted in roughly 1,500 tweets (N=1,442). An advanced search was conducted on Twitter for the key words “Deep- water Horizon,” “BP,” and “oil spill.” This search was executed using the advanced search for “Tweets,” “Tweets with Links,” and “People.” Using Zotero, a research tool which is an extension of the web browser Firefox, web pages were saved for each day under each of the searches for the month of April. For Zotero to work with Twitter, our search had to be first saved in Twitter and then saved in Zotero. Zotero saved the file it captured as an image attachment. During the analysis phase of this project, the researchers went back through each Zotero file and through each day’s tweets. 104 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller

The unit of analysis was the tweet sent out by users and not the “retweet.” Once the tweets were captured, they were analyzed for reoccurring themes and patterns. The goal of qualitative research is to understand the “process and character of social life” and to arrive at a meaning (Altheide, 1996, p. 42). Text is a complex artifact within itself where meaning is encoded through production of the written word (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002). The qualitative researcher analyzes information through content and experience rather than numeric quantification (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002; Altheide, 1996); however, tweet frequencies were counted and recorded. During analysis of each tweet, patterns emerged that mirrored the initial coverage of the event including themes of recovery and responsibility. The tweets were then analyzed a second time to make sure that the tweets were categorized in the correct theme. The researchers examined both the content and source of each tweet. After a tweet was saved within a category, the researchers would click on the full profile of the Twitter user to understand if the originator of the tweet was an organization, a journalist, an official, a celebrity, or what appeared to be an “everyday person.” Journalists made up n=661 tweets, political activists/ representatives n=543, and celebrities n=238. When looking at tweeters’ networks, 86 percent (n=1,240) of tweets going out were from official sources, such as journalists informing or promoting stories to their audience, and celebrities and political activists/representatives trying to raise awareness.

ANALYSIS

RQ1: What were the dominant themes on Twitter concerning the first anniversary of the BP oil disaster?

Recovery As expected, the most prominent theme expressed via Twitter was the long- term recovery of the region one year after the Deepwater Horizon disaster. However, the theme could be broken down into three distinct categories of recovery: environment, economy, and health of the victims. Overall, there were 976 tweets addressing recovery, 247 addressed/concerned with environment, 157 tweeting business recovery, and 62 tweets addressing victim health concerns. Many of the anniversary tweeters discussing recovery in terms of the environment had specific animals in mind. Addressing the recovery of marine wildlife was common, from pelicans to fish to dolphins. Scientists one year later said that the Gulf was not in as bad a shape as expected, but there was Digital Crisis Community Communication 105 and is still no conclusive evidence on how the spill will affect future life cycles (Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe, 2014). That uncertainty seemed to be on tweeters’ minds on the anniversary. For example, one young woman from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, tweeted:

Researchers study dolphins to determine possible effects of oil spill NOLA.com nola.com/news/gulf-oil . . . (Malter, 2011).

Economy The second subtheme was the economic recovery of the tourism and seafood industries. Both were devastated by the spill as fishing grounds off the coast and beaches were closed due to the oil. Both industries are entrenched in the Gulf Coast and affect not only those who live along the coast, but those who travel to the coast. Local and statewide news outlets were especially interested in reexamining the economic recovery.

Businesses still struggling almost a year after the BP oil spill. Details on My News at 9 on Cox Channel 16. (WAFB, 2011)

Health Finally, within recovery was the subtheme of health. For background, there was a debate in the public domain about whether or not Corexit, the dispersant used by BP to clean up the spill, actually caused fishermen to get sick. The topic of health was again salient on Twitter a year later. With no clear effect, the dispersant became tied to any reported illness.

Mystery illnesses plague Louisiana oil spill crews—Yahoo! News http://yhoo. it/eXR9Uc. (MuhammarAlih, 2011)

The other health concern was mental health. Many fishermen and shrimpers, because of the attack on their livelihoods, said their mental state was affected by the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

The Biggest Casualty of the Oil Spill: Mental Health http://ti.me/hTdnAk. (The Mental Health Assn. for GBR, 2011)

Responsibility Along with recovery, Twitter users tweeted the theme of responsibility. The tweets often came in the form of questions: What about BP and Trans- ocean? Where does the investigation stand? Why aren’t they being held accountable? There was only one tweet about criminal charges before the 106 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller anniversary and that coincides with the announcement of the first arrest—a BP engineer was arrested for deleting information. The topic of legislation heated up significantly with an increase in tweets around April 19th and 20th. Here is an example from BP, told with a positive responsibility spin.

One year later, BP’s Bob Dudley shares how lessons from accident are making BP & energy industry safer: http://on.wsj.com/gwpx7q. (BP, 2011)

The greatest number of tweets within the responsibility theme concerned pending litigation. There were retweets and microblogging about the possible expansion of the Louisiana lawsuit, such as, For $20 billion BP claims fund, legal challenges loom. (Reuters, 2011) BP sues maker of blowout preventer that failed in oil spill http://bit.ly/fbCHoI. (The Advocate, 2011) @NOLAnews: Flurry of legal claims filed on one-year anniversary of Gulf oil spill http://ow.ly/1chxtn. (LSU_Gulf_Crisis, 2011)

RQ2: What was the difference in BP oil disaster tweets between elites and regular citizens?

As the anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon disaster grew closer, tweets increased by organizations and everyday users. As expected, there was an increase the day before the anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon disaster on April 19th. Overall, the source of the tweet did not matter. It appeared news organizations, other elites, everyday, people, and even stakeholders wanted to use Twitter to commemorate the event, ask questions, or promote agendas. As far as everyday people tweeting, for the most part, their tweets fit into the discovered themes, including the health of fishermen, the environment and overall seafood business, and the economic state of the community. This study uncovered an interesting finding when it evaluated the source of the tweets. Coastal states and newspapers had created interactive websites and Twitter accounts just to provide information about the oil disaster. This move allowed for limitless space, space that environmental reporter and author Mark Schleifstein of the Times-Picayune took advantage of:

NASA Satellite Views of 2010 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill to Air on NASA-TV Space Ref-Your Space References spaceref.com/news/viewpr.ht . . . via@Spa- ceREf. (Schleifstein, 2011)

In line with commemoration research, organizations and everyday users tweeted and retweeted stories about the first 100 days of the Gulf disaster. Digital Crisis Community Communication 107

Twitter users discussed many stories that viewers watched during the coverage of the oil spill a year earlier. It was an opportunity not only to relive the event with images of oil and rig on fire, but a way to set the stage for the recovery conversation. Again, we have to know where we have been to figure out where we are going next.

Fire on the Horizon: It’s difficult to describe how I felt in the recent weeks as three news reports . . . (Konrad, 2011)

Another interesting finding was the prevalence of a particular celebrity, born and raised in Mandeville, Louisiana, which is on the north shore of Lake Pon- tchartrain. Ian Somerhalder, star of the CW Network’s The Vampire Diaries, had some of the most popular retweets during the one-year anniversary of the oil spill and the most popular retweets of all entertainers. WGNO, the ABC station in New Orleans, aired multiple stories on Somer- halder during the initial coverage of the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Because of his celebrity status, Somerhalder was able to get access in places where some reporters could not and seemed to became an honorary reporter during the event (Bemker LaPoe & Miller, 2011). On his Twitter account he spoke out on the environmental impact of the disaster and his Twitter followers took notice with an international response:

@iansomerhalder i NEVER Knew that oil spill could lead to such disaster. We have to take this problem seriously! (Sangavi, 2011) @iansomerhalder Loved your article on the oil spill. Sadly we spend too much time and money on “other people’s problems” and neglect our own. (L., E., 2011) Could you get the word out about the Michigan oil spill quickly? There are a lot of waterways that connect the Kalamazoo. (Fairy Maven, 2011)

With a large scale crisis such as the Deepwater Horizon disaster, distress creates a role for a hero (Lule, 2001). On this anniversary, it was apparent users were seeking a hero in the form of an entertainer who just happened to have close ties to the affected community. Reporters searched for Hollywood stars to see if they were repeating their recovery efforts similar to after Hurricane Katrina. It appears Somerhalder added a “name” to the disaster. This allowed him to spread information about the disaster globally and keep it on the public’s agenda one year later.

RQ3: How were the anniversary themes on Twitter different or similar to the themes of the initial television coverage of the BP oil disaster? 108 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller

Leading up to the anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, tweets echoed similar themes that news consumers read or heard a year earlier through mainstream media. The focus on recovery was similar to what was uncovered in a content analysis of national television coverage of the first and sixth weeks of the crisis (Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe, 2014). The most frequent stories that appeared on-air included local and national stories that reported on victims, political analysts, BP officials, Coast Guard officials, state officials, civilian relief workers, and senators/representatives (Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe, 2014). During the same week, the top ten images included the Deepwater Horizon on fire, cleanup crews, and fishermen on the water (Miller & LaPoe, 2016). Within sourcing, frames that appeared salient were that of recovery and responsibility (Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe, 2014). To be clear, recovery stories focus on individuals and the cleanup following a disaster, while responsibility frames attribute who is essentially responsible for the disaster (Perez-Lugo, 2004; Semetko & Valkenburg, 2000). These were the same type of images, sources, and stories that appeared on Twitter a year following the anniversary. The themes included responsibility in terms of lawsuits, economic recovery in the form of the drilling moratorium, and health concerns over fishermen (Miller & Bemker LaPoe, 2011). Concerns over health appeared on the television coverage during the first few weeks of the disaster (Miller & Bemker LaPoe, 2011) and did so again a year later with a Twitter discussion on the dispersant Corexit. The information that appeared on television concerning Corexit was contradictory. Within days of the initial use, networks said dispersants were safe and the next day aired graphics of how dispersants allegedly could shut down a person’s lungs (Miller & Bemker LaPoe, 2011). Meanwhile, some Gulf scientists equated dispersants to what everyday people had underneath their kitchen sinks (Miller & Bemker LaPoe, 2011; Bemker LaPoe & Miller, 2012). Between the coverage and sources, there appeared to be confusion over the effects of the dispersant. The confusion appeared in tweets a year later with users questioning reports and making inadvertent links to mystery illnesses. Additionally, the mental health angle was found in both the initial television coverage and a year later on Twitter. In Louisiana, thousands of jobs rely on Deepwater drilling. In some Loui- siana parishes, 60 to 90 percent of the economy is supported by oil (Miller & Bemker LaPoe, 2011). The media reported that if the federal government forced 33 rigs to stop drilling in the New Orleans Gulf that over 40,000 rig workers could be out of work (Bloomberg News, 2010). With the loss of thousands of jobs, it was not surprising that, in 2011, Twitter users were still talking about the economic impact and recovery of the oil spill via the oil moratorium. Digital Crisis Community Communication 109

CONCLUSION

Are common frames in TV disaster coverage transferrable to Twitter? Are the themes the media transmitted in a disaster the same that people were tweeting a year later? The answer to both of these questions is, “yes.” A year later, everyday people and organizations tweeted the same themes that television networks broadcasted when the Deepwater Horizon disaster first occurred (Miller, Roberts, & LaPoe, 2014; Bemker LaPoe & Miller, 2011; Miller & Bemker LaPoe, 2011): responsibility and recovery. Fifteen hundred tweets followed the initial themes lending support to a type of intermedia agenda-setting and commemorative memory-making within the social media site. This study is not a hypothesis-testing study and can therefore not statistically support the link between the initial television coverage and the social media anniversary response; however, the researchers can make a logical inference from a qualitative perspective that the themes discussed by Twit- ter users mirrored the themes television networks aired during the first few weeks of the Deepwater Horizon disaster coverage—themes of responsibility and recovery. We speculate the mirroring of themes may have occurred for several reasons. First, the Gulf oil gusher disaster occurred 100 miles off shore and journalists had no access to the event and subsequent spill. The marshes were hard to reach. Journalists did have access to BP and government officials, but in a very controlled manner. Information was hard to access and easy to control. Therefore, the press could not diverge in its storytelling and storytelling across television outlets was homogenous. Second, the story is predictably visual (Bemker LaPoe & Miller, 2011; Miller & Bemker LaPoe, 2011). The worst maritime disaster in the United States (Ravitz, 2010) followed the path of other spills that begin with the accident, followed by oil on the surface of the Gulf, then the underwater gusher, oil on the beaches and marshes, and finally, the iconic shots of the oil-soaked pelicans. These visuals were not only predictable, but emotional, especially those of the oiled birds. These pictures, referenced in tweets, remained in the public’s memory long after the event’s conclusion. Twit- ter users tweeted what television networks first deemed as important and tweeted the progression of the story in pictures. This supports Kitch’s (2009; 2007) and Carey’s (1989) views that when media adds symbols and narratives together there is defined cultural meaning-making that leads to greater memory. In Pew’s (2010) study, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill was number 8 out of the top 10 stories of 2010 behind the national elections and the economy. Examining the media and the public’s priority, Pew found that Twitter’s 110 Victoria L. LaPoe and Andrea L. Miller users were more interested in technology and international affairs, yet blogs mirrored traditional media. This study finds when users’ tweets are broken down by topic there is an intermedia agenda effect by group interest; tweets mirrored the mainstream media. There is also support for Kitch’s view that anniversary coverage is universal, no matter the medium. While traditional news organizations did not cover this anniversary three weeks out, within social media there was plenty of space and time for users to remember this event. Meaning-making and history, again in the context of responsibility and recovery, were highlighted through the commemoration of this event. Even in 2011, the tweet wasn’t a tangible newspaper that readers could save or a newscast where you may download or record its coverage. Then, the tweet was a 140-character or less message sent out to specific or general users, not fit for a frame or a scrap- book. The meaning of the event was described and reiterated and a collective view was produced for society following the anniversary. Therefore, tweeting served a different purpose within the anniversary coverage genre. Tweets are constant and allow for continuous coverage of an anniversary rather than a “remember-when” half-hour special. Twitter served a purpose seven years ago and added yet another ritual to our society’s need for remembering and commemoration. Additionally, Twitter gave elites, organizations, and everyday people the opportunity to comment on a significant news story. Seven years ago, Twitter was another outlet to help people recover, seek those responsible, and commemorate. Often the tweets that appeared were headlines or facts that everyday users wanted their followers to be interested in. This supports past Twitter research that found the most powerful Twitter users are in-group users, close friends who are more likely to retweet a user’s story (Huberman, Romero, & Wu, 2008). The anniversary also created an elite “hero” or famous face of the spill in an actor with ties to Louisiana and an outspoken Twitter feed. Causes, often those related to the environment, need champions, and Ian Somerhalder’s popularity may have caused the Twitterverse to become more active on this subject in the days leading up to the anniversary. The pervasive nature of commemoration in our society deserves more scholarly attention, especially in light of the exponential growth of social media. Twitter serves a new purpose of allowing people to be part of the media commemoration process and not just receivers of the standard anniversary fare. People, elite or otherwise, from around the world, can participate in the ritual of remembering and while the themes may be similar to traditional media, the social aspect of it adds a global, yet personal, level to anniversary coverage. Digital Crisis Community Communication 111

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Chapter 6

Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs Sticking It to the Mother Myth: Discussing Race and Gender in Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe Online Benjamin R. LaPoe II, Victoria L. LaPoe, Daniel A. Berkowitz, and Mary A. Bemker

Nurse representations are increasingly complex as the healthcare industry discovers an identity in a digital environment connected to race, gender, media, and audience (Finlay, 2010; Hoppenstand, 2012).1 Cable and network programs such as HawthoRNe and Nurse Jackie serve as an arena for potential reality construction. These shows position both white and Black female nurses through gender and racial stereotypes, shortcuts for viewers to extract meaning. Television consumers use these images to understand race and gender (Bodroghkozy, 1992; Wilson, Guiterrez, & Chao, 2012). To help understand the reality and distortions disseminated in these programs, this study explores what myths resonate in blogs targeting nursing professionals to understand the cultural meaning behind these representations (Lippmann, 1922; Entman, 1993). As a key component in the shared process of constructing reality, mainstream media’s representations of race and gender in the United States have contributed little, if anything, since the civil rights movement to build racial comity (Entman & Rojecki, 2001). Resonant myths, a conceptual framework that couples cultural resonance and myth, are interpretative toolkits that media and individuals use to narrate stories while explaining reality, promoting the values perceived as important to society, and reinforcing negative images of a group (Lippmann, 1922; Entman, 1993; Lule, 2001; Berkowitz, 2005; Ettema, 2005; Schudson, 1989).

117 118 LaPoe, LaPoe, Berkowitz, and Bemker

The purpose of television programs is to amuse, not inform (Postman, 2006), but these programs do create a socially constructed view of reality that helps viewers interpret the world around them; this is accomplished with the symbols, values, and morals portrayed within television (Gerbner, Gross, Singorelli, & Morgan, 1980). Often, heavy television viewers have more exaggerated views of reality than non-heavy viewers (Gerbner, Gross, Sing- orelli, & Morgan, 1980). This negative world is constructed with formulaic views of people and professions (Gerbner & Gross, 1976). Based on this, it would not be surprising to find that those who have not worked in the nursing profession or with those in this profession would echo the exaggerated images within these fictional programs, accepting and promoting stereotypical views. Professional nurses and viewers alike have questioned not only the factual content of nursing programs, such as Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe, but also the constructed cultural meanings they further (Sorrell, 2009). More specifically, the nursing community voiced mixed reviews about Nurse Jackie, a program exploring the problems facing nurses. Nurses face the physical burden of getting older and doing a job that requires lifting and straining while working multiple consecutive shifts. At the same time, a workforce short- age leaves nurses with more to do. From a larger perspective, a changing healthcare industry has created shorter hospital stays, with the overall pool of patients more ill. In sum, nurses who face these challenges do not always agree with televised representations of their profession. This assertion is supported by a survey conducted by the American Nursing Association of Practicing Nurses, where more than half of the 1,046 respondents said that they felt images put forth by programs like Nurse Jackie hurt the profession (Sorrell, 2009). Both the Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe medical dramas appeared in June 2009. Nurse Jackie launched on June 8th on the Showtime network. HawthoRNe appeared on June 16th on the TNT network (Hareyan, 2009). Nurse Jackie centers on an emergency room nurse, Jackie, who is in a position of authority, but whose bad back and long hours have led, among other things, to pain pill addiction. Jackie’s addiction adversely impacts her work as well as her relationship with her husband and two daughters (“About the Series,” 2011). Christina Hawthorne, an African-American chief nursing officer, juggles being pregnant from a relationship with a doctor to other challenging interrelationships with the staff (“About the Show,” 2011). Both Jackie and Christina are passionate about their work and both of their roles challenge gender and racial stereotypes, enhancing the utility of this chapter’s analysis. Historically, nurses have been women fulfilling idealized mother-like social roles, reflecting the mythical narrative of the good mother and its Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs 119 inverse, the bad mother (Finlay, 2010). This study explores the good mother/ bad mother myths in online conversations about Nurse Jackie and Haw- thoRNe through the ritualistic view of communication since, within this view, texts are logically connected with society and, therefore, meaning produced. We analyzed online discussion boards through a qualitative textual analysis to explore meanings. Throughout our analysis, we discuss the ever-apparent blurred lines between reality and fiction and how this may resonate within society to understand race and gender.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Myths are important because they interpret cultural stories and narratives. These storylines rely on archetypal figures and forms, presenting models, explanations, and elaborations on the experience of living reality (Berkowitz, 2005). Culture and history deeply impact the use of myths. A narrative’s context is oftentimes just as important as the resulting text. Thus, analyzing media representations of myth opens channels of bridging cultures across time and space (Lule, 2001). The ritualistic view of communication is firmly rooted in the belief that “documents are studied to understand culture—or the process and the array of objects, symbols, and meanings that make up social reality shared by members of a society” (Altheide, 1996). Carey (1992) identified two investigative umbrellas for cultural media studies. The first, a transmission view, is the most popular contemporary academic lens; the concept behind this view is the information that is transmitted or sent to another. Carey’s view of communication is metaphorically linked to space in the sense that scholars under this umbrella of inquiry study how messages are transported via media to different demographics residing in expansive geographies. Conversely, a ritualistic view of communication is defined by words such as “sharing . . . participation . . . association [and/or] fellowship.” In the ritualistic view, communication maintains shared beliefs within society, while the transmission view considers communication that is sent from a sender to a receiver (pp. 15–18).

RESONANT MYTH

Firmly embedded in the ritualistic view of communication is resonant myth—a conceptual framework that couples cultural resonance and myth. Resonance explains how culturally-informed interpretations transform epi- sodic events into thematic narratives via embedded meanings and undercurrents of “communication-as-culture” texts (Ettema, 2005). Language 120 LaPoe, LaPoe, Berkowitz, and Bemker emphasizes “certain facts while suppressing others” and consequently promotes “certain political and moral evaluations while hindering others”; thus, media texts “must resonate with what writers and readers take to be real and important” (Ettema, 2005, p. 2). Myth views cultural artifacts such as entertainment and online discussion boards as part of a societal narrative, a “telling of happenings” (Lule, 2001). For scholars, myth is “not a false belief” or “an untrue tale”; instead, “myth is a sacred, societal story that draws from archetypal figures and forms to offer exemplary models for human life that play crucial social roles” (Lule, 2001, p. 15). These frameworks are “patterns, motifs, and characters” woven into society’s fabric by “shared experiences”—interpretive, formulaic templates that help media and audiences tell stories (Lule, 2001). Resonant myth couples these two concepts: cultural resonance and myth. Thus, resonant myth is the idea that media and audiences, deciphering a complex reality in a ritualistic, back and forth process, use interpretative templates (myth) that resonate with the society being interpreted (resonance). Fictional narratives help define existence and symbolize interactive illus- trations of social order; television show narratives serve as key storytellers as part of culture (Berkowitz, 2005). The creators of narratives apply myth to interpret and relay occurrences—encompassing dynamic and persistent perceptions of society, reality, and the institutions that govern (Berkowitz, 2005). These fluid narrative templates that can shift meanings over time are applied repeatedly and not only reflect what values are dominant in society, but help define those values by building meaning. Myths don’t need audiences to consciously “buy-in” to a myth for it to be considered culturally resonant (Nikitina, 2012). Resonant myth’s storytelling relies on archetypal forms, such as heroes, floods, villains, plagues, patriarchs, pariahs, great mothers, tricksters, and scapegoats. These original figures all embody different traits and characteristics and each have inverses. Their patterns emerged from centuries of storytelling, reality interpretation, and shared experiences (Lule, 2001). Story plots rely on archetypes, or a sequence or combination of archetypes that form the overarching myth to tell the story while at the same time omitting other figures. Thus, analyses of what formulaic patterns narratives use provide insights into what values are perceived to be at work. Through these archetypes, myth displays resonant values and is interested in maintaining cultural order and the status quo (Gayles, 2012). Online texts are part of an associated, interactive, sharing fellowship among voluntary, deliberating contributors of society whose voices participate in creating culture. From a cultural resonance perspective, these artifacts help disentangle what values and ideologies are expressed as hegemonic. Several valuable studies that investigated cultural resonance provide insight into what Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs 121 ways traditional news media frames provide for resonance by identifying the themes of the press’ cultural repertoire (Ettema, 2005; Ferree, 2003; Schud- son, 1989; Snow & Benford, 1988). As Ettema identified, a hole in some resonance studies is that they do not incorporate audience responses—a way of gauging audience reaction to identify what frames resonated. Instead, they focus on the mediated artifacts and interpret how those frames might evoke salient values in the audience (2005). Audience reception studies have helped fill this void through a transmission view of communication (Bodroghkozy, 1992; Staiger, 2005). In this sense, this study is exploratory in nature by incorporating an audience that identifies itself as intimately associated with the context of the show. Discussions that connect with or refute the myths expressed in the shows are invaluable in our understanding of media’s role in constructing reality for society.

History of Embedding Meanings: Gender and Race Gender stereotypes construct a social hierarchy, where men are established as the dominant power (Jost & Kay, 2005). Masculinity is the desired image, anything less is perceived as inferior. Thus, while most people contain images of women that may be seen as favorable (helpful, nurturing, kind, gentle, warm, and empathetic), these positive perceptions are inversely related to benevolent sexism (Jost & Kay, 2005). Women are typically stereotyped as warm (or communal) and competent (agentic). She can be one or the other, but not both. If she is communal, then she is less agentic; if she is agentic, then she is seen as less communal. In other words, if a woman is good at her job, she is a bad mother. If she is a good mother, she is not good at her job—if she is permitted by a patriarchal society to have one. The bottom line is that women can play only one role: loving mother or successful breadwinner, but not both. These perceptions buttress a system of gender inequality (Jost & Kay, 2005) and are further fortified by double binds (Jamieson, 1995). Double binds oversimplify extremely complex and nuanced social phenomena and occur when a group, composed of at least one victim, repeats an experience where two “primary negative injunctions” conflict (Jamieson, 1995). These are subsequently enforced by cultural punishments inescapable by the victim (Jamieson, 1995). Historically, the symbolic system of race and gender hierarchies permeated the nurse image with a variety of archetypes. In the 1940s, children grew up reading the Cherry Ames mystery books. Cherry Ames, a white nurse with “red cheeks,” was a healer and mystery solver. Across the series, Cherry developed as an individual within the profession from an eighteen-year-old nursing student to an Army nurse to the chief of nursing (Finnan, 2013). 122 LaPoe, LaPoe, Berkowitz, and Bemker

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the series Julia appeared on-air. Julia was an African-American woman whose husband was a pilot killed in Vietnam. This television show was said to be one of the first to place an African Ameri- can in a lead, non-stereotypical role (Weiner, 1992). Analysis of audience reception to Julia indicated diverse reactions, from contentious to flattering (Bodroghkozy, 1992). Media images, both fictional and nonfictional, serve as a structure of knowledge that provides an ordered world for society (Mulgan, 1994). Fictional images of nurses, such as the representations in shows like Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe, evoke social perceptions and create a symbolic system that illuminates what it means to be a female nurse in a patriarchal society (Kalisch & Kalisch, 1983). Kalisch and Kalisch (1983) note the gen- esis of the first symbolic representation of the nurse—the “Angel of Mercy.” Charles Dickens initiated the emblematic form of the nurse with Satry Gamp in Martin Chuzzlewit. This “alcoholic hag . . . embodied the nurses of the day who lived and worked in appalling surroundings” (Kalisch & Kalisch, 1983, p. 6). The nurse was viewed as a revolting, uneducated, lower class, domestic servant. This image transformed in the 1850s when William How- ard Russell captured the nonfictional accounts of Florence Nightingale in the London Times. Nightingale’s representation in the media drastically altered the course of female service delegitimization and opened the doors for the “Angel of Mercy.” This emergent archetype, a morally pure, independent, merciful, hero masked female independence through a traditional view of women at the time. Following World War I, two nursing images emerged. Those included the “Girl Friday” who was “a reliable working woman whose career lasts only until her wedding day” and the “Heroine,” the public image of the nurse elevated to savior (Kalisch & Kalisch, 1983). These archetypes deciphered a woman’s position in society—transforming one dependent on a man for identity to a hero. The “Heroine” image represented nurses as nearly perfect professionals, independent from men (unlike “Girl Friday”), yet still human- istic and competent. This shifting archetype continued after the 1940s with the emergence of the “good mother” media construction (Kalisch & Kalisch, 1983). “By the end of the 1940s, most female heroines in the mass media were again happy housewives. Epitomizing society’s belief that women functioned best as sweethearts, sirens, or wives” (Kalisch & Kalisch, 1983, p. 15). This media image reinforced the gender stereotype of women as communal; their identity was defined by their dependence on man and duty to family. The good/bad mother myth, ranging from Mother Teresa to the drunken hag, is critical to this study. The good mother myth offers models of virtue Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs 123 and warmth; they are communal figures dedicated to preserving family. The “Good Mother” is perfect and sets unattainable standards for women. She possesses deeply embedded knowledge regarding child rearing, perhaps because of hormonal instincts (Caplan, 2013). Maternal qualities are espoused as the good mother’s cornerstone quality; she symbolizes comfort and protection; “she nurses, nurtures, and nourishes” (Lule, 2001). The good mother does not hesitate to sacrifice for others or for the greater good. In fact, the good mother actively chooses to do so because her position has become a societal norm; it is her lot in life (Caplan, 2013). The bad mother myth serves as a model that reinforces a system that marginalizes women. The bad mother appears directly in conflict and is an inverse of the good mother. The bad mother rejects maternal qualities; she does not comfort or protect. The bad mother lacks a nurturing essence and refuses to sacrifice for others. Instead, she is symbolized as selfish and cannot raise emotionally stable children unassisted (Lule, 2001). She is a bad mother because she lacks the hormonal instinct the good mother inherently possesses. Therefore, she is considered at fault for the negative aspects of her family’s life—a phenomenon called “mother blaming” (Caplan, 2013). The narrative of competent women lacking in their nurturing “duties” constructs a social order where women are placed in a double bind. Neither the good mother nor the bad mother can win. The good mother is subjected to society’s norms while the bad mother is a failure and an outcast. She is always at fault for her family’s downfalls. While material racial conditions in the United States have improved since slavery, and even since the 1960s, “racial identity remains an important component of social appraisal, and this continues to disadvantage Blacks while benefiting Whites” (Entman & Rojecki, 2001). As Campbell, LeDuff, Jenkins, & Brown (2012) note people of color are almost never portrayed the same as those who are white, with nonwhites often constructed as inferior, inhuman, and threatening. Fictional images of African American women historically relied on variations of the “Mammy” (Bogle, 1988). When African Americans were not portrayed as servants or as threats to society, they were still evaluated through a white lens of conquest or salvation (Pieterse, 1995). These formulaic images of African Americans (such as the Sambo, the Coon, the Rastus, the Uncle Tom, and the Mammy) contributed to white hegemony (Pieterse, 1995). Constructing the image of African Americans and women in the mind of audiences is a vital function of media since ideologies of race and gender are elaborated as cultural artifacts (Entman & Rojecki, 2001). This study is interested in examining how these race and gender images were negotiated online by real-life nurses who watched the fictional 124 LaPoe, LaPoe, Berkowitz, and Bemker television shows HawthoRNe and Nurse Jackie. More formally, this study seeks to answer the following research questions:

RQ1: In what ways do online discussion reinforce the prescribed images permeated by the good mother/bad mother myth? RQ2: What does the resonance of stereotypes imply about gender and race relations in society?

METHOD

This study conducted a qualitative thematic analysis of nurse website articles and online comments that were attached to stories related to two of television’s medical dramas—Nurse Jackie, which ran from 2009 to 2015, and HawthoRNe, which ran from 2009 to 2011. The goal of qualitative research is to understand the process and character of social life and to arrive at some sort of meaning about it (Altheide, 1996). The qualitative researcher analyzes information through content and experience rather than specific numeric quantification. Even though qualitative, for clarification, the authors calculated general demographic user frequency to assist the reader. The researchers collected the sample from July to September 2010 and analyzed 302 web comments. Users can post more than one comment so the researchers went back and noted individual users among the 302 comments; there were a total of 216 unique identified users and 8 anonymous comments. The analysis included 36 online nursing websites related to the two dramas. The researchers found these sites by using the search engine Google and by consulting a director of an online nursing school department to find out where her students go to discuss nursing issues. A user does not have to be a nurse to comment on these sites. These sites function much like the comment section of news stories that readers may participate in online. There is a trust that those posting are representing themselves authentically. This study was specifically interested in the views of those who go to professional nursing websites, as many appeared to have knowledge about this profession. Nursing experts/enthusiasts were specifically of interest to the viewers because they are educated in the area of nursing and are assumed to be more able to gauge the realism that these two programs project about this profession. As researchers reviewed the comments with the help of an online university nursing director, it was often apparent by language as to who had worked in the profession and who had not. Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe are appropriate to compare as cable networks characterized both of these medical shows as comedy dramas (Shales, 2009). Even though Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe were both on cable, Nurse Jackie Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs 125 was on Showtime, a premium pay cable channel, while HawthoRNe was on TNT, a non-premium cable channel. This means to watch Nurse Jackie, viewers had to pay an additional fee to access Showtime (Gorman, 2012). Borrowing from Antony and Thomas (2010) this study analyzed comments connected to website stories and blogs because these individuals choose to voluntarily engage in the discourse. While not a representative sample, these participants can provide insight into some social beliefs regarding mediated representations of race and gender. Given that this study is concerned with cultural resonance, this approach is justified.

ANALYSIS

As suspected, the good/bad mother myths permeated online conversations. The nurses and online contributors raised the issues of fiction versus reality concerning the role of a nurse and their race and gender. For more than fifty years, medical shows have been popular dramas featuring nurses in an archetypal manner. Characters that appear in these programs tend to margin- alize the role of nurses (Rasmussen, 2001). Scholars have noted that nursing shows do not provide an accurate portrayal of this profession; the technical aspect of nursing is lost in the emotional role of these caretakers. Archetypal nurse characters can be found going back to the nineteenth century—from the comedic to saint-like to even boyish nurse (Rasmussen, 2001).

Real-World Nursing Even though Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe are fictional nursing portrayals, these shows generated discussion from real-life nurses about the professional errors and fallacy that these narratives promoted. One respondent, referencing Nurse Jackie, acknowledged that while a great deal was relatively close to reality, some aspects were exaggerated for entertainment purposes:

Come on . . . it’s a freaking TV show. I’m a [nurse], ten years of experience, and to be honest, all of the RN’s that I know have lots in common with the character [Jackie]. However, the majority of [them] don’t access their drugs at work! Lol. (Anonymous A, 2009)

Another commenter warned that some frightening incidents do happen as a nurse, as shown on the TV shows: “I’ve got some awesome stories, but they’d scare the shit out of people and no one would ever trust a doctor again” (Kangofu, 2009). Other responses declared that the shows were not even remotely close to representing the reality of a nurse’s life. One person wrote, “OMG, it’s 126 LaPoe, LaPoe, Berkowitz, and Bemker fucking television. It’s about one nurse, it’s not a documentary about the nursing profession.” Another said, “if someone wanted to write a tv show that reflected what nurses do every day it wouldn’t get past ‘oh but that would be boring, NEVERMIND [sic]’” (The_Dah, 2009). Some nurses, offended by the notion that their profession was “boring,” objected, but did acknowledge the shows were not factual, “I’m a . . . nurse and hardly think what goes on in their daily life is ‘boring.’ But I guess 24-week-old, under 1 lb preemies requiring constant respiratory, nutritional, and pharmaceutical monitoring . . . is boring [sic]” (Lissalyn, 2009). As responders debated online about the fictional and factual aspects, some responses vented an overall frustration at the lack of respect for the nursing industry and for the image of the nurse:

Nurse Jackie has set the image of the nursing profession back 50 years. It isn’t a decent TV show! I’ve been a BSN and Master’s prepared nurse and Master’s prepared Nurse practitioner for too many years to condone the portrayal of any nurse as a drug addicted adulterous “professional” Would you want “Nurse Jackie” taking care of your or a member of your family? I wouldn’t! (Knauff, 2009)

Online discussants seemed frustrated about the image that Nurse Jackie depicted about nursing and its overall profession:

I truly don’t like how they are portraying nurses in this show. We are the most trusted profession and we should be concerned how we are being portrayed. Sure there are those who have life issues but you can find them in all professions. I don’t think it will keep people from becoming nurses if that’s truly their calling. (TammyRN, 2009)

Discussants explained they felt that Nurse Jackie portrayed the image of the nurse in a manner that has previously sold in society—reinforcing negative stereotypes of nursing.

Better than porn? You bet! Playing to other stereotypes? Unfortunately, yes. Nurses are iconic in this society and rarely viewed in a realistic way, mostly existing as flawed bimbos. I am so over it. (Lewese, August 5, 2009)

Nurse Jackie as “Bad Mother” The labels of Jackie that commenters used, such as “flawed bimbo,” “drug addicted adulterous ‘professional,’” and “bitch,” fortify an impression of female nurses as bad mothers. Jackie is not necessarily sexualized as nursing images of the past, but instead is demeaned based on her gender and behavior. Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs 127

She is either a “flawed bimbo” or a “sexy nurse.” She is not framed as nurturing or maternal, but she is framed, for the most part, as a skilled nurse. Jackie, while personally flawed in several ways, is usually quite competent at her job, sometimes better than most doctors. This bad mother symbolizes the double bind women face in American society. Nurse Jackie, the bad mother, symbolizes the plight of working women. She can either be a nurturing, good mother but without any competence outside the home, or she can be exceed- ingly proficient in the workplace but failing as an individual at home:

No, this show will not discourage others from seeking a career in nursing. If anything, it will encourage drug users and other loosely morale persons to enter the field. After 28 years in the field, it took this show to make me realize how much of my time I wasted on doing an excellent job for those persons in my care. I thought maintaining life and dignity for every human was important, but now I know getting high, getting laid, and being a b*tch is what it takes to do the job. (Anonymous B, 2009)

This good mother/bad mother dichotomy transitioned to a gender issue. One writer said, “The men I’ve known who become RN’s (and usually snag better jobs than their female peers even when they’re job hoppers) are the ones most likely to be pill-poppers” (Jude, 2009). The response continued, suggesting that male RNs are more likely to be “drug thieves” and that “the Nurse Jackie series seems part of the same cultural disinformation” that continues to provide stereotypical images of women who can’t manage careers and home life simultaneously. Another response concluded, “If television did a documentary show about nursing, perhaps you would be happy but you would also be the only one watching” (MW, 2009). The responses acknowledged that these misrepresentations have “bigger effects on the perceptions” of nurses and women than authentic experiences.

HawthoRNe as “Good Mother” On the other end of the debate is the show HawthoRNe that, while frequently cited as a poorly produced show, is more closely aligned with the good mother myth. While HawthoRNe is cited as not factual either, responses at least seemed relieved, a little, that female nurses were not represented negatively. “The problem with Hawthorne . . . is that the writing is bad, the plot is bad and that makes for bad acting,” the respondent wrote. She or he continued to note, “I’m not even taking into account the fact that the nursing CEO runs from floor to floor . . . and the medical conditions . . . are completely laugh- able,” but “Nurse Jackie is a better written, better acted show but it por- trays nursing in a very poor light between the sex and the drug addictions” 128 LaPoe, LaPoe, Berkowitz, and Bemker

(Paramedinurse, 2009). In other words, good mothers don’t make for good television, but they do produce less negative images of women.

Double Bind and Myth: HawthoRNe versus Nurse Jackie Regarding the second research question, which is concerned with unpacking the implications of the crafting of the good mother/bad mother myth online, the resonance of these myths in the online discussions reinforced societal double binds. Recall the conceptual framework and the construct of the double bind that asserts women can either be communal or agentic, but not both. HawthoRNe, the good mother, is considered relatively dull and not worth watching; Jackie, the bad mother, is entertaining but provides a distorted image of nurses and women as flawed individuals who attempt to mask their true female identity with pacifying drugs in an effort to appease concerns that she might not be competent enough to be a nurse. The resonance of these myths fortify literature on double binds; the good mother is nurturing and an authentically “good” person, but incapable of doing her job; the bad mother is flawed personally (drugs and infidelity) but is competent at her profession. However, the resonance of these myths illustrates the state of race relations. Jada Pinkett Smith, the lead role in HawthoRNe, at the time was “only the third Black woman to headline her own television drama” and Eddie Falco, Nurse Jackie, is white (Smith, 2009). Since then, Kerry Washington joined Smith in her show Scandal, but the lack of African- American women in lead television roles is painfully obvious. Washington is considered “the first African American female lead in a network drama in almost 40 years,” following Teresa Graves in Get Christie Love! in 1974 (Vega, 2013, para. 3). Meagan Good joined Washington in 2013 when she landed the lead role in NBC’s Deception, but her spotlight was brief as the show was cancelled after the first season due to low ratings (“Deception Cancelled,” 2013, para. 2). This fact, that the good mother is Black and the bad mother is white, led the online debates to question what would happen if the roles were reversed, if the good mother was white and the bad mother was Black. One nursing site wrote:

If “HawthoRNe” starred a white actress, it would be just another in the latest trend of women-centric TV shows. . . . It would be a whole other story however if “Nurse Jackie” were black. Every black organization from the NAACP on down would be writing, emailing, twittering and facebooking TNT to protest the depiction of a black nurse who snorts ground up pain meds, flushes patient’s ears down the toilet and forges organ donor cards for dead people. Boycotts would be called, sponsors would be pilloried and the black blogosphere would flock to their keyboards en masse. . . . To be perfectly honest I’d probably be Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs 129

one of them. . . . Because if a black “Nurse Jackie” existed alongside a Nurse “HawthoRNe” starring . . . Smith, it wouldn’t be nearly offensive as if the only leading black woman was the morally flawed [Jackie] [sic]. (Smith, 2009)

Historically, in the United States, Black women are placed at the bottom of the social hierarchy (Locke, 1990). Online discussants argued that placing Black women in a role that would not only denigrate women, but also Black women, would not be tolerated by audiences. The incorporation of drug use, a crime, is especially illuminating in this case because this has historically been one mediated image that has been extremely divisive in society (Entman & Rojecki, 2001; Swain, 2006). Drug use is an issue that adversely impacts the Black community (Swain, 2006), but the mediated representations of the issue foster racial resentment (Entman & Rojecki, 2001). Drug use is an issue in other communities; however, it dispro- portionately affects the Black community (Swain, 2006). Black drug use, historically, became an overemphasized, naturalized trait of African Americans (Wilson et al., 2012). While this issue hurts this community more than most, media coverage of this group’s issue is overwhelmingly negative—always portraying them as a “problem” to be dealt with (Pieterse, 1995). Media representations of Blacks’ drug use engender and fortify a racial stereotype of Blacks as lazy, drug addicts accepting government handouts (Entman & Rojecki, 2001). Illustrating the underlying meaning of this adversity, one response read:

You are so right. If the roles were reversed racially, people would raise hell and Atlantis. Folks are already angry again over black in America. The day we have so many positive examples of blackness promoted in media that the unsavory ones don’t sting will be the day we’ve arrived at MLK’s dream and people are judged by what they say and do separate from race [sic]. (Adams, 2009)

Clearly, the shows’ lead characters resonate racially with audience members. Entman and Rojecki (2001) posited that for society to move away from racial conflict, that the discourse surrounding race issues needed to evolve past allegations of either racist or not racist. Instead, they offered a continuum with racist at one extreme and racial comity at the other, with several other categories in the middle, including ambivalence (where most Americans reside). Entman and Rojecki (2001) contend that the majority of Americans do not dwell, either positively or negatively on race, they are relatively ambivalent, and this doesn’t necessarily make them racist. The large ambivalent cohort is triggered toward one end of the spectrum by, in part, mediated myths of race, such as Black female nurses who use drugs or are portrayed as good mothers. 130 LaPoe, LaPoe, Berkowitz, and Bemker

CONCLUSION

Specifically, this study sought to explore how audience reactions to Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe from within the nursing community were but- tressed with the good mother/bad mother myths and how the expression of these myths resonate with the state of gender and race relations in society. The analysis found three main points. First, many discussions began by debating the factual and/or fictional nature of the television shows. It appears that there was no consensus in this aspect. Some responders clearly said the shows were not factual, but that they were not meant to be factual. Other comments, however, said that some aspects of the shows represented the nursing experience relatively well for a fictional show not predicated on reflecting reality. The second finding of this study was that respondents were disturbed by the images of these women as nurses, whether Black or white. Although HawthoRNe was labeled the good mother, she did not make for entertaining television. Jackie, in contrast, was seen as the bad mother and, though quite entertaining, her drug use resonated with the socially constructed desire for women to mask their true identities in order to appease concerns about their competency. A third finding was that the resonance of the good mother/bad mother myths in these discussions embodied racial discourse, further perpetuated by raising a hypothetical scenario where Jackie was Black instead of white. The consensus in those discussions was that the role switch would evoke a sizable amount of discontent in society by reinforcing previously established negative stereotypes of the Black community as drug addicts. Future studies of this sort could incorporate analyses of both the mediated texts and the audience-based texts, exploring how interconnected themes reacted in terms of myth and resonance. Future studies could also include online discussions not connected with nursing websites; it is highly unlikely that only nurses watched programs like Nurse Jackie or HawthoRNe and that only nurses have opinions about these type of shows. Regardless of these potential shortcomings, we hope this study provides intuitive assistance for future explorations of cultural resonance and myth by incorporating online discussions.

NOTE

1. First two authors contributed equally. Gender and Racial Real-life Discourse Around Fictional Programs 131

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Chapter 7

History and an International Community Perspective “An Afternoon with Signor Lynch:” Roi Ottley’s World War II Frames Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard

The phone in Roi Ottley’s hotel room rang around six o’clock at dawn in Rome, Italy. He answered a British voice asking if he was “going on that thing this morning” (Ottley, 1951, p. 134). Moments later, after hastily dress- ing himself and grabbing his typewriter, the journalist boarded a plane bound for Milan. Upon arrival, Ottley began searching for Benito Mussolini’s remains and was “given the exhilarating feeling of being something special” as countless Italians dashed out of their homes and cafés to catch a glimpse of the African-American reporter, probably the only Black they had seen not dressed in military attire, according to Ottley (p. 138). The “fabulous” feeling quickly subsided as a mob turned the corner, rush- ing toward Ottley. “The very sight of hundreds of white people seemingly gone crazy had set into motion the racial reflexes to fight, to flee, to seek refuge” (Ottley, 1951, pp. 138–139). Ottley compared the experience to bread on butter, noting that bread is to butter what fanatical whites are to a lynching of a Black person born and raised in America. The journalist held his ground and soon realized as they passed by that they were not after him. They were hunting fascists. Ottley watched as they chased one aboard a moving street- car. They ordered the driver to stop the car and forced the suspected fascist into the street where they began to beat him. The accused unleashed a club-like weapon from under his coat and ran like an “animal at bay” (Ottley, 1951, p. 139). To this, the mob raised rifles and began shooting until the man “plunged into the gutter. . . . This was a lynching” (p. 140). Ottley continued following the lynch mob until they eventually came to a place where thousands stood, women with babies, old men and

137 138 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard women, and children, “faces . . . taut, cold and hard” (p. 144). They stared at the beam of a “rust-streaked gasoline station” that had names decorated on it with Black paint. “Mussolini, Petacci, Starace, Serbine, Terussi, Bar- racu, Gelomini and Pavolini, marking the spots where each had hung” (pp. 144–45). Ottley could not help but think back to the United States where occurrences like these were commonplace in some areas, with an African American instead of an Italian dictator on the end of the rope. “Today the people of Milan laughed—a long, bitter laughter that will echo down the cor- ridors of history as a day of lynching” (p. 146). Ottley, an influential African-American journalist and author who worked for the Black press, as well as for traditional media during a time when few Blacks were doing so, stepped over “bare, beaten, butchered” corpses throughout the day. He was on assignment to examine other cultures abroad. That account of “An Afternoon with Signor Lynch,” as Ottley titled it in his book No Green Pastures, symbolizes his mission and stories abroad. He witnessed this “lynching” during World War II as a reporter for PM, the left-leaning newspaper owned, managed, and intended for whites, and the Pittsburgh Courier, an influential Black weekly newspaper. Capitalizing on his stature as an awarding-winning author, he had persuaded the powers- that-be at PM and its companion publication, Liberty Magazine, to send him overseas as a war correspondent. Ralph Ingersoll was the publisher of both publications who desired a new type of newspaper that resembled magazines. In fact, PM was so liberal that, according to Paul Milkman, it may not be appropriate to label it a mainstream newspaper at all (Milkman, 1997). This chapter explores how a Black man reported for two vastly different press organs. The white press’ reported mission was to report news as objec- tively as possible; the Black press’ primary function was one of advocacy that served, spoke, and fought “for the Black minority” (Wolseley, 1971). Histori- cally, there was not unanimity in how the Black press should accomplish this advocacy goal. Some, like Booker T. Washington, called for a more implicit approach; others, like W. E. B. Du Bois, called for a more explicit, protest- oriented tone (Wolseley, 1971; Brooks, 1959; Senna, 1993; Washburn, 2006; Broussard, 2013). Following World War I, the Black press became more explicit in its advocacy role, continuing until after the Civil Rights era; World War II is often referred to as the peak of Black press advocacy and protest (Wolseley, 1971; Brooks, 1959; Senna, 1993; Washburn, 2006; Broussard, 2013). It is in that context, a period characterized by a Black press intensely demanding equality, this chapter explores how Ottley worked for two press organs with separate missions. Was he a reporter first and then a Black man? Or was he able to be both, a Black man advocating for Black issue saliency while adhering to traditional press routines and rituals? Such an examination provides insights History and an International Community Perspective 139 into media and society during a critical period of a nation engaged in a war for freedom abroad and at home during and after World War II.

HISTORICAL AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

From 1944 to 1947, as a reporter for Liberty Magazine, PM, and the Pitts- burgh Courier at different times, and as one of more than two dozen African- American war reporters covering World War II, Ottley traveled to Britain, France, Italy, Germany, the Middle East, and Africa. Prior to that, Ottley gained a reputation as an astute journalist while working first as a reporter and a columnist before eventually becoming editor of the New York Amster- dam News where he began his career in 1932. When he left the newspaper to pursue a career as an author, he became a contributing writer for such white publications as the New York Times, Collier’s, and the Chicago Daily Tribune (Ottley, 2012). Ottley was born on August 2, 1906, in Harlem to Jerome Peter and Beatrice Brisbane Ottley, immigrants from Grenada, who provided a comfortable life for their three children. Ottley attended public schools in New York City and established himself as an athlete—participating in basketball, baseball, and track. He set several state sprinting records in high school and earned a track scholarship to St. Bonaventure University, a small Catholic university in western New York. He enrolled in 1926, becoming one of the first Afri- can Americans to attend the institution (Ottley, 2012). After two years, he transferred to the University of Michigan to pursue a degree in journalism (Ottley, 2012). While he didn’t find racism at St. Bonaventure, he experienced it at his new school, which banned him from participating in debate and drama, activities he engaged in at St. Bonaventure. After only one year at the University of Michigan, Ottley returned to New York City and briefly attended St. John’s University and Columbia University before beginning his career as a journalist for the New York Amsterdam News in 1932 (Ottley, 2012). Ottley’s first book, New World A-Coming: Inside Black America, was published in 1943. He was, initially, unable to find a publisher, but with race relations at a boiling point, especially concerning Blacks’ roles and experiences in the war, white Americans became more interested in hearing what Blacks had to say and understanding their condition (Senna, 1993). In 1943 alone, race riots occurred in Detroit, Los Angeles, Beaumont, and Mobile. Ottley had a lot to say, and the work gained him national acclaim (Senna, 1993). His publisher, Houghton Mifflin, gave him its Life in America Prize. Adaptations of vignettes from the book ran on radio and earned Ottley a Pea- body Award in 1945 (Senna, 1993). 140 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard

In 1944, Ottley secured a commission as a captain in the U.S. Army that enabled him to travel to Europe and cover World War II for PM—becoming the first African-American foreign reporter to cover the war for a white newspaper (Ottley, 2012). He also filed stories for the Pittsburgh Courier from February 17, 1945 to February 15, 1947. Little is known in academia, in traditional media history, or in contemporary society regarding Ottley’s career and especially his foreign correspondence during this time. His diary, edited by Mark A. Huddle and published in 2011, begins to address the invisibility by providing an overview of the correspondent’s career and publishing a small sampling of the articles he wrote while covering the war. This chapter contributes an examination of the tones and perspectives of Ottley’s work during World War II. Some might question what examinations of narratives in the Black press can tell us that the same inquiries about white newspapers cannot. Main- stream press, news institutions owned by whites and intended for whites, include communication that is not encapsulated by ethnic media (Dates & Barlow, 1993). This distinction is important because “racial images in the [white-owned and controlled] media are infused with color-coded positive and negative moralistic features. Once these symbols become familiar and accepted, they fuel misperceptions and perpetuate misunderstandings among the races” (p. 4). A central motivation for the Black press’ formation was to correct misinformation, fill holes by providing visibility, and become a voice to the oppressed and ignored (Dates & Barlow, 1993; Dolan, Sonnett, & Johnson, 2009; Broussard, 2004). Advocacy was another primary Black press function. John Russworm and Samuel Cornish captured this mission on March 16, 1827, in the first issue of Freedom’s Journal, the first Black newspaper. They wrote on the front page, “to plead our cause.” According to Senna (1993):

At first glance newspaper customers simply would have noted that one more paper was competing for their attention, bought their regular newspapers, and forgotten the new paper. But a curious browser of Freedom’s Journal would have noted that the paper was strikingly unlike any other on the newsstands. The browser would have been startled to see that news in Freedom’s Journal was all about African-American life, and that announcements and advertisements were directed to Blacks. Above all, the editorial on the front page indicated in the boldest tone that the publisher and editor of the paper were Black, defiantly and proudly Black. Freedom’s Journal was the first collective effort of a Black community to protest racism on a frequent basis. (pp. 13–14)

The Black press, embodying a racial advocacy function, instructed “readers about the necessity for civil rights” (Dolan et al., 2009, p. 34). These roles are not as prevalent in a white press espousing adherence to objectivity. History and an International Community Perspective 141

Ottley’s unique and relatively new, at that point, position begs the question: how did he, a Black man, cover a war with racial undercurrents for two press organs with different tasks during a time of intense social upheaval? Part of the answer to such a question resides in news frames, a principal concept for examining media content useful in the mass communication field because it investigates the presentation and interpretation of news (Entman & Rojecki, 2001). Media frames “select some aspects of a perceived reality and make them more salient in a communicating text in such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/ or treatment recommendation” (Entman, 1993, p. 41). The locus of this chapter is concerned with not only observing narratives, but also interpreting them, particularly the “culturally familiar symbols” (Ent- man, 1993, p. 53). Important in investigating frames and saliency is noting what themes journalists omit in crafting a narrative because these exclusions infer what is perceived to be less important (Entman & Rojecki, 2001). This point cannot be overemphasized because a goal of the Black press was to shed light on issues pertinent to the African-American community either ignored by white newspapers or framed negatively. At this time, the Black press frequently used an explicit and protest-oriented approach. Explicit does not mean advocating for violence, but, a forceful tone demanding equality instead of requesting it. One might expect Ottley to use a forceful, explicit, protest-oriented tone in his articles for the Black press. But, what about the white press? Did he use the same type of language? What were the similarities and/or differences? This qualitative narrative analysis seeks to answer these questions. We first learned about Ottley through his autobiography of Robert S. Abbott, founder of the Chicago Defender. A review of Ottley’s personal file in the newspaper’s offices in Chicago indicated that in addition to becoming an editor of the newspaper, he was a correspondent for PM, Liberty Maga- zine, and the Pittsburgh Courier during World War II (Chicago Defender, 2009). An internet search of the Roi Ottley Collection on the St. Bonaventure University website provided portions of Ottley’s biography and a chronol- ogy indicating he began writing for PM and the Pittsburgh Courier in 1944. An examination of microfilm issues of PM obtained via interlibrary loan yielded fourteen articles Ottley wrote from September 1944 to January 1945, the period the Ottley Collection indicated he was most productive for that newspaper. A scan of the Pittsburgh Courier via microfilm followed. Because scant knowledge exists in journalism literature regarding Ottley’s work for the Courier, every issue between January 1944 and August 1947 was examined. No articles identified Ottley as the author in 1944; his first byline was Feb- ruary 17, 1945, and his last was February 15, 1947, resulting in 59 articles. 142 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard

To establish the final date of Ottley’s correspondence for the newspaper, the search continued through the end of August 1947. Because no articles appeared after the February date, it was plausible to discontinue the search. A narrative analysis of the 89 articles was used because this study was interested in how Ottley framed his observations abroad, how he told the stories he witnessed, and how he assumed, if at all, a different posture in his writings for a white newspaper and two African-American publications. We borrowed from researcher Durham (1998) to examine the narrative structures in the articles for emerging, recurrent frames. With narrative analysis, “the basic strategies of a[n] . . . analysis—selection, emphasis, and exclusion—enable the [scholar] to grapple with the ‘complexity and contradictoriness of media artifacts’” (Lentz, 1991, p. 12). To examine the narrative frames emerging in the selected coverage, the authors applied Foss’s (1996) criteria of analysis that asks “what is the preferred reading of the artifact? What does the artifact ask the audience to believe, understand, feel, or think about” (p. 32). We looked for the rhetorical strategies in the article that “might advance one ideology over another” (Durham, 1998, p. 107).

OTTLEY’S EMERGENT FRAMES

Findings indicate that Ottley traveled from New York to Europe between May and July 1, 1944, beginning a journey that would cover about 60,000 miles (Huddle, 2011). The Pittsburgh Courier explained in an Editor’s Note in February 1945 that Ottley was a reporter for PM and Liberty who had been “on a roving assignment overseas, with special emphasis on the vital problems of the war and peace roles of colored peoples everywhere” (Pitts- burgh Courier, 1945, p. 1). He would now also write “exclusive articles EACH WEEK” for the Courier, and those pieces would be both “informative and interpretive” (Pittsburgh Courier, 1945, p. 1). How did he accomplish this task? Ottley covered and interpreted the roles of nonwhites with a variety of frames that included colonialism, relations among troops, relations among civilians and troops, successes of Black troops and civilians, financial situations, interracial relationships, caste systems, and historical precedent.

PM Colonialism was the emergent frame Ottley used for PM. A September 12, 1944, article described an interview with Secretary of State Oliver Stanley, administrator of Britain’s colonial policies. While in a room waiting for Stanley, Ottley noticed the Crown Colonist, “the unofficial mouthpiece of the Colonial Office” (Ottley, September 12, 1944, p. 9). On the front page, History and an International Community Perspective 143

Ottley noticed a blurb stating, “If the economic and cultural condition of these British Colonial territories as they now are, are compared which what they were fifty years ago. I am convinced that the contrast would furnish material for an illustrious chapter in the history of civilization” (p. 9). Exhibiting his skepticism, Ottley wrote “I began to wonder whether the natives would agree” (p. 9). During the interview, Stanley told him that Britain planned to continue a progressive institutional stance toward its colonies, once the war was over, primarily through raising education standards and providing opportunities for self-development and expression. Ottley pressed him and asked if that meant the colonies would be elevated to full citizen status, as the “Soviet regime” had already done with some of its colonies. Stanley refused to answer directly but commented that the elevation of the Soviet colonists had little to do with government policy; most of their elevation, according to Stanley, had to do with the colonists taking the initiative and solving their own problems. The next day, Ottley’s dispatch reported on discussions between the Brit- ish and India’s Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi regarding India’s liberation. Ottley wrote, “There were no reservations as to India’s freedom” (Ottley, September 13, 1944, p. 6). The British believed they could not just leave the country because of fear that India would devolve into chaos because it was comprised of so many different religious and ethnic groups. The British official implied that people of color could not be trusted to govern themselves; they needed a white power structure’s assistance. “Belgium to Rule Congo without Major Changes” headlined a piece in which Ottley wrote that the United States had liberated a country that colo- nized parts of Africa, but, after attaining freedom from its Nazi oppressors, Belgium was unwilling to grant its African colonies the same type of freedom. “Plans are speedily being polished up for the triumphal re-entry into Belgium,” the correspondent wrote, “but no one apparently is talking about a new deal for the Congo” (Ottley, September 14, 1944, p. 11). When Ottley asked about Belgium’s inflexibility, Pierre Ryekmans, governor general of the Congo for Belgium, replied that “the Africans needed ‘white trustee- ship,’” and that before Belgium interceded forty years prior, Africans were killing themselves and were cannibals (p. 11). Like Britain, Ottley reported, France planned to “reform” its colonial policies but had no intentions of liberating them from outside rule, like the United States had done by driving German forces out of France. Ottley interviewed Rene Pleven, French minister of colonies, who said that France would elevate Blacks in those colonies to equal status as French citizens (unlike Britain), offering them education and health care (Ottley, October 9, 1944). The new policy would also allow the colonies to elect their own 144 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard constituent assemblies that would “form a federation adapted to the principles of French political philosophy” (p. 5). On September 14, Ottley wrote that big business dominated Holland and colonial policy (Ottley, September 14, 1944, p. 8). Ottley also framed his stories with tales of Black troops’ successes and the relations between Black and white troops and civilians. The correspondent found instances of French Blacks helping the Nazi resistance. Reporting from Paris, Ottley shared a story Rene Maran, a noted Black French author, told him about the Nazis’ attempt to dominate people of color in France. Ottley wrote:

Soon after the Nazi occupation of Paris, a deputy commandant visited Maran and informed him that he had been selected to write an anti-American tract, which was to be built around the quote “brutal treatment” of Negroes in the U.S.A. Maran flatly refused. “Sir,” he said, “your fuehrer has described me as half ape. I am declared incapable of thinking or writing. I beg to be excused.” (Ottley, October 5, 1944, p. 6)

The Nazis didn’t accept this refusal lightly—ordering Maran to write the document or go to a concentration camp. Maran eventually relented and wrote a 5,000-word piece that highlighted the achievements of Blacks in America. One story revealed that Black troops were just as competent as their white comrades. Writing much the same as other Black war correspondents for the Black press during this time, Ottley offered:

The American Negro is being praised lavishly here as a man and a soldier. . . . The recent flow of compliments emanating from official sources is perhaps a reflection of the concern created by racial conflict here and its possible aftermath in the post-war period. . . . Much of the praise of Negro troops, therefore, may be interpreted as a reminder to Americans of their own Negro problem. (Ottley, September 20, 1944, p. 6)

Ottley quoted the minister of information, who, in an “exclusive interview,” praised African American troops for not only their ability in combat, but their skill at seamlessly adjusting to Europe’s diverse customs and climate. The use of official sources to buttress the claim of Black achievement was a mainstay of Black war reporting aimed at countering misrepresentations of troop performance. Five days later, Ottley reported that Black troops were in charge of supply lines (Ottley, September 25, 1944, p. 7). Despite the Black troops’ considerable contributions, Ottley reported that, in some cases, interactions between white and Black troops were far from ideal. One dispatch explained, “It’s not a pretty story, but it must be History and an International Community Perspective 145 told” (Ottley, September 21, 1944, p. 10). With words that undoubtedly conjured up images at home, Ottley began the piece, “the noose of prejudice is slowly tightening around the necks of American Negro soldiers, and tending to cut off their recreation and associations with the British people” (p. 10). Consequently, “Relations between Negro and white troops have reached grave proportions” (p. 10). Again, providing facts that attested to the credibility of the story, Ottley said his conclusion was based on his survey of British men and women, “in all walks of life,” and white and Black American officers and soldiers (p. 10). Ottley observed that Black soldiers quickly befriended British citizens because of their racial tolerance and related the story of a Black soldier who had a date with a white British girl. While she was waiting for him, two white American soldiers flirted with her. The Black soldier came, interrupted their advances, locked hands with the girl, and began escorting her down the street. “One of the white soldiers snatched off his hat and flung it to the ground. He broke into tears and kept repeating over and over, ‘I’m from Georgia and I just can’t take that’” (p. 10). Stories along those lines continued. Some white officers, upon stationing their division near a town, visited the finest cafés and restaurants and ordered the owners not to serve Black soldiers, and to reserve their tables for white soldiers only. A Black Red Cross worker was alone in a club one night when five white soldiers came in and threatened to assault the owner of the club for allowing the worker into her establishment. A white officer came in and made them stop prior to the beating. When the Red Cross worker tried to press charges, though, she was ignored and quickly dismissed, according to Ottley (Ottley, September 22, 1944, p. 7). Race-focused stories were not the only narratives Ottley told for PM. Occa- sionally, he wrote war stories, reminding readers of the adversary that the United States faced in Europe. Ottley described German brutality, explaining that he was not trying to turn “the stomachs of squeamish people,” but to provide evidence “for those who still believe that stories of Nazi tortures are pure fiction” (Ottley, October 1, 1944, p. 8). Ottley described Ville de Montfort, “a sleepy-looking town of small merchants” that resisted the Germans (p. 8). German troops invaded the town two days before U.S. soldiers entered Paris. In Ottley’s words, the Germans publicly tortured seven “hostages,” including two women and an elderly man, before slaughtering four other men after residents did not tell them about American troop locations (p. 8). Headlines on other stories Ottley wrote for PM told readers of the German’s fear of Russia, the reaction of Cherbourg to American occupation, and the workings of the French justice system during the war (Ottley, August 7, 1944, p. 10; Ottley, August 14, 1944, p. 5; Ottley, October 15, 1944, p. 5). 146 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard

Pittsburgh Courier Ottley’s Courier frames included relations between soldiers and civilians, the success of Black soldiers, a culture’s racial ideology, colonialism, interracial relationships, and financial situations. Ottley’s first article adhered to a major paradigm of the Black press, highlighting the accomplishments of Black soldiers and relations between Black and white troops. This was the most robust narrative in Ottley’s work for the Pittsburgh Courier. The first sentence of the dispatch called a leader of a Nazi resistance movement in Cherbourg, Antoine Montbrun, “a legend in France” and “one of the most inspiring figures” Ottley encountered in Europe (Ottley, February 17, 1945, p. 1). Another story on troops appeared on February 24, 1945, and related that officials told Ottley they rejected racism among their troops. The correspondent reported that the “legendary French liberalism [had] survived Nazi occupation” (Ottley, February 24, 1945, p. 1). He continued:

To an extent equaled by few cities in Europe, Paris is the nearest approach to civilized living for the Black man. For the negro unquestionably has personal dignity, freedom of movement, and may marry whom he chooses. . . . Liberal- ism in racial matters are so deeply embedded in the Frenchman’s thinking, that not even the Nazis could budge it perceptibly (p. 1).

Ottley followed observations of relative racial comity with a “but” statement. In this instance, he wrote, “but by no means is everything in Paris home cooking” (p. 4). The culprit disrupting harmony? According to Ottley, “the chief cry is economic” (p. 4). Ottley pointed out that some jobs in France were unavailable to Blacks; some were reserved for whites. The majority of Blacks in the country belonged to the working class, according to some people Ottley interviewed. Though, as he observed, this axiom was not monolithic. Some Blacks were factory managers, some owned and managed beauty salons, some physicians were Black, and some Black lawyers represented whites. The reporter then observed that the bulk of American Blacks living in France were entertainers, eventually concluding, “I saw few Negroes doing the menial work of Paris” (p. 4). Reporting on the war from Italy, Ottley noted that Italian Blacks were used in menial positions, not permitted to engage in combat on the frontline of the Nazi resistance. They were put in charge of caring for mules that hauled artil- lery and ammunition through the mountains. Although the military finally had integrated some units, the correspondent found that no Blacks were commis- sioned officers, adding, “They were victims of a situation reminiscent of what happened to some American Negro divisions” (Ottley, May 19, 1945, p. 5). History and an International Community Perspective 147

The journalist covered Black soldiers’ accomplishments, noting that Pope Pius XII praised the conduct of the fighting men. Ottley was the first African- American foreign journalist the Pope granted an interview. “His holiness told me that Negro troops had made a wonderful impression upon him” (Ottley, May 19, 1945, p. 1). While some whites criticized Black troops, the Pope attributed a considerable amount of the Allies’ success to the contribution and sacrifices Black troops made. When Ottley asked Under Secretary of War Patterson the same type of questions he asked the Pope, the American leader refused to comment (p. 5). In a September 28, 1946, article that originated from Athens, Ottley indicated that his guide told him that the political “power struggle” in Greece between “the Anglo Saxon ‘bloc’ and Soviet Russia” was rooted in racial discrimination learned from white American soldiers (Ottley, September 28, 1946, p. 13). A few weeks later, Ottley observed the French’s “love of Negro music and of Negro women” (Ottley, October 12, 1946, p. 2). He first described how the Nazis outlawed jazz during the occupation, but the French embraced the music quickly after the war. “In their minds, the Negro is clearly identified as the originator and interpreter of this music” (p. 2). Ottley observed the different cultures’ overarching racial ideologies. For instance, from Italy, he reported that Italians showed signs of African influence and were preoccupied with “exotic” skin color (Ottley, March 3, 1945, p. 1). Ottley highlighted a unique situation in Italy; the white Ital- ians could easily be mistaken for Blacks. A Black U.S. soldier told Ottley, “You know, these people are the first I’ve met since I came overseas who seem like our kind of folks” (p. 1). Ottley noted in the article that he had seen only one fair-skinned blonde lady in southern Italy. Despite similar appearances, Italian society made clear caste distinctions. “They resent the frequent insinuations of white American soldiers that they ‘look like Negroes’” (p. 4). Ottley continued, “It is not uncommon to hear fascist-minded Italians speak of the ‘purity of the Italian race’” (p. 4). Ottley observed that African ancestry was widespread in southern Italy, though only eleven “full-blooded” Blacks live in Rome. “They are transplanted Ethiopi- ans” (p. 4). In that same article, Ottley described an encounter that occurred when he visited a church at the Vatican Treasury. He found a painting that the Vatican claimed to be the only authentic representation of Saints Peter and Paul; in this particular painting, the saints were Black. Ottley asked the guide about this and was told that over time, the color of the two men had faded into black; the artist did not intend for the saints to be Black, but white. Ottley resisted the explanation, stating that he had never heard of a painting fading black. The guide dismissed Ottley’s objection and moved on. 148 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard

In Cairo, Egypt, Ottley reported that “the race issue is before the Middle East and Africa to ponder” (Ottley, May 26, 1945, p. 1). Reporting from Jerusalem on June 30, 1945, Ottley maintained that the Jewish state tackled its own race- related issues regarding the Yemenites (Ottley, June 30, 1945, p. 9). On Decem- ber 8, 1945, Ottley reported that Israel’s neighbors were fearful of Jewish immigration (Ottley, December 8, 1945, p. 22). A month later, he described an encounter with a Jewish woman who was more concerned about his freedom in the United States than her freedom (Ottley, January 4, 1946, p. 3). In a December 22, 1945, story titled, “Same Nazis Who Killed Jews Now Taught to Hate Negroes,” Ottley described a scene at Heidelberg, Ger- many’s leading university. Karl Heinrich Bauer, the new director, announced that German professors would remove any educational material that dis- criminated based on race or religion. Most of the German students applauded. But one, “still in Wermach boots and uniform,” asked the correspondents covering the event “‘don’t you in the U.S.A. believe in the superiority of the white race’” (Ottley, December 22, 1945, p. 13). Ottley wrote:

The fact is, the American race issue has come into dramatic focus on German soil. It was inevitable that it would, and today it is seriously reducing efforts at re-educating the Germans. This has dangerous implications for the future world. At a moment when the Americans are sitting in judgment of Nazi war criminals, the white American soldier is attempting to slander and discredit the Negro soldier. Most German people are bewildered. “How wrong were the Nazis in their hatred of the Jew,” they ask, “when white Americans encourage us to hate the Blacks—their comrades in arms?” (p. 13)

Although not as prominent as in PM, colonialism was another frame that Ottley highlighted, showing how colonial policies negatively impacted people of color abroad. The first article of this nature appeared on September 18, 1945, and was titled “‘British Must Go if India is to Have Unity’—Gandhi” (Ottley, September 18, 1945, p. 1). Four months later, Ottley revisited the topic, reporting that England actively sought to censor his stories in an effort to prevent him from reporting on the hardships that Britain’s colonial policies had on India (Ottley, January 19, 1946, p. 1). Three months after that, Ottley wrote that Egypt was on the brink of “social upheaval” in response to British and U.S. control of Egypt (Ottley, March 30, 1946, p. 3). On July 6, 1946, Ottley reported on growing anti-British sentiment in the Mid- dle East. He wrote that the primary source of this anger stemmed from Britain’s “imperialistic” nature that resulted from the West’s hunger for oil. Ottley wrote:

For the stakes are high—oil—and so plentiful as to shame the combined output of Texas and California. Beirut, Lebanon, is an example of life characteristic of this important part of the world . . . But the city is a carpetbaggers dream . . . History and an International Community Perspective 149

Every Arab is fiercely anti-British. But he doubts the ability of Arab politicians to throw the British out. (Ottley, July 6, 1946, p. 11)

Ottley’s final two frames, interracial relationships and financial situations, consisted of one story each. On March 31, 1945, Ottley began a story, “The first Negro to take a broom in hand and sweep the streets in London was mobbed. . . . Yet, the British Broadcasting Company. . . has a Negro woman as a director of radio programs with her own white staff” (Ottley, March 31, 1945, p. 5). Her employment in a very prominent position never elicited one adversarial remark, according to the correspondent. Yet, he noted the vast majority of Blacks in England were denied even menial jobs; most were either seamen or entertainers. Regarding interracial relationships, on March 24, 1945, Ottley wrote, “interracial mixing common in France during Nazi rule” (Ottley, March 24, 1945, p. 1). The correspondent reported that upon meeting German prisoners, they seemed relatively normal, not the Hitler-infused radicals that he had expected. In fact, they “resembled closely that of our own Fascist-minded Americans” (p. 1). Moreover, when Paris was occupied by Nazis, it was not uncommon, according to sources, to see German officers enter cafés with one or more women of color—not the sort of thing one might expect to see from soldiers advancing Hitler’s “master race” philosophy (p. 1). Occasionally, Ottley focused on war battles, with race as the subtext. For instance, in “Ethiopia Avenged!,” Ottley wrote, “The rapist of Ethiopia . . . Benito Mussolini . . . died at the hands of furious Partisans” (Ottley, May 12, 1945, p. 5). The people of Italy rejoiced, and Ottley, perceived as the only Black man in Milan, celebrated with them as Italians walked up to him, patted his hair, and said, “nice Black man” (p. 5). Upon learning that Ottley was from America, they took him to Mussolini’s remains. “They kept saying: ‘Il Duce, he no good for your people’” (p. 5). While Ottley drank wine with the Italians, they asked if he knew Joe Louis and Jack Johnson, but never talked of the hardships in Ethiopia.1

Comparing PM and the Courier We asked if Ottley’s narratives in PM, a white newspaper, were different from or similar to his coverage in the Pittsburgh Courier, a prestigious Black newspaper. Although PM was a daily and the Courier was a weekly, Ottley’s 59 stories for the latter eclipsed his 16 for the former. His correspondence in PM was similar to articles in the Pittsburg Courier in that he reported through a racial lens. It is not surprising that Ottley was able to cover the war with such a lens given that PM was a liberal-leaning newspaper. It should be noted that aside from Ottley’s coverage in PM, only two stories appeared in PM that covered race during the time frame examined for this study; race was not a focus of even PM’s coverage. 150 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard

Based on his correspondence, it is unclear whether Ottley finished his PM assignment and returned to the United States, only to go back overseas and begin filing stories for the Courier. The weekly noted Ottley would file exclusive stories. While these articles focused primarily on race, the one story he simultaneously wrote for PM did not focus on race, appearing on July 15, 1945, and covering social unrest in Greece under fascism. The newspaper stories cited show that in terms of subject matter and tone, Ottley’s PM articles closely resembled his Pittsburgh Courier reporting. The emergent frame for PM was colonialism and its impact on darker peoples, while his emergent frames for the Pittsburgh Courier was success of Black troops and relations between troops and civilians. A common thread between Ottley’s white and Black press coverage was the fact that he interviewed white officials. This was a relatively unique accomplishment given the time period—an era of segregation that saw Blacks fighting for the right to fight for their country and Black editors fighting for their reporters to cover the war. For instance, the September 12, 1944, article for PM asked a white British official tough questions. The February 24, 1945, Pittsburgh Courier story on the interview of the French minister of colonies continued the correspondent’s approach to news gathering. In this story, the official told Ottley that any government employee who was found “guilty of racial discrimination” was immediately fired (Ottley, February 24, 1945, p. 1). Ottley concluded race relations abroad were better than in the United States, but not perfect. This highlights another important aspect of Ottley’s work. As a foreign reporter in Europe during World War II, he almost never wrote about the actual battles or conflicts for either of the publications. Nearly every story focused on some aspect of race. For instance, the September 20, 1944, PM report on an “exclusive interview” with the British minister of information did not give the outcomes of battles, but Brendan Bracken’s high praise for African American troops. On March 17, 1945, Ottley used a similar narrative device. The article described how African-American troops not only helped in “Holland’s liberation” but also found that the appreciative Dutch were very friendly to Black troops. Ottley could have focused on tales of battle heroism during Hol- land’s liberation; instead, the aim of the story centered on relations between African-American troops and the native Dutch population.

INTERPRETING OTTLEY’S REPORTING

Ottley relates a story in his book, No Green Pastures, that aids in interpreting his reportage. Mary Ann, an African American who taught German to elementary students in a town in Iowa, applied and was accepted to the History and an International Community Perspective 151

University of Berlin to study advanced German in 1938. As she left, many of her confidants questioned her sanity, saying “Germany! Child, are you crazy!” or “You can’t go there. Don’t you know what they’re doing to the Jews!” and “Something dreadful is sure to happen” (Ottley, 1951, p. 139). Once aboard a ship bound for Germany, she was assured that Hitler was a good man and that the atrocities Americans had heard about him were propaganda disseminated “by the Jews who want to control Germany” (Ottley, 1951, p. 139). After the ship arrived in Europe, Mary Ann traveled to Berlin by train. During the first night aboard the train, a German soldier rushed into her room, his swastika catching her eye. As he chuckled and sat across from her, the conductor came to collect tickets. When he returned the soldier’s ticket, he said, “A Black girl as a traveling companion. Sleep well,” laughing hysteri- cally as he did (Ottley, 1951, p. 148). Of course, Mary Ann could not sleep that night and “her panic only subsided when dawn broke” (Ottley, 1951, p. 148). Her experiences did not go any better once she was at the University of Berlin. “The university’s registrar could not conceal his amazement when he saw her standing before his desk” (Ottley, 1951, p. 149). Many instances made her weary, such as heated discussions in class where other students asked viciously if American universities, such as Vanderbilt, would allow her to attend. A group of teenage boys called her “‘Neger,’ and ‘Schwarze,’ and ‘Black ape.’” Mary Ann traveled to Reichsportsfield and was proud to find Jesse Owens’ name engraved on a bronze tablet that listed the 11th Olympics’ winners. When she boarded the train to return, a group of German youths yelled slurs at her and tried to knock her from the train. She quickly packed her bags and returned home. Ottley asserted that Mary Ann’s experience was due to Hitler’s control of Germany and not symbolic of German society as a whole. He observed that, historically, Germans had little contact with Blacks and that Germany never had Black slaves. “Negro immigrants are almost unknown in Germany” (Ottley, 1951, p. 151). He wrote that Hitler had learned how to run the Jew- ish concentration camps by sending operatives to the American South to observe the effectiveness of Jim Crow. “Negroes uniformly declare the Ger- man people freer of color prejudice than the French” (Ottley, 1951, p. 156). Mary Ann’s story did not appear in Ottley’s work for PM or the Pittsburgh Courier. It could have, though, given the nature of those two newspapers. Why did Ottley wait many years later to write that story in a book? As an employee of both the white and Black press, how could he have framed this story where a country, the United States, was imposing egalitarian policies upon a nation, Germany, that Ottley later wrote was much freer racially than the United States? As a Black journalist for the Black press during a period of explicit protest, advocating against racism in the United States should have easily lent 152 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard itself to this narrative. But, as a journalist, Ottley needed concrete facts and testimony to further illustrate this reality. For his correspondence for PM and the Pittsburgh Courier, Ottley reserved opinions, for the most part, on issues such as this because, arguably, he didn’t have enough facts and/or sources to report it. In order to interpret Ottley’s narratives, it is important to remember the conceptual and historical framework. First, a narrative frame makes a central, organizing idea more salient, thus omitting other perspectives and promoting one ideology as more important than others (Entman, 1993; Entman & Rojecki, 2001). The Black press’ primary function was to act as an advocate for the Black minority. Though there was not, historically, a monolithic agreement on how to accomplish this goal, at the time that Ottley wrote, the prevailing view was that an explicit tone was best suited for achieving the Black press’ goals; in fact, this period was the peak of Black press explicit protest. With that in mind, what do these narrative frames infer about Ottley’s observations abroad? Ottley reported that, overall, race relations were better abroad than they were in the United States, but by no means were they perfect. Some scholars might view Ottley’s correspondence for the Pittsburgh Courier and PM as less explicit than expected. This is somewhat surprising given that PM was a more liberal-leaning newspaper. It appears that at a time when he was writing for the Black press and the white press, Ottley’s frames were constructed more by a journalist concerned with accuracy than with advocacy; yet, he still highlighted issues resonant to people of color. Moreover, his correspondence for PM and the Pittsburgh Courier was not totally devoid of advocacy. Analyses that use frames as their theoretical frameworks are frequently more informed by what a journalist omits than what is written. Regardless of the less explicit tone, he indirectly fought for the Black minority by casting a visible light on issues that affected them and had been invisible previously. He indirectly advocated for racial equality by focusing on the racial undercurrents of a global conflict, an aspect that the mainstream press of the time ignored, for the most part. What is absent from Ottley’s work is the type of reporting that most journalists were doing for the white press at the time—journalism that some historians equate with propaganda aimed at raising support for the United States in the war by praising the country, its allies, and rarely, if ever, questioning their motives or methods (Sloan, 2011). Ottley began his international race relations examination in Europe and went as far as Cairo. In every instance, he found a governing system that offered more freedom to people of color than the governing system of the United States. But, that did not mean that the societies he examined were free of racial tension. Whether it was economic restrictions in England and History and an International Community Perspective 153

France, caste distinctions in Italy, Hitler-driven racial brutality in Germany, or American-educated racial oppression in the Middle East and Africa, Ottley found that racism was under every layer of freedom.

CONCLUSION

How did Ottley write for the Black press—an institution founded to voice advocacy and provide more nuanced race discussions—while at the relatively same time writing for a white newspaper and adhering to that press’ norms that were designed to eliminate journalistic opinion? Based on how he chose to frame World War II, Ottley achieved a creative balance. He advocated for the African-American minority through a less explicit tone with language that could fit into a white newspaper’s parameters. Ottley framed his war coverage as one with serious racial undercurrents. Rarely focusing on the gory details of battle, Ottley saw race intertwined with every story he observed. He highlighted foreign hypocrisy that denounced Germany’s oppressive regime, begged for liberation, but failed to liberate all of their citizens once America and the Allies defeated the Axis powers. Stopping short of explicitly showing America’s own hypocrisy, he provided a metaphor for his readers to interpret America’s culture at the preface of the civil rights movement.

NOTE

1. For more examples of Pittsburgh Courier articles written by Ottley, see: Roi Ottley, “African Believe Their Culture Can Teach World Peaceful Living,” Pitts- burgh Courier, March 10, 1945, 5; Roi Ottley, “Colored Peoples Once Dominated Art and Science,” Pittsburgh Courier, August 11, 1945, 11; Roi Ottley, “Red Skeleton Deplores Race Bias in Service,” Pittsburgh Courier, May 12, 1945, 13; Roi Ottley, “Patterson in Italy Dodges Queries on 92nd Division,” Pittsburgh Courier, May 19, 1945, 5; Roi Ottley, “List Victims of Mine Blast,” Pittsburgh Courier, August 4, 1945, 1; Roi Ottley, “Civil Rights Violations in Greece Akin to Demands of U.S. Minorities,” Pittsburgh Courier, August 18, 1945, 9; Roi Ottley, “Bilbo Embarrasses White GIs in Italy,” Pittsburgh Courier, August 18, 1945, 1; Roi Ottley, “Bilbo Far Ahead in Public Enemy Poll,” Pittsburgh Courier, September 1, 1945, 9; Roi Ottley, “Tan Yanks Shared Their Food and Won Hearts of German Girls,” Pittsburgh Cou- rier, December 8, 1945, 13; Roi Ottley, “GI Protests Seen Cause for Alarm to Impe- rialists,” Pittsburgh Courier, February 2, 1946, 2; Roi Ottley, “Thousands of Tan GIs Never Will See Their English-Born Children,” Pittsburgh Courier, March 2, 1946, 2; Roi Ottley, “Life is Hell for Natives in South Africa,” Pittsburgh Courier, April 13, 1946, 21. 154 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Jinx C. Broussard

REFERENCES

Broussard, J. (2004). Giving Voice to the Voiceless: Four Pioneering Black Women Journalists. New York: Routledge. Chicago Defender Offices. Undated obituary, Roi Ottley Personnel Folder. Chicago, Illinois. Accessed July 4, 2009. Dates, J., & Barlow, W. (1993). Split Image: African Americans in the Mass Media. Washington, DC: Howard University Press. Dolan, M., J. Sonnett, & Johnson, K. (2009). “Katrina Coverage in Black Newspapers Critical of Government, Mainstream Media.” Newspaper Research Journal 30 (1): 34–42. Durham, F. D. (1998). “New Frames as Social Narratives: TWA Flight 800.” Journal of Communication 48 (4): 100–117. Entman, R. (1993). “Toward Clarification of a Fractured Paradigm.” Journal of Com- munication 43: 41–53. Foss, S. (1996). Rhetorical Criticism: Exploration and Practice. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press. Gamson, W. A., & Lasch, K. E. (1983). “The Political Culture of Social Welfare Policy.” In Evaluating the Welfare State: Social and Political Perspectives, edited by S. Spiro & E. Yuchtman-Yaar. New York: Academic Press. Gitlin, T. (1980). The Whole World is Watching: Mass Media in the Making and Unmaking of the New Left. Berkeley: University of California Press. Goffman, E. (1974). Frame Analysis: An Essay on the Organization of Experience. New York: Harper & Row. Huddle, M. (2011). Roi Ottley’s World War II: The Lost Diary of an African Ameri- can Journalist. Lawrence: University of Kansas Press. Lentz, R. (1991). “The Search for Strategic Silence: Discovering What the Journalist Leaves Out.” American Journalism 8 (3): 10–26. Mastin, T., Campo, S., & Frazer, M. (2005). “In Black and White: Coverage of U.S. Slave Reparations by the Mainstream and Black Press.” Howard Journal of Com- munication 16: 201–223. Miller, A., & Dabbuous, Y. (2009). “Same Disasters, Different Stories: How Three Arab Newspapers Framed the Asian Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina.” Journalism Studies (In Print). Neuman, J. (2009). “The Famous Forgotten.” American Legacy Fall: 62–70. Ottley, R. (1944, September 12). “Progressive trend seen in British colonial policy.” PM, 9. Ottley, R. (1944, September 13). “Cripps gives official view on India issue.” PM, 6. Ottley, R. (1944, September 14). “Belgium to rule Congo without major changes.” PM, 11. Ottley, R. (1944, September 20). “Negroes win praise from British chief.” PM, 6. Ottley, R. (1944, September 21). “Ottley reports on negro-white troops relations.” PM, 10. Ottley, R. (1944, October 1). “German tank crew tortured and killed French villag- ers—here is the documented story.” PM, 8. History and an International Community Perspective 155

Ottley, R. (1944, October 3). “Famed French writer took Nazis for a ride.” PM, 6. Ottley, R. (1944, October 9). “France plans sweeping reforms for colonies.” PM, 5. Ottley, R. (1944, February 17). “French hero aided American invaders.” Pittsburgh Courier, 1. Ottley, R. (1945, February 24). “Frenchman refused to accept Nazi’s prejudice against negroes.” Pittsburgh Courier, 1, 4. Ottley, R. (1945, March 3). “Italians show signs of African influence.” Pittsburgh Courier, 1, 4. Ottley, R. (1945, March 17). “Negro GIs learn from Dutch that all whites are not hostile.” Pittsburgh Courier, 5. Ottley, R. (1945, March 31). “England: A paradox of job opportunities.” Pittsburgh Courier, 5. Ottley, R. (1945, April 28). “Natives trained for war take care of mules in mixed unit.” Pittsburgh Courier, 5. Ottley, R. (1945, May 12). “Ethopia avenged!” Pittsburgh Courier, 5. Ottley, R. (1945, May 19). “Pope praises conduct of our troops in Italy.” Pittsburgh Courier, 1, 5. Ottley, R. (1945, May 26). “Negroes protest reaches Cairo.” Pittsburgh Courier, 1. Ottley, R. (1945, June 30). “Yemenites find freedom in holy city.”Pittsburgh Cou- rier, 9. Ottley, R. (1945, September 18). “‘British must go if India is to have unity’—Gan- dhi.” Pittsburgh Courier, 1. Ottley, R. (1945, December 8). “Arabs fear Jewish immigration as vanguard of western capital.” Pittsburgh Courier, 22. Ottley, R. (1945, December 22). “Same Nazis who killed Jews now taught to hate negroes.” Pittsburgh Courier, 13. Ottley, R. (1946, January 4). “‘America is Free!’ she says . . . then asks: ‘you are free . . . is it not true?’” Pittsburgh Courier, 3. Ottley, R. (1946, January 19). “British censor rules support imperialism.” Pittsburgh Courier, 1. Ottley, R. (1946, March 30). “Egypt seeks end of British control and U.S. occupation.” Pittsburgh Courier, 3. Ottley, R. (1946, September 28). “The Greeks got a taste of U.S. race prejudice from white GIs.” Pittsburgh Courier, 13. Ottley, R. (1951, October 27). “More subtle than in U.S., Jim Crow’s in Europe, too.” Chicago Defender, 1. Ottley, R. (1951, November 3). “There’s a Harlem in England, too.” Chicago Defender, 1, 2. Ottley, R. (1951, November 19). “Concerning his majesty’s Blacks.” Chicago Defender, 1. Ottley, R. (1951, December 29). “Installment X.” Chicago Defender, 15. Ottley, R. (1951). No Green Pastures. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. Tuchman, G. (1978). Making News: A Study in the Construction of Reality. New York: The Free Press.

Chapter 8

The Black Press Tweets Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Katie Lever

On January 20, 2014, the Washington Post published an article online, “Black Twitter: A Virtual Community Ready to Hashtag Out a Response to Cultural Issues,” about a concentration of young African-American internet users creating an informal society via Twitter. The cultural refuge was referenced as an “extension of Black urban experiences.” This chapter examines Black press Twitter content. The Black press was founded to disseminate African- American views, fight for equality, and is typically owned and managed by African Americans. On March 16, 1827, Samuel E. Cornish and John B. Russwurm founded Freedom’s Journal, the United States’ first African- American owned and operated newspaper intended for African Americans as a way of sharing Black experiences. Their four-column paper was used to address social issues tied to race such as slavery, voting rights, and coloni- zation. Although it featured current events and local, regional, and national news, the Freedom’s Journal’s main goal was to use the pen as a microphone for social injustice and to bring about social change. Many diverse newspapers followed Freedom’s Journal, from Frederick Douglass’s Morning Star to today’s Chicago Tribune, and they continue adapting to new technological platforms. Hard-copy Black newspapers exist today, but they also exist on social media. The original founders of diverse media could not have imagined the resources journalists have today. Increas- ingly, Twitter is being used as a digital Freedom’s Journal. When teaching media diversity, one effective tool for showing students ways of covering nonwhite issues and communities is through discussions on diverse media. These discussions have potential for students to ask if the Black press is still needed given societal improvements for African Americans since the Black press’ founding. The follow-up question frequently is: Are the Black press still fulfilling their role? This chapter seeks to answer those questions

157 158 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Katie Lever by exploring how the Black press used Twitter to continue the responsibility of offering Black perspectives and more accurate representations of their communities.

LITERATURE REVIEW

The first African American newspaper, Freedom’s Journal, concisely summarized the outlet’s mission in its first issue in 1827 with the statement, “to plead our cause” (Wolseley, 1971). The Black press is not a news institution restrained by norms and routines designed and governed by white elites, but a news institution replacing racial holes of misinformation disseminated by the mainstream press with accurate and human portrayals of their communities (Cook, 2006; Tuchman, 1972; Broussard, 2014). Three criteria are usually met for a newspaper to be part of the Black press:

1. The publication must be owned and operated by African Americans. 2. It must be intended for an African-American audience. 3. It must be a champion of causes for the African-American minority (Wol- seley, 1971; Broussard, 2004; Brooks, 1959; Detweiler, 1922; Farrar, 1998; Hutton, 1993; Pride & Wilson, 1997; Senna, 2006).

If the press is not part of ethnic media, it is part of the mainstream media, regardless of political, partisan, or ideological leanings. The Black press has “historically filled an advocacy role of providing a place for Black voices and perspectives not represented in the mainstream media” (Mastin, Campo, & Frazer, 2005, p. 203). The Black press, embodying a racial advocacy function, also instructs “readers about the necessity for civil rights” (Dolan, Sonnett, & Johnson, 2009, p. 34). Black press advocacy and civil rights education attributes are not as prevalent in mainstream press abstaining from advocacy. The espoused commitment to impartiality unknowingly results in a press system subservient to prevailing white ideologies (Cook, 2005). W. E. B. Du Bois (1944) argued a Black press was necessary because Afri- can Americans had a dual-identity incomprehensible to whites. “It is a pecu- liar sensation this double consciousness, this sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of others, of measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity” (p. 16). The double consciousness Du Bois described helps explain the Black press. Blacks were (in no intended order) Americans and African Americans in a white America. Mainstream media, owned, controlled, and distributed by and for whites, were not fully equipped to interpret this reality and provide proper perspective. The Black Press Tweets 159

The inability to accurately portray diverse communities is problematic for a pluralistic society because media are an important place where the elaborations and formations of racial ideologies occur (Hall, 1996). If, as Du Bois argued, mainstream newspapers are ill-equipped to fully understand what it is like to be Black in the United States, discourse, devoid of the Black press, on racial ideologies would contribute to white hegemony. Because the Black press isn’t as constricted by self-imposed strategic rituals of non-advocacy, encompassing racial equality and educational responsibilities instead, one can expect coverage of race to be much different in Black newspapers compared to mainstream newspapers. The modest research (in terms of quantity) conducted on this subject indicates that Black newspapers and mainstream newspapers interpret issues relative to the Black community differently (Broussard, 2013). Research demonstrated distinct differences in the coverage of identical issues impacting the Black community (Dolan et al., 2009). For instance, on the subject of reparations, mainstream newspapers offered two viewpoints, those of advocates and opponents; helpful deliberations on the subject were absent (Mastin et al., 2005). Mainstream newspapers interpreted the issue of reparations in an “us versus them” style, positioning African Americans as “other.” Black newspapers, on the other hand, offered only one viewpoint— advocacy (Mastin et al., 2005). In Supreme Court decisions salient to the Black community, the Black press mediated the cases and rulings differently than the mainstream press (Clawson, Strine, & Waltenburg, 2003). “As an advocate for Black interests, the Black press focused on the implications of the ruling for minorities . . . and emphasized pro-affirmative action sources” (Clawson et al., 2003, p. 794). While the Black press’ stories also focused on the harmful impacts of some rulings, the mainstream press relied on legalistic and constitutional language that portrayed the Supreme Court as a politically neutral institution. The Black press frequently criticized justices they perceived as negatively influencing race relations, the mainstream press refrained from criticism or praise of the judges, “choosing to quote from his concurring opinion” instead (Clawson et al., 2003, p. 796). Due to dwindling resources, the modern African-American press continues to struggle and frequently reprints mainstream newspaper wire stories, unless a racial issue is involved (Washburn, 2006). One potential tool for the Black press to recapture its influence in its community is social media (Washburn, 2006; Biswas & Izard, 2010; Wilson, Guitierrez, & Chao, 2013). Ethnic media editors see digital and social media as a space for resurgence and a renewed visibility (Biswas & Izard, 2010). Because digital media are a major focus and a major goal of the Black press (Wilson et al., 2013), and because 160 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Katie Lever this is probably a historic transitional phase for the Black press, their Twitter content is the focus of this chapter. Academics, exploring the democratizing nature of the internet, vigor- ously debate the relationships between digital media and society (Shirky, 2008; Lessig, 2008; Boyd, 2008; Curran, 2005; Trammell & Keshelashvili; Miller & Reynolds, 2014). The interactions between governments, media, and public dissenting voices expressed via digital media are central to these debates (Chadwick, 2006). If dissenting deliberation contributes to a healthy democracy (Habermas, 1991) and mainstream media narrowly define issues to only two polemic perspectives due to the “strategic ritual of objectivity” (Tuchman, 1972), then the internet should provide platforms for more diverse deliberation—thus contributing to a more egalitarian society. Electronic media engenders racial solidarity through parasocial relationships, experience sharing, and symbolic representation. As Mitchell (2003) notes, “These relationships formed with media personae are constructed from the viewer’s common cultural and social patterns of relationships, which are normalized and integrated into their personal lived experiences” (p. 426). A parasocial relationship is a concept positing that media consumers construct imaginary relationships with media characters. “On an affective level, viewers can also come to feel as though they know these characters as well as they do their actual friends and neighbors” (Rosaen & Diddle, 2008, p. 146). However, parasocial relationships do not offer all the benefits of real relationships but can imitate them and compliment real relationships. People with low self-esteem benefit from having solely parasocial relationships rather than no relationships at all, and it is entirely possible for individuals to foster both parasocial and real relationships. Parasocial relationships can certainly benefit some people by offering some aspects of real relationships without the fear of rejection (Rosaen & Diddle, 2008). People tend to gravitate toward others with whom they empathize. Accord- ing to parasocial research, each individual has an ideal self who reflects his or her ideal person (Derrick, Gabriel, & Tippin 2008). Mixed research exists regarding the potential benefits and harm (such as compensating for real- life relationships and possible neuroticism, loneliness, and low self-esteem) of establishing parasocial relationships (Zillman, 2006; Derrick, Gabriel, & Hugenberg, 2007; Giles, 2002; Knowles, 2013; Tsao, 1996). One may intuitively argue that social media platforms such as Twitter would be ideal spaces for parasocial interactions to occur. Lee (2013) showed that Twitter did heighten parasocial interactivity when compared to television, but only for individuals who had high needs for cognition. In other words, people who typically enjoyed learning, arguing, and centrally processing information were more likely to form parasocial interactions via Twitter than via television. Given those insights, Black press tweets might provide a safe venue The Black Press Tweets 161 for minorities who feel threatened and outnumbered in a white-dominated mainstream media environment. With this in mind, this study examines the following questions:

RQ1: In what ways does the Black press discuss race via Twitter? RQ2: In what ways does the mainstream press discuss race via Twitter? RQ3: What are the significant differences between Black press tweets and mainstream press tweets?

METHOD

One of the more challenging aspects of this study was gathering the data, tweets, and compiling them into a format suitable for content analysis.

Data Collection and Analysis The unit of analysis for this study is a tweet gathered by a sample of African- American and mainstream newspapers’ Twitter accounts. For the time frame, we gathered the tweets on October 18, 2014. First, we identified which Afri- can-American newspapers have Twitter accounts. We started with a list of modern African-American newspapers examined in a similar study (Clawson, 2003). That list contained 22 newspapers. We manually searched the list and found 13 of those newspapers had Twitter accounts. Then, we consulted the AANP (African-American News and Periodicals) and the NNPA (National Newspapers Publishers Association) for lists of current African-American newspapers. From that list, we manually searched which newspapers had Twitter accounts. We then selected newspapers based on prominence in their region in relation to circulation, advertising revenue, staff size, and viable websites; regions included the East Coast, the Southeast, the Midwest, the Southwest, and the Northwest. The final sample of African-American newspaper Twitter accounts consists of 17. They include: The Arizona Informant, the Baltimore Afro American, the Bay State Banner, The Chicago Defender, Cincinnati and Cleveland Call and Post, The Florida Star, Los Angeles Sentinel, Pittsburgh Courier, Norfolk Journal and Guide, Philadelphia Tri- bune, The Portland Skanner, The Sacramento Observer, Tri State Defender, The Washington Informer, The Michigan Citizen, Michigan Chronicle, and New York Amsterdam News. The next step was to organize a list of corresponding mainstream newspaper Twitter accounts. We retrieved a list of the highest circulating newspapers in the country, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, and first examined the top 50 newspapers. We then attempted to match, based from that 162 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Katie Lever sample, mainstream newspapers, geographically, to the African-American newspaper sample so we could have valid comparisons. The list includes 15 mainstream newspaper Twitter accounts: the Arizona Republic, the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the Chicago Tribune, the Dallas Morning News, the Houston Chronicle, the Los Angeles Times, the Oregonian, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the St. Petersburg Times, the Times-Picayune, the Seattle Times, the Washington Post, and the Detroit Free Press. After compiling our list, we then visited the website All My Tweets. We typed in the Twitter account handle for each newspaper. The website provides all the tweets disseminated by a Twitter handle. We then copied those tweets into a word document. The process gathered 46,216 Black press tweets and 46,226 mainstream press tweets, totaling 92,442 tweets for analysis. Based on prior research on the Black press, issues salient to the Black community, and issues typically stereotyped to African Americans by the mainstream press, we coded 17 variables: race, history, gender, President Obama, community, education, crime, poverty, health care, affirmative action, economy, voting rights, civil rights, unemployment, taxes, welfare, and drugs. For race, we included tweets that mentioned the words “race” or “African-American” or “Black” (if used as a racial identifier). Our code sheet also had an “other” option for tweets not falling into at least one of those categories. Coders wrote in those tweets on the code sheet.

Intercoder Reliability One coder analyzed 10 percent of the sample and the first author coded 100 percent of the sample. Holsti’s formula is used for intercoder agreement. The overall intercoder reliability was 0.927.

FINDINGS

Research question one examines how the Black press discusses race on Twit- ter. Table 8.1 shows the top ten most prominent mentions among Black press tweets. Explicit discussions about race relations were the most tweeted topic, accounting for 11.7 percent of Black press tweets (see Table 8.1). Research question two asked in what ways mainstream news discussed race via Twitter. Table 8.2 shows the top ten most prominent topics among mainstream press tweets. Race is not among the top ten. Of the 46,226 mainstream press tweets analyzed in this sample, 292, less than 1 percent, mentioned race (see Table 8.2). Research question three asked about the difference between Black press tweets and mainstream press tweets. Table 8.3 shows the differences between The Black Press Tweets 163

Table 8.1 Top 10 Black Press Tweets Tweets % N 46,216 Race 5429 11.7 History 1379 2.9 Obama 912 1.9 Community 829 1.8 School 769 1.7 Police 631 1.4 Ferguson 608 1.3 Health Care 566 1.2 Ebola 482 1 Gender 395 0.9

Table 8.2 Top 10 Mainstream Press Tweets Tweets % N 46,226 Ebola 2258 4.9 Police 1528 3.3 Football 860 1.9 Education 728 1.6 Obama 700 1.5 Shooting 591 1.3 Sports 584 1.3 Death 512 1.1 Gender 482 1 Islam 378 0.8

Table 8.3 Test of Two Proportions for Tweets Black Press White Press Total Tweet n % n % n Ebola*** 482 1 2258 4.9 2740 Police*** 631 1.4 1528 3.3 2159 Education 769 1.7 728 1.9 1497 Obama*** 912 1.9 700 1.5 1612 Gender *** 395 0.9 482 1 877 Race*** 5429 11.7 292 0.6 5721 History*** 1379 2.9 140 0.3 1519 Total 9997 6128 16,125 Two-tailed test of two proportions ***p<.01. the 5 tweet topics both presses shared in their top ten most tweeted and between race and history. Except for education, there are significant differences in all tweet topics between the mainstream press and the Black press. 164 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Katie Lever

The Black press tweeted more about race, history, and President Obama—all three statistically significant at p<.01. The mainstream press tweeted more about Ebola, police, and gender than the Black press—all three statistically significant at p<.01 (see Table 8.3).

DISCUSSION

One can reasonably expect social media content from the Black press to challenge other hegemonic ideologies disseminated by the mainstream press. The first surprising finding was the total Black press tweets collected for this study (46,216) and the total mainstream press tweets (46,226) were comparable. The Black press uses Twitter extensively to try and disseminate its perspectives and truths. It may also be a part of the algorithm code that the All My Tweets website uses to collect tweets and limit searches to a certain number. However, when looking at the data to check for this, there is a wide range of tweets per newspaper Twitter handle. If the algorithm were designed to not exceed a certain number of tweets, one would expect each newspaper type to have identical tweet numbers. That is not the case. So, we argue, it is reasonable that the Black press is mirroring prior research stating social media as a popular space for nonwhites. When interpreting these results, we cannot ignore survey after survey indicating whites do not want to discuss race or believe race is given too much attention in cases of police brutality (Pew Research Center, 2014). It is a sad societal commentary when such a large portion of people say they are tired of hearing about race when less than 1 percent of the mainstream press (presum- ably where most would hear those discussions) tweets about race. Imagine the disdain among white Americans if mainstream press tweets about race were comparable to the Black press’ tweets about race purely from a quantitative perspective. In this regard, on Twitter, the Black press is indeed still fulfilling its role of shedding light on racial issues ignored by the mainstream press. The near nonexistence of race in mainstream press tweets suggests that the Black press is absolutely still needed to fulfill its mission. If the Black press did not exist, newspapers in America would not discuss race via Twitter. One could reasonably argue the mainstream press focuses on the issues connected to race rather than broader themes related to race and culture. The findings of this study partially support that argument. The second most tweeted topic among the mainstream press is police. Given the recent attention to police brutality, this is not entirely unsurprising. The mainstream press did substantially tweet about President Obama, education, and shootings (a form of crime)—all issues salient to Black communities. This study found no statistically significant difference between the amount of Black press tweets The Black Press Tweets 165 on education and mainstream press tweets on education. Education is a pil- lar of the civil rights movement. In this regard, the mainstream press shed the same amount of light on this subject as the Black press. Future research should compare how education was framed in the two presses. We suspect education is covered much differently and with different emphases. The Black press tweeted about President Obama significantly more than the mainstream press. In this area, the mainstream press did not shed as much light on this issue as the Black press. The mainstream press did tweet about police significantly more than the Black press. On the surface, this is a surprising finding. However, when we compare the amount of tweets that mentioned Michael Brown, the picture becomes clearer. The Black press mentioned Michael Brown with 502 tweets. The mainstream press had 209 tweets about Michael Brown. A test of two proportions shows this difference to be statistically significant at p<.01. The Black press tweeted about the individual victim more than the mainstream press while the mainstream press tweeted about the police more than the Black press. One could reasonably argue the Black press continued a strong tradition of humanizing nonwhites otherwise nonexistent in the mainstream press. We are then left wondering if Black press tweets are connecting with their desired audience. That is beyond the scope of this specific study, but we believe it is worth discussing given our knowledge of parasocial interactions and the findings of this study. Hopefully this study and discussion will inform future research to answer this question and help further parasocial interactions theory. Based on the literature on parasocial interactions and the type of tweets analyzed in this study, we argue it is quite probable that the Black press successfully uses Twitter to connect with its audience on a personal level. According to parasocial interactions, many reasons exist for people to form parasocial relationships. Although most individuals understand that parasocial relationships are not real, they can still feel very close and intimate, like a real-life relationship. Empathy is likely an important factor in forming parasocial relationships. People tend to gravitate toward others with whom they empathize (Zillman, 2006). We argue that the Black press, by tweeting more about the human aspect of the culture and history of African Americans, probably connects with their audience parasocially through empathy. Focus- ing instead on the issues, like the mainstream press, without clear explicit connections to race, would not have engaged empathy. Obviously, this needs further research to confirm but these findings do provide an excellent foundation for that future research. Parasocial relationships can also feel safer than real-life relationships because they almost completely eliminate the possibility of rejection (Derrick, Gabriel, & Hugenburg, 2007). Most people who form parasocial relationships 166 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Katie Lever do not actively seek their relationship partner, thus minimizing the fear of social rejection (Giles, 2002). Research shows that parasocial relationships can be rewarding to individuals who feel ostracized by society and these individuals are most likely to empathize with media characters with a self- ideal similar to theirs. Individuals can reap benefits from their mediated ideal selves to their individual ideal selves in their parasocial relationships. These benefits are exclusive to parasocial benefits and individuals delegitimized by society who do not benefit from real-life relationships in the same way. If, as we argue is probable given the literature and our findings, the Black press is indeed connecting with their audience in this fashion, one could argue that the Black press has begun adding a new element to its mission. While still educating, advocating, and filling holes of misinterpretation perpetuated by the mainstream press, the Black press is now also helping its audience shape and realize their identities. The closer a media character is to the individual’s ideal self, the more likely the individual is to empathize with the media character. When primed with their favorite media character, individuals felt closer to their ideal selves, and even thinking about their favorite media character made them feel closer to their ideal selves (Knowles, 2013). Parasocial relationships can provide huge benefits to individuals who are viewed and treated as inferior in society, which they wouldn’t otherwise experience in a close relationship. These findings have important implications: humans possess an innate need to belong and parasocial relationships can fulfill this need as well as real relationships because parasocial relationships offer the psychological benefits, highs, and lows of real relationships without the fear of rejection. These relationships affect individuals’ views of the world, learning habits, and self-perceptions as much as real relationships (Knowles, 2013). The benefits and desirability of parasocial relationships may motivate people to communicate online more than in person. For some, engaging in conversation is much easier online because the user can hide behind relative anonymity (Sullivan, 2002). Online communities may offer the benefits of parasocial relationships as well. The Black press’ Twitter presence might provide a safe venue for minorities who feel threatened and outnumbered in a white-dominated society. Because of the community aspect, Black press Twitter users will likely feel more open to share personal details and opinions about delicate topics such as race and police brutality. Parasocial relationships may well provide nonwhites the opportunity to amplify their voices, perspectives, and opinions in a safe, controlled environment. Given the Black press’ significant amount of tweets dedicated to discussing race and history, it is clear that space has potential for nonwhites to interact and connect with the Black press in a way that they would probably not with the mainstream press. The Black Press Tweets 167

CONCLUSION

Many scholars express hope in the democratizing nature of digital and social media. Some have even opined about the egalitarian potential of these platforms. This study contributes to those debates by showing that the Black press tweets significantly more about race, education, and President Obama than the mainstream press. It appears that in terms of how those newspapers cover race, not much has changed for the mainstream press; race is still invisible in mainstream press Twitter content. If this study had found that the mainstream press was using Twitter to discuss race at least almost com- parably to the Black press, then we could commend the mainstream press for improving its diversity efforts. With less than 1 percent of their tweets mentioning race, however, we cannot. Obviously, news outlets like the Black press are still very much needed in our pluralistic society and they are still fulfilling their roles via social media.

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Chapter 9

Online Momentum Priming in the Native American Press Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Victoria L. LaPoe

While there are several studies on stereotype priming in the media specifically about many racial and ethnic minorities, including Latinx people, Black people, immigrants as a general group, and racial and ethnic minorities in general, no studies exist of the priming effects of Native American Press stories (Saleem & Ramasubramanian, 2017; Mora, 2014 ; Valentino, Brader, & Jardina, 2013; Andersen, Brinson, & Stohl, 2012; Correa, 2010; Das, Bushman, Bezemer, Kerkhof, & Vermeulen, 2009; Mastro, 2009; Nisbet, Ostman, & Shanahan, 2009; Dixon, 2007; Dixon, 2006; Abraham & Appiah, 2006; Dixon & Maddox, 2005; Oliver, 2003). The Native American Press, founded in 1828 via the Cherokee Phoenix, advocated for communication within Native American communities to offer more accurate representations of realities than those reflected in the mainstream press and to connect Native communities (Cherokee Phoenix, 2015; Sloan & Stovall, 1993). Priming research, the concept that subtle cues in media can activate previously dormant stereotypes and dampen perceptions of people from diverse communities, focusing on ethnic media has shown stories salient to diverse communities can prime readers to view news as less credible simply because an ethnic media platform published the stories (LaPoe & Sullivan, 2016). This research builds on previous ethnic media priming research by examining how Native American stories prime readers. A 2 x 3 x 2 post-test only experiment conducted at a medium-size southeastern university examined three independent variables: newspaper type (Native American Press and mainstream press), photo gender, and photo ambience. This study explores if photo gender, if photo ambience, or simply being a story, in this case a story on Native Lives Matter, published in Native American Press, primes readers to view the story as less credible or if the story primes increases or decreases support for Native Lives Matter. This study fills a hole in literature about

171 172 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Victoria L. LaPoe priming and non-mainstream presses and gives insights into the ways that a publication’s origins can prime people to accept or reject racial stereotypes.

LITERATURE REVIEW

“The forgotten minority in police shootings” headlined a CNN story in 2017, after another deadly shooting that week, a shooting that killed a 14-year-old boy, Jason Pero, on the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chip- pewa reservation in Wisconsin. Police and family had differing accounts about Pero and what led to his death (Hansen, 2017). CNN’s 2017 story included information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention detailing that “Native Americans are killed in police encounters at a higher rate than any other racial or ethnic group.” The story went on to analyze data from the CDC.

For every 1 million Native Americans, an average of 2.9 of them died annually from 1999 to 2015 as a result of a ‘legal intervention,’ according to a CNN review of CDC data broken down by race. The vast majority of these deaths were police shootings. But a few were attributed to other causes, including manhandling. That mortality rate is 12% higher than for African-Americans and three times the rate of whites. (para. 5)

While this may have been a new story in non-Native media, a movement had already emerged connected to the Lakota People’s Law Project, called Native Lives Matter (Lakotalaw.org, 2016). At this time, The Lakota People’s Lives Project highlights that Native adolescents are 1 percent of the U.S. youth population, but represent 70 percent of the young people admit- ted to the federal bureau of prisons. Native youths also encounter two of the most severe outcomes of the juvenile justice system—out of home placement and transfer to the adult penal system. Native Americans are more likely to be victims of violent crimes perpetrated by non-Native people than any other group (Lakotalaw.org, 2016). Because discussions of police brutality have been a salient issue nationally, some may view the issues through a frame constructed by the spectrum of Black and White even though police brutality impacts many diverse communities. Chin, Schroedel, & Rowen (2016) conducted a content analysis reviewing articles about police shooting deaths. The results of their research showed only two of the 29 Native Americans killed by police during the time frame received coverage in the mainstream media outlets studied; mainstream media devoted significantly more attention to African Americans killed by Online Momentum 173 police and to Black Lives Matter protests during the time frame (Woodard, 2016). Members and supporters of the Native Lives Matter movement have pointed to the use of social media as a key venue for disseminating their messages before mainstream media curates the story (Ward & Johnson, 2015). Historically consistent, mainstream media are not typically inclusive. Mainstream press’ norms and routines, formed during a time when assimilation was the desired social model, are still not diversity-oriented (Wilson, Gutierrez, & Chao, 2013). Native media throughout history served to fill the void left by a lack of mainstream media coverage (LaPoe & LaPoe, 2017). Many Native journalists operate presses by reporting on news relevant to their communities/audiences, chronicling history connected to important issues within Indian Country, and correcting mistakes and misrepresentations in non- Native media (LaPoe & LaPoe, 2017; Murphy, 2010, p. 228). The Chero- kee Phoenix was the first regularly published Native American newspaper and it provided Cherokee Nation documented information about news and culture. A key aspect of the paper was that it focused on explaining Cherokee realities and values as the tribe opposed the U.S. government’s plan to remove Cherokee people from their homes (Murphy, 2010, pp. 229–30). Mainstream media craft perceptions of American Indians that misinterpret Native cultures and misinform outside communities (Murphy, 2010). One role of Native media is accurately covering communities and sharing these depic- tions as well as providing an outlet for tribes to acquire information related to salient issues. A study about ethnic group portrayals in primetime television showed viewing the limited and often stereotypical characterizations of race and ethnicity offered in the mainstream media influences the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of audience members, whites in particular, as well as the self-concept of ethnic minority group viewers (Tukachinsky, Mastro, & Yarchi, 2015). Stereotypes in people’s brains form many ways, including through consumption of media, personal experience, upbringing, peers, geo- graphic location, and socially constructed concepts (Berkowitz, 2011; Fiske et al., 2007). The negative stereotypes exist in the brain even if individuals don’t condone or endorse those stereotypes, frequently defined as a dormant stereotype (Gorham, 2010). According to Fryberg and Townsend (2008), misrepresentation of minority groups can be categorized as either “relative invisibility” or “absolute invisibility.” Relative invisibility refers to situations where a group lacks accurate positive portrayals and is misrepresented as a result of persistent and outdated or flawed perceptions. Absolute invisibility occurs when no social representation exists; diverse communities are left 174 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Victoria L. LaPoe with inaccurate information about possible success and community belonging (Fryberg & Townsend, 2008; Adams, Biernat, Branscombe, Crandall, & Wrightsman, 2008). This study evaluates priming in the Native American Press, the first to our knowledge to explore this area, and whether Native news activates previously dormant racial attitudes—usually triggering whites to negatively perceive individuals from diverse communities and issues salient to diverse communities (Sullivan & Arbuthnot, 2009). Priming frequently activates dormant stereotypes (Gorham, 2010). Upon seeing one of the traits in one of these stereotypes, the brain peripherally processes the rest of the information, directs it, and aligns with the stereotype, even if that stereotype is not endorsed (Gorham, 2010). According to a study measuring the effects of stereotypes on Caucasian and Native college students, views of Native people vary from completely inaccurate to a hyper-focus on social ills. This promotes a gener- alist view and ultimately leads to increased stereotyping of Native Americans (John, 2011, p. 9). Images play a key role in priming audiences. Morris (2013) tested the impact of images of various groups of people waiting in line for emergency hunger services by assigning survey participants a version of three online news articles (p. iii). One article showed two African American adults in line getting food, the next version had images of two Hispanic adults in line receiving food, and the last version had only text about the services (Morris, 2013, p. iii). All of the articles included statistics about the various ethnic groups’ use of the food bank services, but Morris found that the statistics were not enough to overcome the impact of the pictures on perceptions about what groups used the services the most (Morris, 2013, p. iii). The results showed the effects of priming varied across race.

Although there is much support for the priming effects of photographs on Caucasians’ perceptions of African Americans, Caucasians’ estimates of the percentage of African Americans served by the hunger program did not appear to be influenced by the photographs (visual primes). They consistently overes- timated the percentages regardless of the photo primes (Morris, 2013, p. 46).

However, Caucasians who saw images of Hispanics in line for the services were more likely to say a higher percentage of Hispanics receive hunger program services than those who saw the article with no picture. Morris (2013) found support for priming effects of Caucasians who saw images of Hispan- ics in line for the hunger program services were stronger, which could have been attributed to their limited exposure to many, if any, images of Hispan- ics (p. 48). The various images used in news stories certainly seem to prime viewers’ perceptions about various racial groups. Online Momentum 175

Regarding racial cues within visuals, Dixon and Dizon and Maddox’s (2005) results explored how African Americans’ skin tones affect how audiences connect them to negative stereotypes. Those with stereotypical facial features are more closely associated with stereotypical or negative evaluations. In their research about the impacts of skin tone on crime story perceptions, Dixon and Maddox’s (2005) results showed stories with an African American perpetrator who was darker skinned exaggerated the perceptions people had about the story, but this was also a trend specifically for people who viewed television heavily (p. 1564). Cues within images are often not shown just with race. When examining the representations of women in media, female staff workers were more likely than males to note men appeared more often within stories as well as photos; readers were even more likely to note a disparity, illustrating this implicit bias occurred at a gender and news routine-level (Len-Ríos, Rodgers, Thorson, & Yoon, 2005). Considering literature on the Native American Press and priming, two research questions guide this study:

RQ1: In what ways do newspaper type, photo gender, and photo darkness prime readers’ perception of credibility for a story on Native Lives Matter? RQ2: In what ways do newspaper type, photo gender, and photo darkness in a story prime readers’ support for Native Lives Matter?

METHOD

To answer our research questions, we conducted an online post-test only experiment where participants read an actual story published in an online news outlet that is by and for Native Americans and news coverage includes Native people, First Nations in Canada, and Indigenous people across the world. Participants then answered questions to measure their perceived credibility of the story and support for Native Lives Matter. We chose a post-test only design to eliminate confounding priming effects; a pre-test could have primed perceived socially desirable responses. The story, found in an actual Native American Press outlet, discussed a Navajo woman shot and killed by police, after she was suspected of shoplifting (Roetman, 2016). The story topic was appropriate because prior research on priming in the Black Press indicated priming effects were present in stories salient to Black communities (LaPoe & Sullivan, 2016). Our experiment was based on a 2 x 3 x 2 design. Newspaper type (Native American Press or non-Native Press), photo gender (photo with a male protestor or a female protestor), and photo darkness (the actual properly exposed 176 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Victoria L. LaPoe

Table 9.1 Organization of Independent Variables Actual Photo Light Photo Dark Photo Male Female Male Female Male Female Native American Press Mast 1 2 3 4 5 6 Mainstream Press Mast 7 8 9 10 11 12 photo, a lightened version of the photo, and a darkened version of the photo) served as the experimental factors; Table 9.1 shows how these three independent variables were organized (see Table 9.1) To examine the first independent variable, we used two mastheads for the story from actual newspapers. The first masthead read, “Cherokee Phoenix: America’s Leading Native American Newspaper.” The second masthead read, “Arizona Daily Sun: America’s Leading Newspaper.” We chose two actual and historically well-established newspapers because we feared fab- ricating false mastheads may introduce a confounding variable in terms of credibility. To manipulate the second independent variable, we used two photos, one per story. The first photo was of a male Native American protestor. The second photo was of a female Native American protestor. For the third independent variable, we used three versions of each photo: an actual photo, a lightened photo, and a darkened photo. We used Photoshop to lighten and darken the photos.

Sample Participants were initially recruited through a mid-size southeastern university as well as through minority education groups via e-mail. Students and professors were asked to participate. Participants were told the study was to gauge perceptions of media credibility, but the race priming facet of the study was concealed to avoid priming socially desirable responses. Researchers used the survey tool Qualtrics to randomly assign one of twelve stories and then answered questions (see Table 9.2). The first day of the experiment was the day after the 2016 presidential election, while the Dakota Pipeline protests were still taking place (Cusick, 2016). Three hundred seventy-eight participants began the experiment. Two hundred ninety-five participants completed all questions. Of the sample, 66.4 percent were female and 33.6 percent were male. The minimum age was 18, the maximum age was 67, and the mean age was 25. To measure primed perceptions of credibility and support for Native Lives Matter, participants were asked to rank on a seven-point scale agreement to a series of statements (with 3 being strongly agree, 0 being neutral, and −3 being strongly disagree). For credibility, participants ranked their agreement Online Momentum 177

Table 9.2 Participants’ Ethnicity N % White 217 73.6 Black or African American 26 8.8 Asian 10 3.4 American Indian or Alaska Native 3 1 Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander 1 0.3 Hispanic or Latino 15 5.1 Identify with multiple 5 1.7 Arab or Middle Eastern 7 2.4 Other 4 1.4 Refuse to answer 7 2.4 Total 295 100 as to whether the story was credible, trustworthy, accurate, emotional, fair, informative, biased, and believable. Participants’ responses were indexed to create a credibility scale. These measures were derived from previous research on media credibility (Beaudoin & Thorson, 2005). For support, participants were asked to rank agreement on a seven-point scale to the following statements:

• I agree with the protestors and am concerned about excessive police violence • I agree with the police and the use of force is justified • Excessive police force is a form of institutional racism • If Native Americans didn’t commit crimes, the police wouldn’t need to use force • The protests are necessary to engender positive change • Media cover the protests too much • Media don’t provide enough substantive coverage of the protests

FINDINGS

The two research questions asked how the three independent variables primed readers’ perceived credibility of the story and how the three independent variables primed readers’ support for Native Lives Matter. To answer these questions, we first tested with Three-way Anovas on the three independent variables and the credibility and support scales to check for independent variable interactions (see Tables 9.3 and 9.4). No significant interaction effects were found in this study. The three independent variables did not interact to prime readers’ perceived credibility of the story or the readers’ support for Native Lives Matter. 178 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Victoria L. LaPoe

Table 9.3 Three-way Anova Credibility Mean Native American Press Actual Photo Female 0.62 Male 0.42 Lightened Photo Female 0.29 Male 0.61 Darkened Photo Female 0.2 Male 0.09 Mainstream Press Actual Photo Female 0.64 Male 0.4 Lightened Photo Female 0.48 Male 0.38 Darkened Photo Female 0.35 Male 0.41 (p<.506, F = .683, df = 2).

Table 9.4 Three-way Anova Support Mean Native American Press Actual Photo Female 0.32 Male 0.77 Lightened Photo Female 0.77 Male 0.99 Darkened Photo Female 0.54 Male 0.42 Mainstream Press Actual Photo Female 0.88 Male 1 Lightened Photo Female 1.1 Male 0.99 Darkened Photo Female 0.88 Male 0.67 (p<.630, F = .463, df = 2).

We then analyzed the data with One-way Anovas for each independent variable because no interaction effects existed. Table 9.5 shows results for two One-way Anovas with mast type as the independent variable—one with the credibility scale as the dependent variable and one with the support scale as the dependent variable. We found no statistical significance of the Native American Press masthead priming readers’ perceived credibility of the story. We did find statistical significance of the Native American Press masthead priming readers’ support for Native Lives Matter. The same story with altered mastheads primed significantly lower support for Native Lives Matter if the story appeared with a Native American Press masthead. Online Momentum 179

Table 9.5 Testing Mast Type as Independent Variable Credibility Support* Newspaper Type Mean (sd) Mean (sd) Native American 0.36 0.83 0.62 1.1 Press Mainstream Press 0.45 0.97 0.86 1.1 *= p<.1 N=300 N=297 (p<.378, F = .779, df = 1,298) (p<.068, F = 3.352, df = 1, 295)

Table 9.6 Testing Photo Gender as Independent Variable Credibility Support Photo Gender Mean (sd) Mean (sd) Female 0.42 0.87 0.71 1.1 Male 0.38 0.92 0.73 1.1 *= p<.1 N=300 N=297 (p<.677, F = .173, df = 1,298) (p<.884, F = .021, df = 1,295)

Table 9.7 Testing Photo Ambience as Independent Variable Credibility* Support Photo Tone Mean (sd) Mean (sd) Actual 0.54 0.84 0.71 1.2 Lightened 0.45 0.82 0.87 1.1 Darkened 0.25 0.97 0.60 1.0 *= p<.1 N=300 N=297 (p<.061, F = 2.830, df = 2, 297) (p<.240, F = 1.436, df = 2, 294)

Results for a One-way Anovas with photo gender as the independent variable—one with the credibility scale as the dependent variable and one with the support scale as the dependent variable (see Table 9.6). Photo gender did not significantly prime readers’ perceived story credibility or support for Native Lives Matter. Results for two One-way Anovas with photo ambience as the independent variable—one with the credibility scale as the dependent variable and one with the support scale as the dependent variable (see Table 9.7). Photo ambience did significantly prime readers’ perceived credibility of the story. The darker photo significantly dampened perceived story credibility. The darker photo version did dampen support for Native Lives Matter, but not at a significant level. 180 Benjamin R. LaPoe II and Victoria L. LaPoe

DISCUSSION

Building on prior research, one can argue language is the more significant variable in diverse media (LaPoe & Sullivan, 2016); language may prime readers’ perception of protest groups combating institutional racism. Lan- guage was a constant variable in this study, and its significance is noted in our results, as we didn’t find an interaction between the three independent variables explored in this study. This is the first study of priming effects in the Native American Press. While some similarities to prior research on priming in the Black Press do exist in this study, some unique findings stand out. Consistent with prior Black Press priming research, simply being a story published by a Native American news outlet, did prime readers but not in the way the masthead primed readers for the Black Press study. Prior priming research on the Black Press found simply being a story in the Black Press primed readers to perceive the story as less credible (LaPoe & Sullivan, 2016). In this study, readers were not primed to view the story as less credible because of the masthead; readers were primed to support the group Native Lives Matter less because of the masthead. This is contrary to previous findings. Black Press priming research found that incorporating Black Press news techniques such as historical context and advocacy increased support for the group Black Lives Matter. Because the language included historical context and the story included photos of an individual from the outlet’s community, this study’s results of dampening support were surprising. LaPoe and Sullivan’s (2016) study did not measure for support. LaPoe, Porter, and Bradford (2016) examined support but the language varied and did not find the masthead a significant priming variable by itself. This study’s masthead findings can be problematic for political discourse on issues salient to Native American communities and highlight some of the cognitive barriers to substantive debate in a pluralistic society. Mainstream newspapers are unable, or unwilling in some cases, to accurately cover Native communities and the issues salient to them, while the more accurate coverage of those communities and issues dampens viewer support for egalitarian-focused causes. While the LaPoe et al. (2016) study offered some hope for civil rights activists, this study casts some doubt regarding the potential for productive discourse on police brutality. One can reasonably posit the priming was explicit because the Native American Press is a news institution formed to communicate with diverse audiences. The concept for this rationale is subtlety, critical to priming, and is lacking given the Native newspapers’ missions. This could partially explain the findings. Another potential facet is perceptions and stereotypes of the different communities among some individuals. For some, it would seem they are aware of police brutality in Black communities and support reform, but Online Momentum 181 they are unaware of police brutality in Native communities and don’t seem to support reform. This study found the darker the photo, the less readers viewed the story as credible. To our knowledge, this is the first study showing this priming effect in ethnic media. It is an important one, though, because ethnic media, unlike mainstream media, tend to incorporate photos of their diverse communities. This finding is consistent with prior research on photo darkness and priming. Darker photos tend to dampen perceptions of diverse communities.

CONCLUSION AND FUTURE RESEARCH

Among our primarily white respondents, a Native American newspaper publishing a story connected to Native Lives Matter diminished participants’ support for the protest group; including darker photos of Native Americans inhibited participants perceived credibility of a story about Native Ameri- cans shot and killed by police. This study was conducted during a historic time: the day after the presidential election and during the protest against the Dakota Access Pipeline. We launched our study the day after the 2016 election that contained a great deal of heated rhetoric about race, gender, and ability. This study also took place during protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline—a protest headlining mainstream media. Actors such as Shailene Woodley, who was strip-searched and arrested protesting the pipeline, and Mark Ruffalo appeared prominently on social and mainstream media (Democracy Now, 2016; CNN, 2016). We reference the presidential election and Dakota Access Pipeline protest because perhaps our respondents’ awareness of racial tensions in the United States and awareness of Standing Rock and Hollywood support could possibly cause respondents to be more sympathetic and supportive of language fighting for rights. Yet, our primarily white respondents were still not supportive of content with darker skin or content from a Native American newspaper. Awareness of current issues and how this impacts rights of minority audiences could be studied further in connection with these priming interactions. Gauging awareness about issues connected to diverse audiences may be challenging and prime socially desirable answers.

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Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities Going Beyond the Parachute Story Victoria L. LaPoe, Rebecca J. Tallent, Tristan Ahtone, and Benjamin R. LaPoe II

Indigenous communities from the United States to Canada have had to fight to eat their food, to live on their homeland, and to honor their traditional ways, while outsiders have wanted dominance and assimilation, even strip- ping Native children from their homes and sending them to boarding schools.1 A recent documentary-drama revisited and interviewed those who took part in this assimilation fight about dominance, greed, and control; this was a fight to enforce religious beliefs, control what language people spoke, and even what people ate (Wolochatiuk, 2012). With governments’ as well as others’ attempts of disconnecting Native people from their culture, identity, children, land, and lives, it is not surprising that the role of the Native Press has been so important: Native people telling Native stories from Native sources with multiple Native perspectives. Native media has been vital to tribal people since 1828 when the Cherokee Phoenix began production in Georgia. The issue of differences in reporting became obvious when Iseke-Barnes (2005) explained that the basic problem was the misinterpretation of Indigenous cultures and histories by outside cultures, meaning the Eurocentric media could not adequately report because the journalists did not understand the differences in culture. Communication is so important to Native culture. It was recognized by the U.S. government with passage of both the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (Littlefield & Parins, 1984) and the Indian Self-Determination and Educa- tion Assistance Act of 1975, Public Law 93–68. Since 2000, several Native Nations have passed versions of a press freedom act, basically granting Native journalists the right to report on their tribes without tribal interference, in

185 186 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe essence granting them the same rights as other U.S. journalists under the First Amendment, which may or may not be available to tribal journalists under their nation’s constitution (Tallent & Dingman, 2011). Meanwhile, the Native American Journalists Association has provide resources for Free Press in Indian Country for several years (Free Press Resource, 2018). This chapter will explore responses from Native journalists, and others who cover Indian Coun- try, on how to provide accurate and critical thinking when it comes to covering Native communities, coverage which should include context instead of the stereotypical portrayals that are so common within mainstream media; coverage that should also understand history and provide multiple voices, even in a time when some journalists are trying to produce fast digital media coverage.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Information about differences in how Native and non-Native news media cover Native America is slim. The only semi-direct comparison is Daniel’s (2006) look at the Red Lake shooting in Minnesota on March 21, 2005. In his work, Daniel examines coverage by four different Native news outlets both in print and online, and although he focused on the way the internet has shifted the coverage format, he did note many Native people strongly believe the Eurocentric news media does not fairly cover Native issues. Further, he said there is a misunderstanding by non-Native journalists about the sovereign Nation status of tribes, which often leads to further misinterpretations between Natives and their non-Native neighbors. Some well-known records that touch upon the subject include the 2002 Reading Red Report (Briggs, Arviso, McAuliffe, & Edmo-Suppah), where they said the primary focus has been on casino development or the tone has treated Native Americans as historical figures. That information was used to build upon Azocar’s (2007) Reading Red Report, which used content analysis to examine Native images in U.S. mainstream newspapers. Azocar’s report showed the majority of non-Native newspapers that cover tribal events are within Indian Country strongholds: New Mexico, Southern California, and Oklahoma, with other high-Native population states, such as Alaska and Arizona, reporting infre- quently on Native issues. “Black Ink, Red Power” by Patty Loew and Kelly Mella (2005) explain how Native media is often limited under tribal constitu- tions because the sovereign nations do not recognize First Amendment rights, the bedrock of American news media. Iseke-Barnes (2005) explained how the power relations between the Eurocentric community and Native Americans led to a suppression of Native cultures, something she said was made mani- fest in the way Natives were covered in the mainstream news media. The subject was tangentially examined in Tallent and Dingman’s (2011) look at the Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 187

Cherokee Independent Press Act of 2000. Tallent looked into the differences again in a 2012 Quill article about how mainstream journalists can cover Native America. Canadian author Valerie Alia has written numerous books and articles on Native media, most commonly from the Canadian point of view, and S. M. Murphy’s (2010) work examines the need for Native media in community. Some of the lesser-known works include Mary Ann Weston’s 1996 book, Native Americans in the News: Images of Indians in Twentieth Century Press, where she discusses how images of Natives were often culturally appropriated and attempts were made to press Natives into assimilation with the Eurocentric culture through media. Also, Trahant’s (1995) book, Pictures of Our Nobler Selves, examines the images of Native Americans in media from the Native point of view. How this spills over into coverage of a specific event is the primary issue of sovereignty coupled with the fact that many Native media outlets are owned and operated by the tribal government. Still, Eurocentric media also needs to become much more aware of tribal rights and the limitations of media on tribal lands. When a major story such as Standing Rock or Bears Ears breaks, non-Native journalists need to ask additional questions concerning the tribe’s history and culture. For example: The Bears Ears land reduction of 2017, while many non-Natives believed the shrinking of the federal lands by 85 percent was a move toward allowing more grazing of livestock, federal records show it was actually a move to create more oil and gas drilling and coal exploration in southern Utah— something which creates far more damage to the lands and has the potential to destroy many of the sacred lands the Obama administration sought to protect (Lipton & Friedman, 2018). While Lipton and Friedman touched upon the idea, they did not further explore what such a change in land use would mean to the local tribes. On September 4, 2017, Indian Country Today Media Network (ICT), which the Oneida Nation bought from Tim Giago (Oglala Lakota and founder of the Native American Journalists Association) in its print form in 1998, reported it would be going on hiatus (Giago, 2018). ICT’s hiatus came on the heels of the Excellence in Journalism conference that included the Native American Journalists Association (NAJA) in Anaheim, California, where an emergency meeting took place to discuss the future of ICTMN. Mark Trah- ant (Shoshone-Bannock), now editor of ICT, journalist for TrahantReports. com, and former NAJA president, took a lead in the conversation; he created a hashtag on Twitter #IndigenousNewsWire and a Facebook group to track, brainstorm, and discuss news in Indian Country; video of the meeting was included as the First Nations Experience covered the conference (FNX, 2017). Also, “in” on the conversation at the conference—and an expert on Indian Country news coverage—was Tristan Ahtone (Kiowa). High Country News, an independent news organization based in Colorado, hired Ahtone 188 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe in 2017 to start and manage a tribal affairs desk. Ahtone, Native American Journalists board member and international Native news independent journalist, had reported for The Newshour with Jim Lehrer, National Native News, Frontline, Wyoming Public Radio, Vice, Fronteras Desk, NPR, and Al Jazeera America (Smith, 2017). Between ICT and HCN, this past year has had a lot of discussion and development on how to accurately cover Native communities. Currently, ICT has more than 530,000 likes on Facebook and a development occurred about a month following the 2017 Excellence in Jour- nalism conference related to this leader in coverage: the National Congress of American Indians announced that the Oneida Nation donated its assets and four months later named Trahant the editor (Indian Country Today, 2017, 2018). In the summer of 2018 at the National Native Media Conference, Trah- ant discussed ICT and how it is now mobile focused (McNeill, 2018; About Indian Country Today, 2018). In terms of High Country News, following the July 2018 conference, Ahtone published an on point perspective about news coverage in Indian Country: “Journalism is less diverse than Hollywood—and Congress: Stop enabling news organizations that shun inclusive coverage.” In this article, he stressed the very real tradition—lack of diversity in mainstream newsrooms. Ahtone also highlights news organizations who are covering Indian Country with unique and inclusive perspectives (Ahtone, 2018b). News stories like Standing Rock and other stories connected to Indian Country had similar lack of inclusivity issues. Some non-Native outlets, such as Nieman Reports, had a Native reporter, Tristan Ahtone (2017), reporting on the story and including Native voices and perspectives, as well as context; however, many did not. Mainstream news organizations, such as USA Today, in covering Standing Rock would give general descriptions of the community impact in event-focused stories such as “where Native Americans have been protesting the construction of a pipeline that would threaten water and their land” (Eversley, 2016). European news organizations, such as The Guardian, sent reporters who covered the protests from inside the camp in an observa- tional fashion with color photos of protestors (Solnit, 2016), but analysis of the reports shows they failed to get to the cause of the protest beyond the pipeline itself. Of course, when dealing with major protests, such as Stand- ing Rock, many non-Native journalists do not know how to fully cover the issue due to the rapid mobilization, increased participation, and sociopolitical outcomes of the event (Nulman, 2015).

METHOD

Within this study and in this method, we will air out the history of how this case study developed. While this may not be a traditional method in academia, Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 189 we urge academics and others to consider pushing the envelope to understand and provide transparency in underserved and under-published areas—moving away from models and more toward understanding. The conversation needs to get started so we may collectively build on it further as academics. At the 2016 Excellence in Journalism conference in New Orleans, a panel discussed a recent survey conducted by NAJA and designed by the researchers. NAJA conducted the survey during the summer of 2016 and asked for thoughts about the Dakota Access Pipeline coverage. The majority of participants identified as women (n=13); seven as men. Ages ranged from 18 to 60 or older; 8 chose not to specify their age. About half of the participants worked in digital media (n=14), an equal number worked in newspapers and radio (n=7), six worked in television, and the rest worked in another field (n= 5). There were a total of twenty-nine respondents to the survey and a following panel discussion at the Excellence in Journalism conference that had around forty attendees. The conference was a joint one with the Society of Professional Journalists, Radio Digital Television News Associa- tion, and NAJA. While the majority who came to the session seemed to be NAJA members, there were members from the other organizations attending. An estimated 60 attendees stayed for an hour-long session. The researchers then sent a follow-up survey, as the 2016 study was just a starting point for our conversation. In the follow-up questionnaire, we probed further our original questions and information learned from the conference panel. We doubled our response size. Our follow-up survey was sent during the months of December 2016 and January 2017 through journalists’ organizations who may cover Indian Country: Native American Journalists Association, Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, Unity Journalists, National Association of Black Journalists, Society of Professional Journalists, Broadcast Education Asso- ciation, and the Radio Television Digital News Association. Both surveys had IRB approval and the researchers received permission from the NAJA executive director to write about the results. Thirty-seven (56.1%) of the respondents identified as male and twenty- nine (43.9%) identified as female. Thirty-seven identified as Native, fourteen as white, three as African American, one as Latino, one as Asian, and ten chose not to list their ethnic identification. An issue that rose as part of the discussion at the Excellence in Journalism conference, and also among survey respondents, was objectivity; how does one safeguard their beats, while also working with the mainstream media?

The mainstream press needs to educate itself much more about tribal issues, culture, and history. Editors need to understand why reporters need to stay on the Indian Country beat over the long haul. 190 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe

Developing and maintaining relationships with tribes and citizens for more complete, informed coverage.

The political relationships of tribal nations to the federal government, i.e. sovereignty, as well as historical context.

When asking Native journalists about their opinion of Native journalists covering Indian Country, the following was noted:

Too many opinion pieces with few facts and not enough substantive, long-form journalism or data journalism.

I find that it’s sometimes skewed in favor of tribes and not presented as objective.

They do a great job of depicting Natives as who they are, real people who do matter.

Remaining independent and objective is a challenge that isn’t always met, either due to cultural concerns or financial/editorial issues.

In January 2018, six Virginia tribes received federal recognition bringing the total of federally recognized tribes to 573 (Schilling, 2018); meanwhile, in research, not just Native communities, but many minorities, including those who are multicultural, are often lumped in as one in the “other” category. This particular survey attempted to address the uniqueness of Indian Country and press freedoms. Some presses publish with free press such as the Chero- kee Phoenix, Navajo Times, Mvskoke Media, Osage News, and Smoke Signals (The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde); while some are tribally funded. Freedom of the press is still growing in Indian Country; just recently at the beginning of 2017, the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon adopted an independent press ordinance (NAJA, 2017). Represen- tation and context are issues when surveying Native journalists about news coverage. This survey asked, how do journalists ensure that all news consumers are fairly represented when you are covering a news event or issue? Some of the responses included: Utilizing non-Native sources in conjunction with Native sources and receiving opinions on both sides of the issue are methods I use to ensure fair representation. Stick to facts, and keep my own personal feelings and opinions out of news stories while being inclusive of more than one perspective. Although I do report on Native issues, I keep in mind that these stories will be read outside of my immediate area so I would act like a teacher speaking to a diverse group. Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 191

The survey also asked about the greatest challenge to covering Indian Country. Access to information, tribal politics and finding the appropriate person to speak truthfully about an issue. Building reliable, credible sources and protecting them as needed. Not having enough of a voice in mainstream press.

The debate about objectivity was the key discussion and arose during one of the largest Native American gatherings in history: Standing Rock. Standing Rock was fresh on participants’ minds as this was September 2016 and many had just returned from Cannon Ball and planned to go to North Dakota again for additional coverage. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approved the plans for the pipeline that will now go across the Missouri River about a mile away from the Standing Rock Sioux reservation and the project construction began on August 10, 2016 (Dunn, 2016). The Standing Rock Sioux Nation filed litigation in July seeking a preliminary injunction to undo the Corps’ approval of the project, but the federal court set the hearing for August 24th, after construction on the pipeline was scheduled to begin (Taliman, 2016). Native activists along with environmental groups and others have been protesting at the construction site since the company broke ground. But the coverage of the protest is different for mainstream media than it is for American Indian media sources (Dunn, 2016). At the time, Indian Country Today Media Network, a national Native news organization, covered the issue and included information that seems to be missing from some of the other mainstream media outlets, including the New York Times. According to the New York Times (Healy, 2016), an issue in the discussion was about whether or not the Corps and pipeline construction company consulted Native leaders who represent the community about how the pipeline would impact cultural and sacred sites (Healy, 2016). The New York Times mentioned the issue but did not provide an answer to the question of what specific effects the pipeline would have. However, the Native media not only provided examples of places where the pipeline would disrupt sacred land, but also why that land is important and the history behind it (Gray, 2016). In the New York Times article previously mentioned, the first sentence described the Native people using stereotypes, such as the paint on their faces and their tepee homes, which is evidence of the study’s findings (Healy, 2016). The state of North Dakota originally provided water for the protestors, but decided to take it away because they were afraid the tanks would be damaged since there was unlawful activity at the camps (Healy, 2016). There were some claims that the protestors were using pipe bombs, but all of the media outlets (ethnic, nontraditional, and mainstream) did clarify that it was possible the ceremonial pipes were mistaken for pipe bombs (Dunn, 2016; 192 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe

Healy, 2016). However, the suggestion that the protestors were breaking the law and damaging equipment can be inferred to negatively portray the minority group that is fighting against the white ideology. With the growth of minorities in the United States and the growth of digital media, technology provides the opportunity to portray this nation in a more diverse manner (Wilson et al., 2013). Providing a diverse view digitally not only affects who gets news and who is heard, but also how the world views the United States. As Tristan Ahtone noted in a recent Harvard media interview, where he served as a 2017–2018 Nieman Fellow, mainstream media often wrote about Standing Rock in a manner that supported stereotypes and images in Hollywood (Mineo, 2018). He stated that it seemed the only way some journalists could understand Native communities were in these inaccurate and fictionally portrayed manners.

“If you want to embrace technology, you can also embrace diversity,” Ahtone said. “I’d like to see a newsroom that is representative of the United States, and I’d like to see media organizations committed to cover Indigenous people’s struggles and contributions.” (Mineo, 2018, para. 14)

While some mainstream media missed the mark with stereotypical Stand- ing Rock coverage, Fusion was an untraditional media source that provided different and more unsavory views in terms of officials. One piece showed attack dogs used against those protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline in early September 2016 (Fusion, 2018). The news source posted videos and pictures to tell the story online. While Fusion laid off half of its workforce in 2015, forged new partnerships, and rebranded some of its content, the Standing Rock pieces may still be found online at Fusion.tv (Fusion, 2018). The news coverage of the Dakota Access Pipeline provides a case study to better understand how mainstream media cover groups that it may consider its main target audience, but instead are seen or viewed as the “other.” At the 2016 Excellence in Journalism conference—which included a collaborative student newsroom effort between the Society of Professional Journalists and the Native American Journalists Association—NAJA discussed objectives for Native people covering Standing Rock. Journalists on panels discussed how it was hard to separate advocacy for Native representation and resources from objectivity as a journalist. Some Native news outlets, for example, used “water protector” instead of “protestor”; other Native journalists, such as Ahtone, argued against the use of protector, if it wouldn’t be used for any other non-Native group of protestors. Ahtone, then a NAJA board member, and key author for ethics guides related to the Dakota Access Pipeline, outlined three key elements: Don’t participate in protests, be objective; distinguish between news and opinion; and remain independent. The debate included whether protestors should be called protectors; whether that word Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 193 choice inflicted bias in the description; and where to draw the line between being a Native person who understands the history and the significance and being a journalist. This debate continues and led NAJA to create reporting guidelines for Standing Rock for Native and non-Native journalists. Standing Rock is not an isolated case of covering protests, but it is unique because it brought together so many diverse Native Nations and traditional news media picked up on the story in August 2016, four months after the protests began. Traditional U.S. media found Standing Rock was not like covering “normal” social movement protests due to the cultural and religious differences with the Standing Rock Sioux Nation, but also the sheer variety of cultural groups represented by the supporting/visiting tribes from across the country (including Hawaii) and globe (New Zealand) who participated in the protests. The sheer volume of various Native Nations was ethically challenging for Eurocentric journalists to avoid stereotyping and being respectful of so many different ideologies. Within the last few decades, egalitarian ideals became the new norm, forc- ing mainstream media to reexamine its coverage of diversity and engendering desires for more unbiased, objective narratives. Native media throughout history has served to fill the void left by other news organizations not thoroughly covering issues in Indian Country beyond stereotypes (LaPoe & LaPoe, 2017). Our research hopes to answer the question of objectivity: how does one remain objective as a journalist when covering such a big story like Stand- ing Rock? How can media work together to provide more inclusive coverage during the era of digital media?

FINDINGS

The majority of survey respondents (91%) reported covering Native communities. Five respondents (7.6%) reported covering five or more stories on Native communities a week. Meanwhile, 31 percent of our respondents reported less than one story per week; 27.3 percent reported one story per week; 16.7 percent reported two stories per week; 12.1 percent reported three stories per week; and 4.5 percent reported four stories per week. Nearly 51 percent reported access to information from officials as the greatest challenge when covering Indian Country, followed by building reliable and credible sources (see Figure 10.1). While sharing and access of diverse voices rose to the top of how digital media are changing news, concerns about ethical and biased coverage also emerged (see Table 10.1). Indian Country Today Media Network was ranked as the best Native digital news source by 44.4 percent of the respondents, followed by Native News Online (see Figure 10.2). 194 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe

Figure 10.1 Greatest Challenges. Authors’ figure.

Table 10.1 Digital Media Changing News Mean sd N Journalists are engaging readers and maintaining ethics 1.17 1.2 66 Partisan websites allow people to choose their news 1.65 1.3 66 More diverse voices are shared 1.83 1.1 66 Native voices have more access to connect with the world 1.62 1.3 66 Dumb down information 1.11 1.4 65

Figure 10.2 Rank of Best Native Digital News. Authors’ figure. Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 195

Regarding what non-Native press should consider when covering Native communities, knowledge and hiring of Native journalists were the top recom- mendations (see Table 10.2). Ranking last in terms of the best non-Native news coverage was digital news. Traditional local papers followed by national newspapers ranked the highest. Television and radio followed newspaper and ranked higher than digital media. (see Figure 10.3) In terms of objectivity, covering issues journalists may be passionate about; separating personal feelings from news coverage; and the acknowledg- ment that it can be difficult to separate your feelings as a journalist surfaced to the top (see Table 10.3).

Table 10.2 Considerations for Non-Native News Organizations Mean sd N Knowledge of cultural practices and differences in 2.45 0.73 65 Native communities Work with Native journalists when covering Native 1.91 1.2 65 communities Hire Native journalists 2.17 1.1 65 Provide historical or cultural context 2.11 1.2 65 Report on Native communities as a consistent beat 1.95 1.1 65

Figure 10.3 Rank of Best Non-Native News Organizations. Authors’ figure. 196 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe

Table 10.3 Objectivity Mean sd N Journalists are able to separate their personal feelings 1.36 1.33 66 from their news coverage Journalists should not cover issues they are –0.03 2.02 66 personally passionate about It can be difficult for journalists to remain objective 1.08 1.55 66 when covering issues Journalists who have strong feelings about issues 66 1.43 66 should include more opposing viewpoints in their reporting

Inclusivity of appropriate sources and in-depth reporting ranked high among respondents, when asked about how Native journalists go about covering communities (see Table 10.4). While in-depth reporting ranked high for how Native journalists cover Native communities, respondents did not feel non-Native journalists were applying this ethical principle when covering underreported communities (see Table 10.5). Perceptions of how non-Native journalists cover underreported communities included lack of depth of coverage and that non-Native journalists cover their own community over other underreported communities.

Table 10.4 How Native Journalists Cover Indian Country Communities Mean sd N They include unique and different sources 1.67 1.18 66 Their reporting is in-depth 1.52 1.41 66 They are not as objective in reporting 0.79 1.45 66 They present a perspective on the issues that 1.95 1.09 66 someone outside the community can not

Table 10.5 How Non-Native Journalists Cover Non-Native Underreported Communities Mean sd N Don’t provide as much in-depth reporting about 1.73 1.14 66 underreported communities Reporting is more inclusive of minority voices 0.35 1.66 66 Reporting includes more context about the issue 0.42 1.57 66 Cover issues more often 0.52 1.62 66 Don’t cover issues affecting other underreported 1.29 1.17 66 communities as much as their own community Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 197

DISCUSSION

As universities, newsrooms, and countries grapple with how to connect communities, this case study employs a different approach to a discussion. The study invited Tristan Ahtone (Kiowa), who High Country News hired last year to launch the only non-Native newsroom tribal affairs desk, to share what he has learned as his career took him from newsrooms to Harvard and then back to a newsroom (Ahtone, 2018a). Ahtone responded to this research and discussion with the following (Tristan, Ahtone, personal communication, April 1, 2018).

When I was awarded a Nieman Fellowship in 2017, I had a singular pursuit: improve coverage of Indigenous communities by creating ethical guidelines, protocols and codes of conduct. The aim of my project was to hold mainstream news organizations and non-Native reporters accountable for their decisions and “Indi- genize” the profession. It was the wrong approach. I was wrong in thinking our industry could change, or even wants to, especially with regards to people of color. Here are the facts: People of color make up nearly 20% of Congress. Nation- wide, we make up nearly a quarter of police forces, and even in Hollywood, nearly 30% of all speaking roles in films are held by people of color. In journalism, people of color comprise 16.55% of newsroom employees. That’s according to 2017 statistics released by the American Society of News Editors who, incidentally, saw a drop in diversity from 2016; in those heady days, people of color made up 16.94% of newsroom employees. (ASNE, 2017) One of the most common excuses newsrooms employ when explaining their inability to diversify is “we can’t find qualified minorities.” However, when it comes to tech, the story is much different. Companies like the New York Times and Frontline have leaped into VR storytelling and 360 video but in the beginning, they had a problem: they didn’t have qualified people inside their organizations that could push the forms in new and exciting ways. So what did those companies do? They actively sought people who could help: they found tech-heads, gamers, and filmmakers—people that often had no journalism experience, but could bring fresh thinking and skills to newsrooms. They were sought after, recruited, and trained in order to make tech work for journalism; but when it comes to diversifying those same newsrooms, people of color don’t get to play by the same rules. Conversely, news organizations have aggressively pursued stories from communities of color. In the wake of Standing Rock, for example, Indian Country has seen a renewed interest by reporters looking for the next Standing Rock—which may say more about America’s fascination with the next Indian uprising than it does to accurately convey the realities of Indigenous life. Lives that revolve around sports, jobs, elections, food, television, sex, school, video games, art, police violence, and books, to name a few. 198 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe

Reconciling these two ideas is relatively simple: legacy media companies want our stories, but don’t want us in the newsroom. To me, this doesn’t resemble the workings of an industry concerned with public enlightenment, justice or democracy. To me, it looks more like exploitation colonialism. Our stories are resources, and they are routinely extracted and processed for the benefit of others by individuals that are not members of our communities and for audiences that do not resemble us. Journalism—or at least American journalism—functions in a way that more closely resembles the mining or logging industries. With this in mind, it’s ridiculous to think that the industry would be open to Indigenous modes of thinking, which is why the creation of ethical guidelines, protocols, and codes of conduct that could be adopted is a complete waste of time. Why should we work to “Indigenize” colonial systems when we can put the same time and energy into supporting and creating our own systems that will support and nourish our own ideas of public enlightenment and justice. If we let our faith in organizations like the New York Times, NPR, and CNN wither and die, we may be able to see a world in which journalism and, specifically, Indigenous journalism, can thrive. We can look to the generations that have come before us. We can look to the 190-year-old newspaper the Cherokee Phoenix. We can learn from National Native News, Mvskoke Media, Navajo Times, and the Eastern Door. We can even look to our earliest forms of journalism—our winter calendars for instance—to inform our vision of a profession that eschews the colonial values inherent in the industry and move toward a form of journalism informed by our pasts, our strengths, and our values. We can also look to Standing Rock and the style of reporting we saw from so many young, Indigenous journalists. At the time, the Native American Journal- ists Association released a guide to help reporters navigate the profession under such difficult circumstances. I helped write the guide, and we focused on four areas: Don’t participate; Be objective; Distinguish between news and opinion; Remain independent. We hold these values to be true, but how can we better account to our readers, and more importantly, our own biases in a manner that is consistent with our profession as well as our unique worldviews? If objectivity provides space for injustice to grow, perhaps it’s time to rethink what exactly it is we are doing. And, perhaps there are multiple traditions in journalism to be embraced. When imagining an Indigenous ethics code, we can accept that objectivity, in the scientific tradition, cannot be replicated in journalism, so what word makes sense for what we strive to accomplish? How can we be logical and consistent in our ethical choices? And perhaps most importantly, how can we create codes that can’t be used as weapons to discredit or exclude reporters? Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 199

While the Society of Professional Journalists says that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy, do we, as Indig- enous journalists agree? Perhaps. Or, perhaps our journalism tradition is more closely aligned with the Cherokee Phoenix’s original motto which bore the word “Protection.” These are conversations we must be having within our own newsrooms, and with Indigenous journalists around the world. The Kiowa word for reporter is Khoot piah-gyah Maw-tame-Kxee. The closest English translation is: One who teaches with a newspaper. It’s a different way of understanding what it is we do as reporters and why we do it. What is your word for reporter and what does it tell you about your role? Instead of trying to decolonize journalism, I hope to be a part of a reporting tradition that reflects my community’s values and spirit. And, instead of working to make legacy media outlets do a better job, I wish to work in concert with the hundreds of tribal outlets and reporters already doing an amazing job. O’bah hau.

CONCLUSION

There is a space for Native and mainstream media to work together to cover stories, but they must want to do so. Mainstream media must take on the same approach as it does with any change, such as technology (Mineo, 2018): make it a priority and invest in time, training, resources, and commitment. As with covering any news beat, mainstream media must learn about the community/ ies it is covering. There are hundreds of federally recognized tribes. Not all tribes are the same; it is important for news coverage not to lump all Native people together but do research and understand the differences. Providing a diverse view digitally not only affects who gets news and who is heard but also how the world views the United States. Just with the Dakota Pipeline protest, Fusion was a nontraditional media source that provided news about police use of attack dogs against Native people who were protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline in early September 2016 (Fusion, 2018). The news source posted videos and pictures to tell the story online. The news coverage of the Dakota Access Pipeline provides a case study to better understand how mainstream media groups minorities into the “other” category with just one voice. At the 2016 Excellence in Journalism conference, NAJA discussed objectives for Native and non-Native journalists covering Standing Rock. Partnerships such as High Country News’ development of a tribal affairs desk and partnerships with organizations such as SPJ, NAHJ, and NAJA are paths to more balanced coverage in communities. There is a shared culture: journalism. Understanding communities as beats versus one- and-done stories is a core element of journalism. SPJ and High Country News 200 LaPoe, Tallent, Ahtone, and LaPoe supported NAJA with their partnerships and assisted in creating ethic guides, including a bingo card on how not to fall into stereotypical coverage and an AP style guide specifically on Indigenous communities (NAJA.com, 2018). These guides had a visible impact on the Excellence in Journalism 2017 conference; they were printed and handed out to attendees and may be found online on NAJA.com under resources. The guides are listed by name on the issue they address. Meanwhile, universities and mainstream international journalism organizations have requested the guides to assist with coverage. There are major historical challenges and trust issues with most communities when outsiders come in to produce news stories; however, there are some general points of entry, much like norms and routines within mainstream newsrooms, where diverse communities can work together. As a point of entry, outside journalists should research, learn the history and spend time in communities. With news stories, journalists should provide context and history. Covering communities is much like taking on any new story: you must research your story, commit to it, and take the time to build trust. As past research has noted about news beats, good tenets of journalism still exist. Get to know who you are covering and who is an unbiased source. Avoid parachuting in only when there are “troubled times”; make Native community/ies part of your beat and cover them accurately throughout the year. With digital media, Native people may be reached via Facebook or Twitter, build trust face-to-face first, learn who the reliable sources are for what stories, and then utilize digital media to assist in staying connected with those you are covering. If you are a Native journalist or non-Native journalist covering something close to you, double check yourself on your sources, wording, and objectivity. Evaluate your beats: what should be covered? In what way? And in what manner? While this study attempted to have many layers of gathering information in terms of ethics and coverage of Native communities, this is an exploratory study and additional research is needed in this area to fully understand the scopes and needs of both Native and mainstream press collaboration. Below are some additional intriguing responses from our 2017 survey that may be an interesting area for future research.

Journalists are finding ways to engage readers in an Internet age while still holding true to journalism ethics of accuracy, fairness and balance. I think the availability of partisan websites allows people to pick and choose their news. Also, the immediacy and competitiveness that is needed in this instant world sometimes leads to a lack of fact-checking. I feel that commercial journalism is too dominant and the general public is not aware. Ethics and Reporting on Native Communities 201

In the time of “fake news” being a leading government official term and as digital media evolves news reporting routines, future research may want to visit the intersection of free speech, credibility, and the crossover needs/collaboration of Native and non-Native presses when covering Indian Country.

NOTE

1. All authors contributed equally.

REFERENCES

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Conclusion Clarity: Community-Building and Coverage During Convergence Victoria L. LaPoe and Candi S. Carter Olson

As the world documents itself in headlines that we are far from a post-racial and inclusive society, journalists are dealing with attacks on the press, freedom of the press—along with coping with stress of an industry that attempts to capitalize on digital media. Within the industry, there is a strong need for inclusivity. What are considered the norms and routines of the industry must be questioned. Those questions need to include, among others: who do media consider a source; who aren’t included as sources; and who are and are not included in images? What are media naturalizing as our society, and what are media creating as the “other”? This “other” question needs to be raised in terms of race, gender, sexual orientation, ability, religion, socioeconomic status, age, location, and so on. Is the view of the world we are getting in headlines inclusive to all people? No. Can the media serve all people? Defi- nitely. It can serve people better than it has done in the past. For diversity, media must question its norms, routines, and “footholds” in its coverage. As Lippmann noted (1922), footholds allow us to make sense of things unlike ourselves. There are in-groups and out-groups, and schemas help us figure out fight or flight. But we need to be smarter than our physiological reaction. We need to understand that communities are forming because of new media technologies. Those communities are not just who is a loyalist to this media or that media. Within digital media, people are creating communities and constructing their own realities. Meanwhile, there are still many questions as to whether digital media—with access and censorship—elevates or reinforces the same voices we have heard and the same people we have seen constructing reality for dozens of years. At the same time, there is hope. There are community presses that have been around a long time, such as the Cherokee Phoenix (1828), recording and telling stories that the “mainstream”

205 206 Conclusion overlooks. Digital communities can amplify these stories in new and influential ways. As former media professionals ourselves, it is not surprising how minority voices are not considered—especially if the makeup of a newsroom is not reflective of the population. If any community doesn’t have a seat at the news decision-making table, it isn’t a shock that the only time we hear those voices is during a month dedicated to the group (a date signaling a topical news story to the in-group of decision-makers should cover) and crisis (another norm and routine that signals to the in-group of decision-makers that this is hard and ratings important news). A May 2018 U.S. District Court ruling that Presi- dent Donald Trump could not block Twitter users from his account simply because their political views do not agree with his reinforces how important social media and other digital platforms are becoming for our democratic conversations (Wheeler, 2018). Minority groups must have access and pro- tections on those platforms so they can interact and keep their voices as a vital part of public sphere debates that are influencing our political processes at all levels. As educators, professionals, and consumers, we must question ourselves in our journals, conferences, classrooms, among our required non-collective citation ranks, administrations, and universities. Are we truly being inclusive or allowing voices to be heard that are just like us? What “truths” are we creating? What history are we making? Is it a history for all or a history that fits a dominant and privileged idea of reality? What voices are silenced, and what voices are loudly echoed? We need to be comfortable with the uncomfortable because it is the sharpening of our knowledge—through education and exposure—that allows us to honor and commit to a pluralistic and inter- sectional world. Through this unification, media literacy is essential. Media have become the language of contemporary culture, and if children and adults are not being taught to understand and engage with that conversation, then our society is failing its citizens. Media literacy is a basic skill and should be incorporated across our curricula. Neil Anderson (1990/1991) argued more than twenty- five years ago, “Media literacy is no longer separable from education. If we train students in basic skills such as reading and arithmetic, if we teach them about their native languages, and the history of their countries, if we do all these things so that they may be useful adults and productive citizens, then we must teach them about the media as well” (para. 3). If this argument was being made more than twenty-five years ago, why hasn’t our education adapted to include media literacy alongside writing and arithmetic yet? Media are entertainment, but they are also the creators and educators of culture. They are the drivers of our civilization and our democracy. The Center for Media Literacy (n.d.) writes: Conclusion 207

Media literacy, therefore, is about helping students become competent, critical and literate in all media forms so that they control the interpretation of what they see or hear rather than letting the interpretation control them. To become media literate is not to memorize facts or statistics about the media, but rather to learn to raise the right questions about what you are watching, reading or listening to. Len Masterman, the acclaimed author of Teaching the Media, calls it “critical autonomy” or the ability to think for oneself. (paras. 6–8)

Without this fundamental ability, an individual cannot have full dignity as a human person or exercise citizenship in a democratic society where to be a citizen is to both understand and contribute to the debates of the time. Media literacy creates independent active citizens who can understand and contribute to the ongoing public sphere conversation, which, in turn, develops a stronger, interactive democracy that considers all voices. We have to understand when a person is qualified to speak as an appropriate contextual source within a community and when someone can give only an opinion toward a community. We need to know that one person cannot—and should not speak—for all people. Many minorities and women are chosen to speak for their entire communities, that is, for all Black people and/or all women. It is a burden on that person and upon the community to ask one person to speak for anyone beyond themselves. As researchers we know that an “N” of 1, 2, or 3 does not illustrate causality, so why do we expect any form of communication to give us the complete story with its small “Ns” of sources? Knowing how to fill in those spaces with context builds critical autonomy that citizens need to be informed and involved within democratic publics. We have to have balance. Opinions are opinions. It’s a crucial time. We are on the fiftieth anniversary of the Kerner Commis- sion (1968), when riots broke out and the government was trying to evaluate why. If you compare the events then to the events now, there are some eerie similarities. Protests from Black Lives Matter to Standing Rock to Women’s Marches and we can’t forget that a country that is 99 percent immigrants is now separating thousands of children from their families; meanwhile, Puerto Rico’s, a U.S. territory, power is not fully restored (Dickerson, 2018; Ruiz, 2018). Social movements and catastrophes overlooked have had momentum and people have been engaged. #BlackLivesMatter is driving conversations about racial equality and safety both online and in person, as more black women, men, and children are killed in public, violent ways. The hashtag #BlackLivesMatter began in 2013, although the rallying cry had been around prior to the hashtag. The hashtag itself, though, came to define a movement that continues to have a voice and influence in 2018, defying the idea that hashtag social media movements are ephemeral, here-today-gone-tomorrow moments in time. Lee Rainie of 208 Conclusion the Pew Research Center said, “This is a very powerful example of how a hashtag now is attached to a movement, and a movement, in some ways, has grown around a hashtag—and a series of really painful and really powerful conversations are taking place in a brand-new space” (Chokshi, 2016, para. 4). The 2017 Women’s March foregrounded women’s disenfranchise- ment in a public way, and it was completely organized via social media. The #MeToo movement is continuing the conversation about women’s safety and inclusion by focusing attention on the harassment and assaults that women face daily. And at the end of the day, we can’t forget that in 2018 journalists continued to face charges in North Dakota for attempting to do their job and cover the Dakota Access Pipeline, a pipeline that has had multiple leaks of hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil since last year (Springer, 2018; Brown, 2018; Cuevas & Almasy, 2017). Adolescents are speaking out in heart-wrenching ways about school shootings via social media. After the deaths of ten teens and injuries of ten more in a school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas—an event that followed just three months after the deaths of 17 in a school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida—students launched the hashtag #IfIDieInASchoolShoot- ing to tell the world about their sense of inevitability of their dying by gunfire on a school campus (Criss, 2018). The United States has 57 times as many school shootings as all of the other industrialized nations together, so the growth of student activism around issues of gun control on social media is perhaps one of the growing activist uses of social media that we will see into the future (Grabow & Rose, 2018). Social media communities are an obvious way for students to connect with one another across state lines after they’ve been caught in yet another school shooting. These conversations and others are being driven by technology and the digitally connected communities that are organizing around topics and mutual interest, not places or people. These communities are the basis of our future democracy, as they take on the “really painful and really powerful conversations” that form our thinking about how different groups are represented and given a voice within the public sphere. This book, with its research of cases on underserved communities, hopes to serve as a historical artifact in that it captures these conversations and ideas in time before they were swept away by the drive for newer and bigger ideas and communication technologies; we collectively began this project almost ten years ago. We kept brainstorming and attempting to conduct research, in a timely manner, to understand another snapshot of how people are communicating within digital media: who is left out, who is included, and what does all this mean? And we acknowledge that those left out are just as important as those included. How much can we understand based on the scope Conclusion 209 of our research? This is not an end, but a beginning to a digital democracy discussion. We must push forward in academia, professionally and even within our overall societal roles so that one day individuals and communities will not be sourced under one stereotyped attribute; but instead there will be a unification where many traits and qualities are upheld, understood, represented, and heard with many layers for all peoples. This will be a society that values a stew pot with all its flavors uplifting one another versus a melting pot of assimilation (Wilson, Gutierrez, & Chao, 2012). When we maintain our pluralism, with our diversity, we are stronger. Acknowledging life, resources, and education is not a pie, but instead a tower we each can help construct, build, and stabilize. We must also understand that same tower may need to be torn down and rebuilt. This building also comes with more questioning. Within all facets of society we need to question who is accepted, who is empowered, who is left out, and who is deciding all of these things. This takes effort, education, ego control, and openness. In the end, it is clear that journalists and their hopeful audiences are attempting to cope: coping during distress, coping with entertainment, coping with avoidance, coping within communities, and coping with construction of new realities. This book’s research collectively uplifts the difference between truths and facts. There are many truths based on perspective and facts should be able to withstand multiple lenses. In underserved communities, understanding this dichotomy is essential for understanding community, coverage, and digital discourse. To begin the discussion, media producers, consumers, and educators need resources to make contact with underserved communities and to understand their goals and ideology. Reaching out and listening to underserved groups is an important part of changing media inequalities. In the end, we all must chronicle not only what people say, but what they actually do and its impact on society. As Errin Haines Whack, Associated Press’ National Writer on Race and Ethnicity, responded to a question about preparing future journalists for online trolls at Ohio University’s E. W. Scripps School of Journalism and School of Visual Communication’s 2018 Schuneman Symposium on Photo- journalism and New Media, “Covering Trump,” said, self-care is important and it is through conversations that we may share, understand, and cope with our collective experiences. We began this book discussing silence, democracy, and freedom of the press and to bring this book full circle by intentionally ending on ethics. Jour- nalism, as a profession, holds ethics in high regard. In order to be ethical, one must be inclusive. The appendix to this conclusion serves as a starting place to develop contacts with underserved communities—understanding their own part in changing stereotyped conversations. In the end, we must not only 210 Conclusion chronicle what people say as history, but evaluate what people do, including its overall societal impact. The burden of knowledge is on those seeking information, not the communities that are underrepresented, and should be sought from a position of partnership, not privilege.

APPENDIX

Resources for Understanding Underserved Communities:

Approaching Inclusivity and Intersectionality (in alphabetical order for all sections) Disability • National Center on Disability and Journalism Disability Language Style Guide: http://ncdj.org/style-guide/.

LGBTQ2S+, Women, and Gender Minorities • GLAAD Media Reference Guide: https://www.glaad.org/reference. • NLGJA-The Association of LGBTQ Journalists Stylebook: https://www.nlgja.org/stylebook/. • The Women’s Media Center: https://www.womensmediacenter.com/. • Two-Spirit - LGBTQ2S + informational pieces: https://www.hcn.org/ articles/indian-country-news-why-marriage-equality-is-a-matter-of- tribal-sovereignty https://guides.library.ualberta.ca/lgbtq2s

Media Ethics and Literacy • Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication Code of Ethics: http://www.aejmc.org/home/about/code-of-ethics/. • International Communication Association, “On Ethical Practices, Around the World and Within ICA”: https://www.icahdq.org/blog- post/1523657/267541/On-Ethical-Practices-Around-the-World-and- Within-ICA; and Guiding Principles: https://www.icahdq.org/page/ MissionStatement. • National Communication Association states on policy and ethics: https://www.natcom.org/advocacy-public-engagement/public-policy/ public-statements. • National Press Photographers Code of Ethics: Conclusion 211

https://nppa.org/code-ethics. • Online News Association Code of Ethics: https://toolkit.journalists.org/social-newsgathering/. • Public Relations Society of America Code of Ethics: https://www.prsa.org/ethics/code-of-ethics/. • Radio, Television, Digital News Association Code of Ethics: https://www.rtdna.org/article/rtdna_code_of_ethics. • The Center for Media Literacy: www.medialit.org. • The Diversity Style Guide: http://www.diversitystyleguide.com/. • The Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics: https://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp. ○ Additional Code of Ethics Guides Provided by SPJ from around the world: https://www.spj.org/ethicscode-other.asp.

Race and Ethnicity • Asian American Journalists Association Guide to Covering Asian Ameri- cans: https://www.aaja.org/aajahandbook. • Native American Journalists Association Ethics Guides (guides listed by name): https://www.naja.com/resources/. • National Association of Black Journalists Resources: https://www.nabj. AQ: Victo- org/general/custom.asp?page=resources. ria, did we • National Association of Hispanic Journalists provides a Brown Out Report want to keep on Latinx representation on TV network news, a guide on reporting on Unity in here even though immigration and DACA, and Code of Conduct, among other resources: it’s no lon- http://www.nahj.org. ger actively • Media Diversity Forum: operating? http://www.mediadiversityforum.lsu.edu. –Candi • Reporting on Race Toolkit: http://www.awarenessinreporting.org/toolkit/race/additionalResources.asp.

Religion • Resources for Covering Islam: https://www.newsu.org/resources/sri/covering-islam. • Stylebook: http://religionstylebook.com. 212 Conclusion

REFERENCES

Andersen, N. (1990/1991). “Making a Case for Media Literacy in the Class- room.” Media & Values 57. http://www.medialit.org/reading-room/making-case- media-literacy-classroom. Brown, A. (2018). “Five spills, six months in operation: Dakota access track record highlights unavoidable reality—pipelines leak.” The Intercept. https://theintercept. com/2018/01/09/dakota-access-pipeline-leak-energy-transfer-partners/. Cherokee Phoenix. (2015, January 13). “History of the Cherokee Phoenix.” http:// www.cherokeephoenix.org/Article/index/9955. Chokshi, N. (2016). “How #BlackLivesMatter came to define a movement.” The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/23/us/how-blacklivesmatter-came- to-define-a-movement.html. Criss, D. (2018). “What kids want you to know—just in case they die in a school shooting.” CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/23/us/school-shooting-tweets- trnd/index.html. Cuevas, M., & Almasy, S. (2017). “Keystone pipeline leaks 210,000 gallons of oil in South Dakota.” CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/16/us/keystone-pipeline-leak/ index.html. Dickerson, C. (2018). “Hundreds of immigrant children have been taken from parents at U.S. border.” The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/20/us/ immigrant-children-separation-ice.html. Grabow, C., & Rose, L. (2018). “The US has had 57 times as many school shootings as the other major industrialized nations combined.” CNN. https://www.cnn. com/2018/05/21/us/school-shooting-us-versus-world-trnd/index.html. Kerner Report. (1968). http://www.eisenhowerfoundation.org/docs/kerner.pdf. Lippmann, W. (1922). Public Opinion. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company. n.a. (n.d.) “What Is Media Literacy? A Definition . . and More.” Center for Media Literacy. http://www.medialit.org/reading-room/what-media-literacy-definitionand-more. Ruiz, R. (2018). “How Puerto Ricans are surviving without power, several months after Maria.” Mashable. https://mashable.com/2018/05/04/puerto-rico-blackouts- electricity-power/#nEkqe_oOWgqL. Springer, S. (2018). “More than a year later, some journalists arrested at ND pipeline protests still await trial.” WDAY. https://www.wday.com/news/crime- and-courts/4431879-more-year-later-some-journalists-arrested-nd-pipeline- protests-still. Wheeler, L. (2018). “Judge rules Trump can’t block users on Twitter.” The Hill. http:// thehill.com/regulation/389021-judge-rules-trump-cant-block-users-on-twitter. Wilson, C., Gutierrez, F., & Chao, L. (2012). Racism, Sexism, and the Media: Multi- cultural Issues into the New Communication Age. (4th Edition). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Index

ability, 9, 23, 24, 33, 52, 181, 205 digital, 17–18, 22, 31–32, 38–39, 41–42, advocacy, 138, 140, 152–53, 158–59, 49, 51–53, 57, 59, 61–68, 72, 180, 192, 200 78, 85, 97, 117, 157–67, 186–95, African American, 23, 64, 122–23, 199–201, 205–9; 128–29, 138–44, 147, 150, 153, artifact, 5–7, 104, 120, 124, 142, 157–59, 161–62, 165, 172–75, 208; 177, 189 crisis communication, 77 age, 23, 42, 44, 57–59, 64, 66–68, 70, disability, 24, 26, 33, 210 72, 86, 97, 176, 189, 205 diverse media, 157, 180 agenda setting, 109–10 diversity, 30–33, 49, 58, 69, 157, 167, 173, 192–97, 205–9 Black press, 138–41, 144, 146, 150–53, 157–67, 180 echo chamber, 48–51 election, 17–22, 25–33, 37–48, 50, civic dialogue, 17, 21, 39–41, 44, 49, 52–53, 102, 109, 176, 181 52, 58, 70, 89, 117, 125, 127, ethics, 8, 79, 185, 192–201, 209 129–30, 159, 180, 209 equality, 30, 45, 51, 138–41, 152, civil rights, 31, 117, 138, 140, 153, 158, 157–59, 207; 162, 165, 180 inequality, 121 community crisis, 77 compassion fatigue, 77–78, 82–84 fake news, 17–32, 46–48, 201 content analysis, 19, 99–100, 108, 161, framing, 99–100, 109, 121, 137, 141–43 173, 186 culture, 21, 31, 41, 63, 80, 101, 119–20, gender, 23, 26–30, 44–48, 52, 60, 138, 146–47, 153, 164–65, 173, 65, 68, 117–30, 162, 164, 171, 185–89, 200–201, 206, 216 175–81, 205 democracy, 17–18, 30, 41–42, 160, 181, harassment, 17, 21–22, 38, 51–52, 198–99, 206–9 81–83, 208

213 Index 214 history, 30, 101, 110, 119, 121, 137, political communication, 18, 38, 46, 162, 173, 186–93, 200, 206, 210 50–51, 157–84 priming, 171–81 identity, 40, 52, 60, 87, 100–101, 117, public discourse. See civic dialogue 122–23, 128, 158, 185 public sphere, 22, 37–52, 206 ideology, 39, 53, 142, 146, 152, 192, 209; race, 22–23, 26, 28, 30–31, 45, 48, 52– assimilation, 173, 185, 187, 209; 53, 59, 64, 67, 117–30, 139–40, pluralism, 209; 145, 147–53, 157, 159, 161–67, resistance, 40, 46 172–76, 181, 205, 209 image, 82–83, 101, 117–18, 121–29, religion, 22–24, 26, 28, 32, 38, 45, 48, 140, 145, 174–75, 186–87, 192, 148 205 resource guides, 210–11 inclusion, 208 international communication, 71 self-care, 79, 83, 86–89, 209 intersectionality, 33, 206 sexuality, 23, 26, 28, 45 social media, 17–53, 57–72, 78–81, 85, Latin American journalists, 86, 189 97–110, 157, 159–67, 173, 206–8; LGBT2SQ+, 22, 31, 38, 44–45, 51 Facebook, 17–18, 20, 25, 28–29, 32, 37–39, 41–47, 58–70, 97–98, 102, mental health, 49, 79, 81–87, 108, 217 128, 187–88, 200; myth, 117–30 Instagram, 25, 29, 44, 47, 58, 98, 102; Native American press, 171–81 Twitter, 18, 20–22, 25, 29, 32, norms and routines, 102, 158, 173, 200, 38–39, 41, 44, 47, 58–59, 62–71, 205 78, 97–110, 128, 157–67, 187, 200, 206; Obama, B., 26, 37, 42, 162, 164–67, YouTube, 25, 29, 44, 97, 102 187 spiral of silence, 17–18, 22, 30, 38, 46 Obama, M., 97 objectivity, 79, 140, 160, 189–200 trolling, 17–27, 38, 46–47, 52, 81, 98 peer communication, 57–63 politics, 20, 25, 29, 31, 39, 45, 191; women’s rights, 45–46 About the Editors

Victoria L. LaPoe is assistant professor in Ohio University’s Scripps School of Journalism. Previously, she served as broadcasting and film coordinator and assistant professor in Western Kentucky University’s School of Journalism and Broadcasting. She received her Ph.D. from Louisiana State University in 2013. She is co-author of multiple books including Oil and Water: Media Lessons from Hurricane Katrina and the Deepwater Horizon Disaster (2013), which explores the visuals and narratives associated with both disasters. She also co-authored Indian Country: Telling a Story in a Digital Age (2017), which evaluates how digital media impact storytelling within Native communities. Indian Country contains interviews with more than forty Native journalists around the country. In 2018, she co-authored the book Resistance Advocacy as News: Digital Black Press Covers the Tea Party. This book shows that Black reporters working for the Black press absolutely recognize the racial component and provide more thorough discussions than their mainstream counterparts. Victoria is also the American Indian editor for the Media Diversity Forum. She is currently the vice president for the Native American Journalists Association and a NAJA lifetime member. She has co-run the Native American Journalists Association Fellows student newsroom for multiple years. She is a current AEJMC officer for both the Minorities and Communication division and Commission on the Status of Women. This summer she received national recognition for her work, as she was awarded the “Outstanding Woman in Journalism and Mass Communication Education” by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Commu- nications’ Commission on the Status of Women. Prior to work in academia, she was an awarding-winning television journalist who worked in the industry for more than ten years. Candi S. Carter Olson is assistant professor at Utah State University. Her research interests focus on women’s press clubs as agents of change, 215 About the Editors 216 newswomen’s history, and women’s use of social media to build community and organize activist groups. She received a 2012–2013 American Asso- ciation of University Women American Fellowship, a 2015–2016 Mountain West Center research grant, the 2016 American Journalism Rising Scholar award, and a 2018 AEJMC Emerging Scholar research grant. She has published in Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, Journalism History, Feminist Media Studies, Pennsylvania History, Media Report to Women, and American Journalism. Carter Olson is also the 2017–2018 Chair of the Association for Education in Mass Communication and Journalism’s Commission on the Status of Women.

Benjamin R. LaPoe II is visiting assistant professor at Ohio University, teaching political communication and race in Scripps College of Commu- nication. He currently serves as the director of the Political Communication certificate in the School of Communication Studies; he is also the adviser for Ohio University’s Political Communication Student Group. Previously, LaPoe was an assistant professor in interactive storytelling at Western Ken- tucky University. At WKU, Ben served as an adviser for WKU’s Multicul- tural Student Journalists group, assisting in its growth by five-fold during his time at the university. He also headed WKU’s School of Journalism and Broadcasting’s Diversity Committee. He is a past and current officer within AEJMC’s Minority and Communication’s division. LaPoe is the first author on a book released this past February (2018), Resistance Advocacy as News: Digital Black Press Covers the Tea Party. This book tracks coverage of the Tea Party from the modern group’s beginning in early February of 2009 until two weeks after the 2012 general presidential election in November. He is coauthor of the book Indian Country: Telling a Story in a Digital Age, where he wrote about the history of media and minority press. LaPoe has also been published in several books that address politics, media, and race with key political media and African American scholars such as Dr. Jinx C. Brous- sard (“A History of the New Orleans Times-Picayune,” in News Evolution or Revolutions? The Future of Journalism in the Digital Age, ed. A. Miller and A. Reynolds. New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 2013), and Dr. Jas Sul- livan (“The Black Press and Priming,” in Critical Black Studies Reader, ed. R. Brock and D. Stevenson. New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 2016). Most recently, LaPoe has been conducting research on Social Network Analysis of Political Candidates’ circles of support. LaPoe earned his Ph.D. in media and public affairs, with a concentration on race and political communication, from Louisiana State University’s Manship School in 2013. LaPoe received a BA in English in 2003 and an MS in journalism in 2008, both from West Virginia University. Prior to the PhD program, LaPoe worked in the WVU’s Dean’s office writing and producing content for the alumni magazine. About the Contributors

Tristan Ahtone serves as associate editor for Tribal Affairs at High Country News. He has reported for PBS NewsHour, Frontline, National Native News, Wyoming Public Radio, Fronteras Desk, NPR, and Al Jazeera America. Ahtone’s stories have won multiple honors, including investigative awards from Public Radio News Directors Incorporated and the Gannett Founda- tion. Additionally, he was part of the Al Jazeera team that received a Delta Chi Award in 2015. A citizen of the Kiowa Tribe, he is a past vice president of the Native American Journalists Association and Nieman Fellow at Har- vard University.

Mary A. Bemker is a recognized scholar, presenter, practitioner, and dynamic and forward-thinking educator. Having developed and taught in graduate programs in nursing and psychology, Dr. Bemker served as a director of a nursing department, academic coordinator, associate professor, and professor. Her practice and academic areas of expertise include leadership, compassion fatigue and satisfaction, research, population health, theoretical foundations of practice, vulnerable populations, professional roles, and substance use disorders. In addition to publishing in professional journals and texts in nursing, education, and psychology, Dr. Bemker is a coauthor and editor of texts for graduate nursing education. Dr. Bemker holds graduate nursing degrees from the University of Alabama School of Nursing/ Univer- sity of Alabama at Birmingham, a graduate degree in counseling psychology from Spalding University, and a graduate degree in education and counseling from Indiana University. Dr. Bemker holds professional certifications and licenses in multiple states and on an international level. She served on multiple boards, including her current advisory board membership for the Nevada Nurses Foundation. Dr. Bemker is a Paul Harris Fellow and is a

217 218 About the Contributors

Fellow in the American Association of Social Psychiatry. She is currently faculty at the School of Nursing, Walden University, where she teaches in the MSN Program.

Daniel A. Berkowitz is professor emeritus in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Iowa. His research interests are in social and cultural production of news, including media and terrorism, news and collective memory, mythical news narratives, and journalistic bound- ary work.

Jinx C. Broussard is full professor and the Bart R. Swanson Endowed Memorial Professor at Louisiana State University. Broussard teaches public relations, strategic communications, media history, and mass media theory. Public relations campaigns her students produced have won two first place and one second place national awards since 2014. She is currently the managing editor of African American content for the Manship School’s Media and Diversity Forum. Her research interests include the black press, representations of racial and ethnic minorities, media history, alternative media, crisis communication, public relations strategies and tactics, and the civil rights movement. These interests date back to her Ph.D. dissertation, “Lifting the Veil on Obscurity: Four Pioneering Black Women Journalists: 1890–1950,” and subsequent book on these women. Broussard is also author of the national award-winning book titled African American Foreign Correspondents: A History (2013). As a public relations professional, she was the director of public information for the city of New Orleans and simultaneously served as press secretary to Mayor Sidney J. Barthelemy in New Orleans for almost eight years.

Stine Eckert is assistant professor in the Department of Communication at Wayne State University and Chair of the Feminist Scholarship Division (FSD) of the International Communication Association (ICA). She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Maryland as well as a Graduate Certificate in Women’s Studies. Her research focuses on the intersection of social media, journalism, minorities, and gender. She has published articles in New Media & Society; International Journal of Communication; Media, Culture & Soci- ety; Health Communication; Journalism: Theory, Practice & Criticism; and the Journal of Communication Inquiry.

Katie Lever is a graduate of Western Kentucky University, where she received a BA in communication studies and an MA in organizational communication. She is currently a student at the University of Texas at Austin, where she is pursuing a Ph.D. in communication studies. Her career as a About the Contributors 219 researcher and a scholar began during the sophomore year of her undergraduate program when she accepted a position as a research assistant with Ben and Victoria LaPoe Katie’s current research interests include athletic communication, mediated communication, and health communication. A former college athlete, Katie is passionate about athletic mental health and strives to improve collegiate athletics through sound and thorough research.

Andrea L. Miller is professor and associate dean for undergraduate studies and administration in the Manship School of Mass Communication at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. She teaches courses in crisis communication, and broadcast and multi-media journalism. Prior to receiving her Ph.D. from the University of Missouri, Columbia’s School of Journal- ism in 2003, Miller was an award-winning television news producer for a decade at numerous stations in Texas. While serving at a station in Dallas, Miller developed an interest in breaking news and crisis communication that has now translated into an academic research stream. Miller is the coauthor/ editor of two books. Oil & Water (2014) addresses all aspects of the media experiences of the dual disasters to hit the Gulf Coast. Hurricane Katrina and the BP Oil Disaster, and News Evolution or Revolution? (2014) explores the future of the newspaper industry using the New Orleans’ Times-Picayune as a microcosm of the industry. She is currently working on the third book with Dr. Jinx Broussard that dissects crisis communication case studies from both the journalists’ and the public relations professionals’ perspectives. Miller, who serves on the Louisiana Association of Broadcasters Board as associate director, was named to the 2016 SEC Academic Leadership Development Program, a 2011 Columbia School of Journalism Dart Center for Journal- ism and Trauma Academic Fellow, and a 2008 Scripps-Howard Leadership Academy Participant.

Mary T. Rogus is associate professor of electronic journalism in the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. She joined the faculty in 1999 and her primary areas of teaching are video/audio and online journalism and media ethics. She has traveled extensively to conduct international training for professional broadcast journalists and journalism professors through U.S. State Department grants, including to Ukraine, Guyana, Indonesia, African countries, and was one of the first American trainers for Al Jazeera. Rogus has received multiple teaching awards including the AEJMC Edward Bliss Distinguished Broadcast Education award in 2014. Her research interests include cross-platform news gathering, production, and distribution, and its impact on journalism quality and ethics. She has also investigated the impact of virtual duopolies on local television news diversity and production, and coauthored a text/trade book on television news producing, entitled 220 About the Contributors

Managing Television News: A Handbook for Ethical and Effective Producing (2006), which was endorsed by the late CBS news anchor Walter Cronkite. Prior to joining Ohio University, Rogus spent 20 years working in local television news. She worked in seven different medium and large markets, ranging from Roanoke, Virginia, to Minneapolis and Pittsburgh, as an award- winning reporter, producer, and executive producer.

Rebecca J. Tallent is currently associate professor of journalism in the Uni- versity of Idaho’s School of Journalism and Mass Media where she teaches reporting, public relations courses, and cultural diversity and the media. She is of Cherokee descent and much of her research revolves around Native media law. Her other research is primarily techniques about teaching critical thinking skills. Tallent edited/coauthored recently two books, Still Captive? History, Law and the Teaching of High School Journalism (2015) and Mass Communications Law in Idaho (2017). Prior to joining academia, she worked as an oil and gas, financial, and environmental reporter before spending 18 as a PR professional. A Society of Professional Journalists member since 1972, Becky is currently the chair of the national Journalism Education Committee and is a former member of the SPJ national board of directors as a campus adviser at large, plus the campus chapter adviser for the University of Idaho. She has been a member of the Native American Journalists Association since 1999 and is a member of the Education Committee.

Nerissa Young grew up on the family farm in West Virginia and is associate lecturer in the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. She has taught or practiced journalism in West Virginia, Oklahoma, Mis- sissippi, and Ohio. Young’s research interests are media law, media ethics, and journalism and trauma. She is the adviser to the award-winning campus chapter of Society of Professional Journalists.