Copyright by Tamara Anne Bell 2004 The Dissertation Committee for Tamara Anne Bell Certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: The Killer Ds and the Media: Framing the Coverage from Austin to Ardmore Committee: Maxwell E. McCombs, Supervisor Dominic Lasorsa Ronald Anderson Daron Shaw Camille Kraeplin The Killer Ds and the Media: Framing the Coverage from Austin to Ardmore by Tamara Anne Bell, B.A., M.A. Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Texas at Austin May, 2004 Dedication I dedicate this dissertation to my son, Jackson Patrick Bell. I hope you will always pursue your dreams no matter how unattainable they may seem. Acknowledgements The author wishes to acknowledge with love and thanks: Dr. Maxwell McCombs, who never complained when I changed my dissertation topic several times over the past seven years and who never gave up on me and the idea that I would one day finish one of those topics; the other members of my committee, Dr. Dominic Lasorsa, Dr. Ron Anderson and Dr. Daron Shaw, who agreed not only to remain on my committee, but to an accelerated schedule so I could graduate in May; Dr. Camille Kraeplin, who has been there for me through all of my life’s ups and downs; my interviewees, who unselfishly gave me such wonderful, rich material; my boss, State Rep. Jim Dunnam, whose political courage and determination inspired my writing; J.D.’s Waco staff, Jane and Russell, for the calming conversations and encouragement; the “Capitol Gang” who picked up the slack for me the past four months so I could work on my dissertation; June, for pushing me (in a good way) to finish and for trusting that I would; Hugh, for so many things I can’t begin to list them here; everyone at the Capitol who, in the past seven years, asked, “Are you a doctor yet?”; my grandparents, who are dancing a jig in Heaven; Polly and Jeff, for simultaneously holding my hand and kicking my butt in ways only siblings can do; and especially my mom and dad, whose eternal belief in me provided the motivation to finally accomplish my goal. v The Killer Ds and the Media: Framing the Coverage from Austin to Ardmore Publication No._____________ Tamara Anne Bell, Ph.D. The University of Texas at Austin, 2004 Supervisor: Maxwell E. McCombs In May 2003, 52 Democrats in the Texas House of Representatives left the state in protest of a congressional redistricting bill. Using in-depth interviews, content analysis, documents and personal observations, this study explores the process by which the Democrats determined the frames they would promote when being interviewed by the media about this unprecedented event. Legislators crafted four frames: 1) Care about Constituents, All Texans; 2) Should be Focusing on Other Issues; 3) Current Districts Legal; and 4) U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay’s Power Grab/Washington-Style Politics. Interviews with six key participants showed the four frames were used consistently during the self-imposed exile. The content analysis of 217 news articles confirmed information provided by the interviewees, and aided in understanding what frames were used in the media. The study lends vi insight into how the Texas Democrats crafted the strategic message they presented to the media. vii Table of Contents List of Tables .................................................................................................... xi Chapter One ...................................................................................................... 1 Introduction.................................................................................................. 1 May 12, 2003............................................................................................. 1 Redistricting............................................................................................... 5 Chapter Two...................................................................................................... 9 Theory.......................................................................................................... 9 Framing Theory ......................................................................................... 9 News Sources........................................................................................... 11 Two Approaches ...................................................................................... 12 Journalist-Centered Studies ...................................................................... 13 Source-Centered Studies .......................................................................... 16 Creating Messages ................................................................................... 20 The Present Study .................................................................................... 23 Chapter Three ................................................................................................. 28 Methods ..................................................................................................... 28 Interviews ................................................................................................ 28 Interviewees............................................................................................. 29 State Representative Jim Dunnam of Waco ....................................... 29 State Representative Pete Gallego of Alpine...................................... 31 State Representative Garnet Coleman of Houston.............................. 32 Chris Turner...................................................................................... 33 Dean Rindy ....................................................................................... 33 Matt Angle........................................................................................ 34 Data Collection ........................................................................................ 35 Content Analysis...................................................................................... 36 Analysis Variables ................................................................................... 37 Frames ..................................................................................................... 37 Frame 1: Care About Constituents, All Texans.................................. 37 Frame 2: Should be Focusing on Other Issues ................................... 38 Frame 3: Current Districts Legal ....................................................... 39 Frame 4: Tom DeLay Power Grab/Washington-Style Politics ........... 39 Killer Ds News Sources ........................................................................... 40 In-State vs. Out-of-State Reporters........................................................... 41 Data Collection ........................................................................................ 42 Other Research Methods .......................................................................... 46 viii Chapter Four................................................................................................... 48 The Interviews............................................................................................ 48 May 8, 2003............................................................................................. 48 May 9, 2003............................................................................................. 49 May 10, 2003........................................................................................... 56 May 11, 2003........................................................................................... 57 Four Days in Ardmore.............................................................................. 58 The Media Circus..................................................................................... 66 Feeding the Beast..................................................................................... 69 The Reporters........................................................................................... 74 David vs. Goliath ..................................................................................... 77 Chapter Five.................................................................................................... 79 The Content Analysis ................................................................................. 79 Frames ..................................................................................................... 80 Sources .................................................................................................... 85 Chapter Six...................................................................................................... 87 Epilogue..................................................................................................... 87 Chapter Seven ................................................................................................. 89 Discussion.................................................................................................. 89 APPENDIX A .................................................................................................101 APPENDIX B .................................................................................................102 APPENDIX C .................................................................................................107 APPENDIX D .................................................................................................109