Framing Through Terminology in Media

by | Quotes

“The use of slanted terminology is one of the media’s oldest tricks. One recent and particularly glaring example is the dogged use of Teddy Kennedy’s felicitous invention, ‘Star Wars,’ to describe what the Reagan administration calls its important (and, of course, highly controversial) Strategic Defense Initiative, or simply SDI. The name of a policy or program often plays, rightly or wrongly, an important part in determining its popularity.”

Source: The Coming Battle for the Media: Curbing the Power of the Media Elite (1988).

Keywords: media bias, policy, political-strategy, public-discourse

Author

  • William A. Rusher (1923–2011), publisher of National Review (1957–1988), was a leading conservative spokesman, columnist, and author. He helped draft Barry Goldwater for the 1964 GOP nomination, shaping the party’s future. A Princeton and Harvard Law graduate, he served in WWII, worked in law, and advised the U.S. Senate. In 1989, he became a Distinguished Fellow at the Claremont Institute and remained active in conservative circles until his passing in 2011.

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