Framing

Framing theory suggests that how something is presented to the audience (called “the frame”) influences the choices people make about how to process that information. This is particularly used by politicians and those news sources that have a relatively obvious bias (MSNBC, Fox News, etc.). Their goal is to guide you down a particular path of thinking. Politicians do this as well. The following are all examples of framing that have been used by either politicians or the media.

Real-life examples of Framing:

• President Trump referring to prisons where migrant children are held as "detention facilities"

• President Obama referring insurance companies as "stakeholders" as opposed to "special interest groups"

• President Bush referring to torture as "enhanced interrogation"

• President Bush referring to his plan for educational testing as "No Child Left Behind"

• President Carter calling an energy crisis a "moral equivalent to war"

• Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin using the term "death panels" when discussing the Affordable Care Act

• Other examples:

  • • Welfare v. Social Programs

    • Estate Tax v. Death Tax

    • Tax Increase v. Revenue Enhancement

    • Baby v. Fetus