Disproportionate Discourses: Analyzing the Media’s Coverage of Police Brutality

Name

Tatyanah Santiago, Georgia Southern UniversityFollow

Publication Date

4-4-2023

Major

Communication Studies (B.S.)

Document Type and Release Option

Thesis (open access)

Faculty Mentor

Dr. Shana Bridges

Abstract

This thesis examines how the media covers fatal confrontations between minorities and the police. Since the media is a primary vehicle for interpreting events as they unfold, it is important to recognize the ways news coverage frames these violent encounters. This paper focuses specifically on the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO in August 2014 and George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis, MN in May 2020. News articles from The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fox News, and CNN were analyzed to see how authority narratives, witness narratives, and character depictions were reported. Three theoretical lenses (Critical Race Theory, Framing Theory, and Critical Discourse Analysis) were used to examine news stories from these outlets. Ultimately, my analysis concludes that media coverage of police brutality provides some evidence of the tenets of Critical Race Theory, which posits that oppression is systemic and sedimented into institutions (including the police and the media).

Thesis Summary

This thesis examines how the media covers fatal confrontations between minorities and the police. Since the media is a primary vehicle for interpreting events as they unfold, it is important to recognize the ways news coverage frames these violent encounters. This paper focuses specifically on the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO in August 2014 and George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis, MN in May 2020. News articles from The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fox News, and CNN were analyzed to see how authority narratives, witness narratives, and character depictions were reported. Three theoretical lenses (Critical Race Theory, Framing Theory, and Critical Discourse Analysis) were used to examine news stories from these outlets. Ultimately, my analysis concludes that media coverage of police brutality provides some evidence of the tenets of Critical Race Theory, which posits that oppression is systemic and sedimented into institutions (including the police and the media).

Recommended Citation

Santiago, Tatyanah, "Disproportionate Discourses: Analyzing the Media’s Coverage of Police Brutality" (2023). Honors College Theses. 829.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/honors-theses/829