News Frames and National Security

de Douglas M. McLeod, Dhavan V. Shah

"Covering 'Big Brother' weaves together two fundamental concerns about cotemporary politics and mass media: (1) the tension between national security and civil liberties that was thrust center stage by the War on Terror following the 9/11 attacks and reemerged as a defining issue with Edward Snowden's revelations about the scope of the surveillance state, and (2) the power of media to render targeted groups suspicious and spur support for government surveillance powers. Doug McLeod and Dhavan Shah provide models for studying the influence of media content, particularly how the framing of media coverage, driven by choices journalists to personify the news, have sweeping implications for public willingness to sacrifice civil liberties in the interest of protecting national security. Covering 'Big Brother' is a seminal and timely text that traces how news production shapes citizens' judgments about tolerance and participation, written to be accessible to general audiences but rich with details for specialists"--