Understanding the Framing of Issues in Multi-Actor Arenas Power Relations in the Human Rights Debate

Framing by Actors in the Human Rights Debate: the Kony 2012 Campaign

Human rights actors form networks and debate in issue arenas to find solutions to violations. Framing can be used to create and increase issue salience as well as organisational importance, thus influencing power relations and the human rights debate. Not all the actors are equally powerful, meaning that the more dominant actors function as gatekeepers, controlling the debate and the subsequent decision-making process. The campaign Kony 2012 by Invisible Children (IC) is used as a case study to see whether, by observing the reaction the campaign elicited from two well-established gatekeepers (Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch), this campaign by a previously relatively unknown non…

Public Discourse on Human Trafficking in International Issue Arenas

Abstract. The purpose of this study is to better understand how the complex problem of human trafficking is addressed in international debates. How the discussion about human trafficking develops and how it is debated ultimately influences how the decision-making process unfolds. In order to understand the formation of public policy and laws, therefore, it is important to study the debate that occurs prior to decision making. This analysis focuses on the narratives used by major, well-established human rights and political actors that argue for necessary actions to be undertaken — such as the formation of new policies and laws in the European Union — as an attempt to protect citizens of the…

Human rights organizations and online agenda setting

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to better understand agenda setting by international human rights organizations in the online environment and at the same time contribute to agenda‐setting theory. The role of non‐governmental organizations (NGOs) in the area of human rights is clarified, and agenda setting and related concepts are discussed.Design/methodology/approachThe study focuses on how attention is drawn to human rights issues in online communication by Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International. A content analysis of online forums of HRW and Amnesty International was conducted by monitoring their web sites and Facebook and Twitter pages over a period of three months. In ad…

Towards a democratic EU online communication ia an organisational and civil context

Framing issues in the public debate: the case of human rights

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to better understand how issues may be framed in public debate. The outcomes of this debate affect organizations. The study is based on the seven types of framing identified by Hallahan and scrutinizes which of these types is utilized, and how this is done, in the case of human rights issues.Design/methodology/approachFor this study a secondary analysis of academic papers on human rights issues was conducted. After a literature search, 40 papers originating from 23 different journals were further analyzed. Where the researchers described the framing of human rights issues, the type of framing was identified according to the typology and mode of utilizatio…

Can online communication strengthen the relationship of EU with young citizens in Finland?

Introduction: In the last five years the EU has increased its authority on various issues, as well as its visibility. Nevertheless, the impact that the European Union (EU) has had on the lives of citizens in its Member States is often underestimated, and support towards its institutions has declined in recent years, especially among young people. The Eurobarometer survey of December 2005 (EB, 2005) made clear that only 55 percent of European youth aged between twenty and twenty-four years old thinks that in five years’ time they would like the EU to play a more important role in their lives. The same study indicated that only 40 percent of youth feel that their voice is heard in the EU. If …