case

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Case Study Proposal

Wenjia Zhang

Johns Hopkins University

AS. 480.604.50: Theory Of Mass Communication Practices

Professor John Remensperger

Nov 3, 2024

Introduction and Overview:

This paper aims to investigate and analyze media effects through the representation of the 2023 Iranian protest, which was driven by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while she was in police custody. The information was all over different media channels and contents, from printed media such as magazines to social media, digital news outlets, and broadcast media. According to various sources, Mahsa was arrested for allegedly failing to wear a headscarf properly. During the first anniversary of her death, many people protested throughout different cities in Iran, chanting “Women, Life. Freedom” (Law et al., 2023). This exciting case presents an excellent opportunity to explore media effects and content. It will help highlight how media channels and content such as social media, blogs, and traditional news outlets shape public perceptions and responses to real-life scenarios. Employing theoretical frameworks such as the Situational Crisis Communication Theory will help understand elements that shaped the case’s media content and strategies involving actors such as activists, the Iranian government, media organizations, and the audience employed. The Situational Crisis Communication framework is particularly relevant in this scenario as it is a crisis communication theory that offers insight into how organizations manage communication during a crisis. It helps understand who is responsible for a crisis and how significant the threat is to the involved institution or stakeholder’s reputation. As such, through examining media content and the effects of the Iran protest scenario, this project highlights the significance of media presentation in shaping public reaction and its impact. Comment by John Remensperger: Are you going to analyze how the Iranian government manages communication in this crisis? That seems quite difficult especially since most of that communication would be taking place within Iran. I explain below that framing the activist content may be a much easier (and better) case study for you to do.

Literature Review:

Generally, Situational Crisis Communication is a crisis management theory that assists organizations in protecting their reputation in times of crisis. It involves the crisis manager examining the threat level and matching their response, including the organization's responsibility to the crisis. According to Susánszky (2022), the theory involves Crisis types and contextual modifiers. The theory can help reduce negative feelings, repair reputation quickly, influence people’s intentions, and prevent harmful behavioral intentions. The theory’s response strategy suggests denying, diminishing, and rebuilding as primary crisis responses. Coombs (2022) argues that the framework is often used to evaluate how the public receives the crisis to develop an effective response to diffuse the issue. As such, this theory will guide the paper on how media outlets, including the Iranian government and other stakeholders, responded to the protests while considering victimization and legitimacy factors.

A study by Lauran et al. (2020) highlights that a communication strategy is used during a crisis to influence how the public perceives the issue. The authors indicate how media channels such as social media platforms have become valuable sources of information through online communications that provide continuous real-time streams of a crisis. However, in any crisis or situation, such as the provided case, the priority is to protect the stakeholders from harm. The Situational Crisis Communication framework suggests this, as crisis uncertainty produces stress, and needed information is a coping method (Coombs, 2022). Media acts as a gatekeeper that transfers communication and crisis perception. According to Manzoor et al. (2019), these theories describe how media influences the public's thoughts and sees. They are considered in Situational Crisis Communication guidelines as they help understand the link between public reaction and the present crisis.

Although media acts as a gatekeeper between crisis communication and response, its role in modern crises such as protests has been studied extensively. Brown & Harlow (2019) argues that social media platforms, such as Twitter, serve as a tool for information dissemination and mobilization, including counter-narrative. Additionally, the media can negatively portray protesters and protests, raising questions on the validity of claims within digital news coverage contests and how a region and the topic shape media coverage. The interplay between social and traditional media will be a focal point for understanding how protest information is spread, received, and controlled.

Media content and effect also raise the question of government response through media control and how, regardless of such efforts, media content and information can influence public sentiment and activism. According to Susánszky (2022), formal institutions such as the government, including non-democratic regimes, can affect ordinary people’s political actions, such as protests over social injustice and polities’ political culture. This aligns with Ma & Zhan's (2022) research on how government response or communication approach to social unrest is often through media narrative control to maintain power. This is a practical aspect to explore the Iranian government's response through state media in an attempt to suppress dissent and protest through disinformation and censorship. It is also essential to understand how protests portrayed through media channels affect public engagement and the communication process. Comment by John Remensperger: This is a well written literature review about SCCT but there seems to be a lack of connection between the SCCT materials you have chosen (SCCT usually focuses on an organization in crisis (that could be the Iranian government in this case?) and the case you want to look at.

Methodology:

The media content analysis will consist of articles and blogs from major news outlets such as CNN, personal blogs, and information from major social media platforms such as Twitter. These media channels were selected because of their major influences in shaping public thinking or discourse and their significant reach. A combination of keywords such as ‘Iran Protests 2023’ and ‘Mahsa Amini death’ will be used in collecting the media content. Additionally, the research will utilize media tracking tools to help identify relevant blogs, posts, and articles published during and immediately after the protest. The project analysis will mainly focus on gender-forming and framing techniques used and communication employed by the Iranian government to respond to activists’ communication, including used platforms.

Media Review:

The media selected for this project is a Digital news outlet/article from CNN World. The findings on the scenario are written in both descriptive and narrative format, as they both describe and narrate protest events as observed. The CNN news highlights the commitment of the protestors and the implications of the protests, then frames it as a struggle for women's rights in Iraq. “Many of the protesters chanted, “Women, Life, Freedom” – a popular rallying cry used after nationwide protests erupted following Amini’s death last year” (Law et al., 2023). This can be used to illustrate how agenda-setting is formed. Next, Twitter activism posts and exceptional threads with hashtags like #IranProtest2023 #activism #MahsaAmini were selected. Such tweets become a thread for activists and Twitter audiences. Analyzing these tweets express dissents and reveal themes of resistance and empowerment, portrayed through captions such as “Free woman,” “Fighting for Women's rights and Freedom!” This will demonstrate the role of social media in communication and mobilizing support. Comment by John Remensperger: This type of content isn’t typical of what is analyzed in an SCCT case study. An SCCT case study about this topic would largely focus on the Iranian government as the primary strategic communicator you would be analyzing. I think it would make more sense for you to use framing theory to analyze how activists are strategically framing the protests.

To conclude, these media channels or contents will help highlight media representation dynamics in real-life scenarios, including their impact on public perception, as observed in the Iranian protest. It will also help demonstrate communication and response approaches and their effects, grounded in the Situational Crisis Communication theoretical framework.

References

Brown, D. K., & Harlow, S. (2019). Protests, Media Coverage, and a Hierarchy of Social Struggle. The International Journal of Press/Politics, 24(4), 508-530. https://doi.org/10.1177/1940161219853517

Coombs, W. (2022). Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT). The Handbook of Crisis Communication, 193–204. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119678953.ch14

Lauran, N., Kunneman, F., & Van de Wijngaert, L. (2019). Connecting social media data and crisis communication theory: a case study on the chicken and the egg.  Journal of Risk Research,  23(10), 1259–1277. https://doi.org/10.1080/13669877.2019.1628097

Law, H., Mando, N., Chen, H., Akbarzai, S., & Tawfeeq, M. (2023, September 17). Protests erupt in Iran, one year after Mahsa Amini’s death. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/17/middleeast/iran-protests-mahsa-amini-anniversary-intl-hnk/index.html

Ma, Y., & Zhan, N. (2020). To mask or not to mask amid the COVID-19 pandemic: how Chinese students in America experience and cope with stigma.  Chinese Sociological Review,  54(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/21620555.2020.1833712

Manzoor, S., Safdar, A., & Khan, M. A. (2019). Application of Agenda-setting, Framing and Propaganda during News Production Process.  Pakistan Social Sciences Review,  3(2), 213-228. https://pssr.org.pk/issues/v3/2/application-of-agenda-setting-framing-and-propaganda-during-news-production-process.pdf

Susánszky, P., Kopper, Á., & Zsigó, F. T. (2022). Media framing of political protests – reporting bias and the discrediting of political activism.  Post-Soviet Affairs,  38(4), 312–328. https://doi.org/10.1080/1060586X.2022.2061817

Comments: The case you want to analyze is very interesting and you have laid our a clear process for gathering the necessary data for analysis. That said, SCCT is likely not a good choice for analysis. SCCT has to do understanding how the public attributes fault/blame for a crisis and recommendations for how the organization in crisis should respond. So in this case that could really only be the Iranian government. But you have so much interesting activist content. I think using framing theory to examine how activists strategically frame the protests would be a much more interesting way to do this case study that will be much easier for you to do well. See additional comments in attached document.

1

Case Study Proposal

Wenjia Zhang

Johns Hopkins University

AS. 480.604.50: Theory Of Mass Communication Practices

Professor John Remensperger

Nov 3, 2024

Introduction and Overview:

This paper aims to investigate and analyze media effects through the representation of the 2023 Iranian protest, which was driven by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini while she was in police custody. The information was all over different media channels and contents, from printed media such as magazines to social media, digital news outlets, and broadcast media. According to various sources, Mahsa was arrested for allegedly failing to wear a headscarf properly. During the first anniversary of her death, many people protested throughout different cities in Iran, chanting “Women, Life. Freedom” (Law et al., 2023). This exciting case presents an excellent opportunity to explore media effects and content. It will help highlight how media channels and content such as social media, blogs, and traditional news outlets shape public perceptions and responses to real-life scenarios. Employing theoretical frameworks such as the Situational Crisis Communication Theory will help understand elements that shaped the case’s media content and strategies involving actors such as activists, the Iranian government, media organizations, and the audience employed. The Situational Crisis Communication framework is particularly relevant in this scenario as it is a crisis communication theory that offers insight into how organizations manage communication during a crisis. It helps understand who is responsible for a crisis and how significant the threat is to the involved institution or stakeholder’s reputation. As such, through examining media content and the effects of the Iran protest scenario, this project highlights the significance of media presentation in shaping public reaction and its impact. Comment by John Remensperger: Are you going to analyze how the Iranian government manages communication in this crisis? That seems quite difficult especially since most of that communication would be taking place within Iran. I explain below that framing the activist content may be a much easier (and better) case study for you to do.

Literature Review:

Generally, Situational Crisis Communication is a crisis management theory that assists organizations in protecting their reputation in times of crisis. It involves the crisis manager examining the threat level and matching their response, including the organization's responsibility to the crisis. According to Susánszky (2022), the theory involves Crisis types and contextual modifiers. The theory can help reduce negative feelings, repair reputation quickly, influence people’s intentions, and prevent harmful behavioral intentions. The theory’s response strategy suggests denying, diminishing, and rebuilding as primary crisis responses. Coombs (2022) argues that the framework is often used to evaluate how the public receives the crisis to develop an effective response to diffuse the issue. As such, this theory will guide the paper on how media outlets, including the Iranian government and other stakeholders, responded to the protests while considering victimization and legitimacy factors.

A study by Lauran et al. (2020) highlights that a communication strategy is used during a crisis to influence how the public perceives the issue. The authors indicate how media channels such as social media platforms have become valuable sources of information through online communications that provide continuous real-time streams of a crisis. However, in any crisis or situation, such as the provided case, the priority is to protect the stakeholders from harm. The Situational Crisis Communication framework suggests this, as crisis uncertainty produces stress, and needed information is a coping method (Coombs, 2022). Media acts as a gatekeeper that transfers communication and crisis perception. According to Manzoor et al. (2019), these theories describe how media influences the public's thoughts and sees. They are considered in Situational Crisis Communication guidelines as they help understand the link between public reaction and the present crisis.

Although media acts as a gatekeeper between crisis communication and response, its role in modern crises such as protests has been studied extensively. Brown & Harlow (2019) argues that social media platforms, such as Twitter, serve as a tool for information dissemination and mobilization, including counter-narrative. Additionally, the media can negatively portray protesters and protests, raising questions on the validity of claims within digital news coverage contests and how a region and the topic shape media coverage. The interplay between social and traditional media will be a focal point for understanding how protest information is spread, received, and controlled.

Media content and effect also raise the question of government response through media control and how, regardless of such efforts, media content and information can influence public sentiment and activism. According to Susánszky (2022), formal institutions such as the government, including non-democratic regimes, can affect ordinary people’s political actions, such as protests over social injustice and polities’ political culture. This aligns with Ma & Zhan's (2022) research on how government response or communication approach to social unrest is often through media narrative control to maintain power. This is a practical aspect to explore the Iranian government's response through state media in an attempt to suppress dissent and protest through disinformation and censorship. It is also essential to understand how protests portrayed through media channels affect public engagement and the communication process. Comment by John Remensperger: This is a well written literature review about SCCT but there seems to be a lack of connection between the SCCT materials you have chosen (SCCT usually focuses on an organization in crisis (that could be the Iranian government in this case?) and the case you want to look at.

Methodology:

The media content analysis will consist of articles and blogs from major news outlets such as CNN, personal blogs, and information from major social media platforms such as Twitter. These media channels were selected because of their major influences in shaping public thinking or discourse and their significant reach. A combination of keywords such as ‘Iran Protests 2023’ and ‘Mahsa Amini death’ will be used in collecting the media content. Additionally, the research will utilize media tracking tools to help identify relevant blogs, posts, and articles published during and immediately after the protest. The project analysis will mainly focus on gender-forming and framing techniques used and communication employed by the Iranian government to respond to activists’ communication, including used platforms.

Media Review:

The media selected for this project is a Digital news outlet/article from CNN World. The findings on the scenario are written in both descriptive and narrative format, as they both describe and narrate protest events as observed. The CNN news highlights the commitment of the protestors and the implications of the protests, then frames it as a struggle for women's rights in Iraq. “Many of the protesters chanted, “Women, Life, Freedom” – a popular rallying cry used after nationwide protests erupted following Amini’s death last year” (Law et al., 2023). This can be used to illustrate how agenda-setting is formed. Next, Twitter activism posts and exceptional threads with hashtags like #IranProtest2023 #activism #MahsaAmini were selected. Such tweets become a thread for activists and Twitter audiences. Analyzing these tweets express dissents and reveal themes of resistance and empowerment, portrayed through captions such as “Free woman,” “Fighting for Women's rights and Freedom!” This will demonstrate the role of social media in communication and mobilizing support. Comment by John Remensperger: This type of content isn’t typical of what is analyzed in an SCCT case study. An SCCT case study about this topic would largely focus on the Iranian government as the primary strategic communicator you would be analyzing. I think it would make more sense for you to use framing theory to analyze how activists are strategically framing the protests.

To conclude, these media channels or contents will help highlight media representation dynamics in real-life scenarios, including their impact on public perception, as observed in the Iranian protest. It will also help demonstrate communication and response approaches and their effects, grounded in the Situational Crisis Communication theoretical framework.

References

Brown, D. K., & Harlow, S. (2019). Protests, Media Coverage, and a Hierarchy of Social Struggle. The International Journal of Press/Politics, 24(4), 508-530. https://doi.org/10.1177/1940161219853517

Coombs, W. (2022). Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT). The Handbook of Crisis Communication, 193–204. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119678953.ch14

Lauran, N., Kunneman, F., & Van de Wijngaert, L. (2019). Connecting social media data and crisis communication theory: a case study on the chicken and the egg.  Journal of Risk Research,  23(10), 1259–1277. https://doi.org/10.1080/13669877.2019.1628097

Law, H., Mando, N., Chen, H., Akbarzai, S., & Tawfeeq, M. (2023, September 17). Protests erupt in Iran, one year after Mahsa Amini’s death. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/17/middleeast/iran-protests-mahsa-amini-anniversary-intl-hnk/index.html

Ma, Y., & Zhan, N. (2020). To mask or not to mask amid the COVID-19 pandemic: how Chinese students in America experience and cope with stigma.  Chinese Sociological Review,  54(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/21620555.2020.1833712

Manzoor, S., Safdar, A., & Khan, M. A. (2019). Application of Agenda-setting, Framing and Propaganda during News Production Process.  Pakistan Social Sciences Review,  3(2), 213-228. https://pssr.org.pk/issues/v3/2/application-of-agenda-setting-framing-and-propaganda-during-news-production-process.pdf

Susánszky, P., Kopper, Á., & Zsigó, F. T. (2022). Media framing of political protests – reporting bias and the discrediting of political activism.  Post-Soviet Affairs,  38(4), 312–328. https://doi.org/10.1080/1060586X.2022.2061817

Comments: The case you want to analyze is very interesting and you have laid our a clear process for gathering the necessary data for analysis. That said, SCCT is likely not a good choice for analysis. SCCT has to do understanding how the public attributes fault/blame for a crisis and recommendations for how the organization in crisis should respond. So in this case that could really only be the Iranian government. But you have so much interesting activist content. I think using framing theory to examine how activists strategically frame the protests would be a much more interesting way to do this case study that will be much easier for you to do well. See additional comments in attached document.