Tagged: framing

Political & Economic Sociology / Social Movements / Social Change

Cannabis Legalization on the Ballot: Framing the Debate in Three States

There is something curious happening this election season, and it has nothing to do with 47% or Obamacare. Voters in three states – Washington, Oregon, and Colorado – will be casting ballots on whether or not to legalize cannabis. Whether or not these measures ultimately pass, they amount to the most direct challenge to the legitimacy of US drug policy since the War on Drugs began over 40 years ago. Of particular interest here are the similarities between the proposed...

Political & Economic Sociology / Science & Technology / Sociology of Organizations & Work

The Salience of Political and Financial Climate in Policy Frames

by NickieWild Politics often guides the course of technological development. One of the most obvious places that this has occurred, and continues to occur, is the United States’ NASA program. With the US essentially still fighting two wars, the looming health care, Medicare, and Social Security crises, and the general poor state of the economy, many question the relevance of space exploration in the world today. In order to keep NASA going, scientists and administrators are increasingly switching NASA’s mission...

Gender & Sexuality / Social Movements / Social Change / Sociology of Law, Crime and Deviance

Dame(sel) in Distress?

Feminist advocates have spent years working to define rape as a social problem.   These advocates have worked as claims-makers in this regard and have engaged in various framing processes along the way.  Sociologists and criminologists have entered the conversation along the way offering a variety of theoretical perspectives and empirical investigations to help understand rape and sexual assault more fully.  Despite these efforts, rape remains one of the most underreported crimes with an even more dismal prosecution and conviction rates....