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Coverage Increases in Response to Protest Activity
Over the 13 days examined, coverage of the summer 2020 Black Lives Matter protests on nightly broadcast news programs increased in response to the growing number of protests nationwide.
Trends in Total Images of Protests by Day
(n=3627), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Trends in Total Events by Day from ACLED Data Set
(n=4699), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Trends in Total Images of Protests by Day
(n=3627), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Trends in Total Events by Day from ACLED Data Set
(n=4699), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
While the first day of protesting saw limited coverage, with the three stations showing a total of 14 images of protest, it is notable that the first day of protests did receive coverage. Central to the protest paradigm is the notion that journalists do not cover protests until they reach a certain level of newsworthiness.6.1 6.2 6.3 In this instance, it is likely that the brutality of George Floyd’s murder coupled with the context of previous high-profile Black Lives Matter protest events prompted immediate coverage of the protests.
Coverage Emphasized Violent Aspects of the Protests
On the second day of protest activity, the coverage began a seven-day trend of emphasizing violent aspects of the protests.
Trends in Images of Protests by Day
(n=3627), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Trends in Events by Day from ACLED Data Set
(n=4699), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Trends in Images of Protests by Day
(n=3627), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Trends in Events by Day from ACLED Data Set
(n=4699), May 26, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Researchers have identified the emphasis on protestor lawlessness or violence as a significant element in reporting that follows the tenants of the protest paradigm.6.4 6.5 This pattern of emphasizing the violent aspects of the protest movement was seen in the analysis of the nightly broadcast news coverage, where a higher proportion of violent images is consistently shown when compared to the ACLED data on actual composition of the protests nationwide.
With the exception of the first day of coverage, this trend holds throughout the entire sample period. The focus on violent aspects of the protests was seen most significantly in the initial coverage of the events. For the time period between May 28, 2020 and May 30, 2020, coverage of the protests showed an average of 56.81% violent images. Comparatively, tracking by the ACLED recorded 22.10% of all protests occurring as being violent demonstrations during those three days.
The trend of focusing on violent aspects of the protest has implications for how the movement is perceived and policed.
On May 28, 2020, coverage predominately contextualized the protests around the activation of the National Guard in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
In this example, the prominence of violent imagery in the coverage disproportionately depicts the movement as being more violent than it is, justifying the perceived necessity of a militarized force to suppress protestors.
The next day, coverage of the fire at the 3rd Precinct police headquarters in Minneapolis entered the 5:00 p.m. newscast cycle.
Here again, the salience of violent protestor actions in Minneapolis detracts from the growing number of peaceful protests occurring across the country.
On May 28, 2020, coverage predominately contextualized the protests around the activation of the National Guard in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
In this example, the prominence of violent imagery in the coverage disproportionately depicts the movement as being more violent than it is, justifying the perceived necessity of a militarized force to suppress protestors.
The next day, coverage of the fire at the 3rd Precinct police headquarters in Minneapolis entered the 5:00 p.m. newscast cycle.
Here again, the salience of violent protestor actions in Minneapolis detracts from the growing number of peaceful protests occurring across the country.
Coverage on May 30, 2020 predominately provides a roundup of protest violence with slugs reading “Rage in the Streets” (ABC) and “Violence Increases Across U.S. After George Floyd’s Death” (CBS).
The coverage perpetuated the focus on violence despite the number of peaceful protests nearly tripling compared to the day previous.
Coverage on May 30, 2020 predominately provides a roundup of protest violence with slugs reading “Rage in the Streets” (ABC) and “Violence Increases Across U.S. After George Floyd’s Death” (CBS).
The coverage perpetuated the focus on violence despite the number of peaceful protests nearly tripling compared to the day previous.
Coverage is Influenced by the Medium and Previous Reporting
The focus on images of violence in broadcast news coverage can be viewed as both an influence of the medium as well as an outcome of previous reporting on the Black Lives Matter movement.
Television news, whose journalistic norms and routines value the dramatic, has a history of increasing the salience of violent news stories6.6 6.7 6.8 Visuals of conflict, looting, and arson are eye-catching and are often used in headlines and at the top of newscasts to draw viewers in and keep them watching throughout the program.
Researchers have also noted how previous reporting on the Black Lives Matter movement have positioned the protests as violent and a threat to the public and property.6.9 6.10 As the framing devices used by journalists in their reporting on the Black Lives Matter movement have been demonstrated to persist over time (e.g. Kilgo et al., 2019), the established context of this reporting style predisposes broadcast reporters to perpetuate it, whether through conscious intent or subconscious influence.
Coverage Shifts Towards Emphasizing Peaceful Aspects
It is on May 31, 2020, that the nightly broadcast news programs begin to consistently show a higher proportion of peaceful images than violent images.
Trends in Images of Protests by Day
(n=2970), May 31, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Trends in Events by Day from ACLED Data Set
(n=3972), May 31, 2020 - June 7, 2020
No Data Found
Between May 31, 2020 and June 2, 2020, the proportion of violent images hovers around 37%, while the proportion of violent demonstrations tapers off from about 18% to about 6%. Although the coverage shows more peaceful images, it is still disproportionate to the actual violence that was occurring at protests across the country. Nevertheless, the coverage does shift to emphasizing more peaceful aspects of the protests. Previous research has noted a change from episodic to thematic framing in protest coverage where stories become more legitimizing of the protest movement.6.11 6.12 Protest paradigm scholars have also established a connection between a focus on violent aspects of a demonstration and episodically framed stories.6.13
This trend away from violent imagery and toward displaying more peaceful images in coverage can be considered an indicator of a shift towards more thematic coverage of the protests.
Several key events may have contributed to this shift towards more thematic framing.
Anti-Press Violence
Journalists themselves were targets of widespread anti-press violence while covering these protests.6.14 The most salient examples of this violence included the arrest of a CNN reporter on May 29, 2020, and the teargassing of press personnel on May 31, 2020. These attacks on reporters, typically at the hands of police, may have influenced the way broadcast journalists reported on protest events.
Excessive Use of Force by Police
Additionally, two instances of excessive use of force by law enforcement against protestors received widespread coverage. On May 31, 2020, broadcast journalists condemned the Atlanta police officers who tased two college students before they had an opportunity to follow officers’ requests to exit their stopped vehicle. And on June 1, 2020, tear gas was used to clear protestors from Lafayette Park, spurring conversations about the appropriate use of crowd control weapons during protests.
Overall, these events represent salient acts of violence by police at protests, aligning with the Black Lives Matter movement’s arguments against excessive police violence. This sequence of events may have prompted a shift in coverage that became more legitimizing of the protestors’ demands.
Anti-Press Violence
Journalists themselves were targets of widespread anti-press violence while covering these protests.6.14
The most salient examples of this violence included the arrest of a CNN reporter on May 29, 2020, and the teargassing of press personnel on May 31, 2020.
These attacks on reporters, typically at the hands of police, may have influenced the way broadcast journalists reported on protest events.
Excessive Use of Force by Police
Additionally, two instances of excessive use of force by law enforcement against protestors received widespread coverage.
On May 31, 2020, broadcast journalists condemned the Atlanta police officers who tased two college students before they had an opportunity to follow officers’ requests to exit their stopped vehicle.
And on June 1, 2020, tear gas was used to clear protestors from Lafayette Park, spurring conversations about the appropriate use of crowd control weapons during protests.
Overall, these events represent salient acts of violence by police at protests, aligning with the Black Lives Matter movement’s arguments against excessive police violence. This sequence of events may have prompted a shift in coverage that became more legitimizing of the protestors’ demands.