Testing Three Measures of Verbal–Visual Frame Interplay in German News Coverage of Refugees and Asylum Seekers

Authors

  • Viorela Dan LMU Munich
  • Maria E. Grabe Indiana University
  • Brent J. Hale Indiana University

Keywords:

multimodality, framing, audiovisual redundancy, television

Abstract

Drawing from framing theory, this article operationalizes and tests three ways to measure how verbal and visual modalities interplay in audiovisual messages to produce meaning. The measures include (a) a ratio of verbal to visual frames; (b) an association rules learning (ARL) procedure; and (c) in-depth analysis of the full audiovisual material. As a step toward validating the measures, they were applied to a sample of German television news stories (n = 98) about refugees and asylum seekers. Though the three measures produced varied results, verbal–visual frame redundancy and congruence were consistently more common than mismatches. Measures differed in the level of effort required to implement them, sample sizes they could handle, and the informative value of results. Future studies are advised to combine the ARL procedure with an in-depth analysis.

Author Biographies

Viorela Dan, LMU Munich

Viorela Dan is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Department of Media and Communication of the Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich. She received her PhD in Communication Studies from the Free University of Berlin in 2016. Her research focuses on the social construction of reality, with a special focus on the interplay between words and visuals in meaning-making. Viorela is particularly interested in framing—especially the interplay between verbal and visual components of messages. Her work has been recognized with various honors, incl. the ComSHER Article of the Year (2nd place, 2018), the Highly Commended Award (2012), and the Promising Professor Award (2013). Her work was featured in journals such as International Journal of Press/Politics, Science Communication, and Health, Risk & Society. She is the author of Integrative Framing Analysis. Framing Health through Words and Visuals (Routledge, 2018).

Maria E. Grabe, Indiana University

Full Professor +1812-856-1466 

Brent J. Hale, Indiana University

PhD Candidate

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Published

2020-07-29

Issue

Vol. 14 (2020)

Section

Articles

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