Are we all Charlie? How media priming and framing affect immigration policy preferences after terrorist attacks

Abstract

This thesis would not have been possible without the help and backing of a great number of people. First, I want to thank my two outstanding supervisors, Kari Steen-Johnsen and Knut Heidar who have helped me write what is here today. Knut has given invaluable feedback on never-ending drafts and revisions. Kari has always had the time for questions, for discussing possible ways forward and for shooting down my newest distracting idea for some interesting research. She has been incredibly flexible, given important feedback on short notice, and somehow always found something positive to say. I always leave her office in a better mood than when I enter. I have had the great privilege of collaborating with colleagues working on the same themes through the Disruptive Events Project. Marte Slagsvold Winsvold and Bernard Enjolras have always made time for one more discussion or reading of a draft, giving me new perspectives and insights. I have also learned a lot from discussions with, and feedback from, Shana Gadarian, Francisco Herreros and Atte Oksanen at our meetings around the world. As a lucky matter of coincidence two of my best friends were writing their dissertations when I started on this thesis. Atle Hennum Haugsgjerd has been a important friend (and colleague) through my university life and this thesis bears many signs of his influence. His importance cannot be overstated. Andreas Kokkvold Tveit has likewise been an important discussion partner, commenter and "office mate" at our writing sessions at cafés around Oslo and at Blindern. My colleagues at the institute have always given of their time when asked, and most of the work here have been presented and discussed at the institute's "Politikkseminar" under the auspices of Jo Saglie.

Wait and see? Public opinion dynamics after terrorist attacks

“…While none of this descriptives is absolutely conclusive, public opinion and newspaper content seem to move jointly, in a fashion which seems more than a coincidence. Our results, as such, seem to confirm the importance of priming by the media, documented by Brooks and Manza (2013) and Merolla and Zechmeister (2009) in experiments, Cho et al(2003) in the aftermath of 9/11 in the USA, and Solheim (2019) in the case of the 2015 Charlie Hebdo and Hyper Cacher attacks.…”

“…Montalvo (2011) compares postal and in-person vote to uncover the impact of the 2004 Madrid bombing on electoral choices. de Vreese, 2007;Castanho Silva, 2018;Finseraas et al, 2011Finseraas et al, , 2013Nussio et al, 2019;Solheim, 2019;Legewie, 2013), attitudes towards minorities (Boydstun et al, 2018;Echebarria-Echabe and Fernandez-Guede, 2006;Giani, 2020;Jakobsson and Blom, 2014), or trust broadly conceived (Arvanitidis et al, 2016;Dinesen and Jaeger, 2013;Geys and Qari, 2017;Metcalfe et al, 2011;Perrin and Smolek, 2009;Van Hauwaert and Huber, 2020). In contrast to these studies, our analysis focuses on public opinion stances on core individual freedoms.…”

Do Terrorists Get the Attention They Want?

“…Our findings are in line with previous research on the newsworthiness of larger attacks ( Sui et al 2017 ), which induces the attention desired by terrorists ( Rohner and Frey 2007 ; Jetter 2017 ). However, specific effects are driven by the type of media coverage and the ensuing political debates, which in turn depend on the proximity to an attack ( Böhmelt, Bove, and Nussio 2019 ; Matthes, Schmuck, and von Sikorski 2019 ; Solheim 2021 ).…”

Wait and See? Public Opinion Dynamics after Terrorist Attacks

“…tive immigration policies (Boomgaarden and de Vreese, 2007;Finseraas et al, 2011Finseraas et al, , 2013Nussio et al, 2019;Solheim, 2019;Legewie, 2013), refugees (Breton and Eady, 2021) or trust broadly conceived (Nussio, 2020;Van Hauwaert and Huber, 2020;Geys and Qari, 2017;Arvanitidis et al, 2016;Dinesen and Jaeger, 2013;Metcalfe et al, 2011;Perrin and Smolek, 2009). In contrast to these studies, our analysis focuses on public opinion stances on core individual freedoms.…”