Framing ‘Friend’: Media Framing of ‘Man’s Best Friend’ and the Pattern of Police Shootings of Dogs

Abstract

The representation and framing of events by news sources plays a critical role in the way society comes to understand a given phenomenon. For example, the use of force by police officers against civilians is covered regularly by news media outlets. Far less widely examined, however, is the excessive use of force against companion animals or pets. Thus, to understand the ways in which police use of force against animals is framed in the media, we conducted qualitative content analyses of 189 print news articles published in diverse regions of the U.S. over the course of a six-year period (2011–2016). Drawing on symbolic interactionism, analysis reveals that the media’s representation of incidents of police shootings of dogs speaks not only to the social value dogs have in society, but also to the acceptability of friendships between humans and dogs. Specifically, we argue that some dog–human relationships are more socially acceptable than others and, therefore, shootings against some dogs are perceived as less acceptable than others. Ultimately, we find that news media representation and the ways in which incidents are framed reify existent social hierarchies. This research contributes to growing bodies of literature on police violence, the shift in perspectives on animals in society, and the power of the media to affect public perception of incidents.

Attributing Responsibility When Police Officers are Killed in the Line of Duty: An Ethnographic Content Analysis of Local Print News Media Frames

“…It also follows that, through the process of framing, news media stories tend to favor the interpretations of events and social issues advanced by some claimsmakers rather than others (Ericson et al 1991; Fields and Newman 2020). Thacker Thomas and Vermilya (2019) suggest that that way news media frame incidents substantiates existing social hierarchies. The voices and views of claimsmakers most closely aligned with publicly favored frames are granted access to the news media and hence to elevated levels of attention.…”

“…The voices and views of claimsmakers most closely aligned with publicly favored frames are granted access to the news media and hence to elevated levels of attention. It is in this way that news media play a key role in shaping the definition of social events (Thacker Thomas and Vermilya 2019) and responses by policymakers, including incidents of police brutality and other forms of police‐involved violence (Lawrence 2000).…”

Designing Man’s New Best Friend: Enhancing Human-Robot Dog Interaction through Dog-Like Framing and Appearance

“…Furthermore, extensive research has shown that framing the role, background, or origin of a robot can change how humans perceive and interact with it [ 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 ]. This may also be effective with Aibo as, for example, in Western society, dogs are already framed as “man’s best friend” [ 43 ]. Researchers have indeed shown that trust in Aibo can be increased by priming the initial expectations through framing Aibo’s role and agency when introducing the robot to participants [ 44 ].…”