Constructing Social Problems in an Age of Globalization: A French-American Comparison

Despite growing academic interest in political and cultural globalization, sociologists have failed to systematically account for the factors that favor cross-national convergence or divergence in the form or content of public political debates in news media. This article uses two original data sets on American and French news reporting on immigration and sexual harassment to test the effects of four factors potentially relevant to such convergence or divergence: 1) cultural repertoires, 2) legal constraints, 3) journalistic field relations to the state and market and competition among journalistic outlets, and 4) global position of nation-states. Differences in dominant national cultural repertoires correlate with persistent cross-national variations in media frames. Legal reform related to the two issues offers a strong explanation of shifts in framing over time. Lesser news media autonomy vis-à-vis the state is associated with fewer journalistic enterprise stories on immigration and less reporting on sexual harassment scandals, while greater competition may make sensationalized reporting on immigration more likely. America's dominant position in the global political economy correlates with substantially greater visibility of U.S. policies and personalities in France, than vice versa. There is some evidence for greater cross-national divergence in issue frames over time, as U.S. global visibility and influence have increased.

Metaphors of Loss: Murder, Bereavement, Gender, and Presentation of the ‘Victimized’ Self

When a loved one is murdered, there is a profound impact on the selves of those left behind. In this paper, three competing conceptions of self are considered in order to help us to understand the impact on the social selves of such survivors, and the pragmatic ways in which selves struggle with this event in their social interactions. Building upon the insights of earlier work on victimization, bereavement, gender and self, a qualitative study of survivors found that these individuals metaphorically expressed a profound ‘loss of self’, which they further generalized beyond themselves in terms of a ‘ripple effect’ spreading through their families and community. Survivors elaborated this loss of self through five further ‘metaphors of loss’, which indicated various dimensions within this root metaphor. These included: (1) permanent loss of future; (2) violating devastation; (3) being a ‘different person now’; (4) loss of control; and (5) loss of innocence. These metaphors were generally expressed either in an effort to express the inexpressible, or as a presentation of self in circumstances where survivors’ victim status was questioned. While all of these metaphors were expressed across gender lines, all except loss of control were predominantly expressed by the female gender, and each exhibited variations in emphasis which shed light on gendered identities as an aspect of self. Moreover, these were disproportionately expressed by bereaved parents and siblings. In the end, the metaphors emerging from such a profound emotional experience may teach us much about both the fundamental dimensions underlying self and identity, the micro-political strategies utilized in interaction, and the process of constructing social problems.