Television framing of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum - Part 2: Coding of frames in television programmes

Dekavalla, Marina (2017). Television framing of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum - Part 2: Coding of frames in television programmes. [Data Collection]. Colchester, Essex: UK Data Archive. 10.5255/UKDA-SN-852451

On 18 September 2014, the Scottish electorate will be called to answer a fundamental question about the future of the UK and Scotland: the decision of whether Scotland will become an independent state or remain a part of the UK will have an impact not only on the relationship between the British nations but also on other parts of Europe with similar concerns. Yet, as is the case with any contested issue, the definition of what this referendum is about will be negotiated between political and social groups, debated in the media and deliberated by voters before making their decision. Is the referendum a competition between two opponents fighting for the vote? Is it a matter of identity (shared or distinctive)? Is it a matter of economic survival and growth?

This research will examine how the 2014 Scottish independence referendum campaign is framed in the news coverage of the two main television channels catering for audiences in Central Scotland, BBC Scotland and STV. The importance of television as a trusted source of news on political issues is constantly reaffirmed by surveys (Ofcom, 2013, Eurobarometer, 2012) and therefore what television says about a major political event is significant.

The study will focus on Scottish news and current affairs coverage referring to the referendum in the final month of the campaign, create an original set of frames emerging from the coverage and measure which of them were more prominent. The project will also use structured interviews with political editors, heads of news and current affairs, political and civil society actors, to discuss how these representations were shaped in the interaction between journalists, media organisations and their sources.

The project will contribute to public analysis of the news coverage of the referendum in the aftermath of the event and create opportunities for stakeholders to discuss how broadcasting contributes to the democratic process, through the way it reports on campaigns.

Data description (abstract)

This dataset contains the coding of the frames that appeared in all news and current affairs items about the 2014 Scottish independence referendum which were produced for a Scottish audience (i.e. excluding the UK-wide coverage of the referendum) and were broadcast on BBC Scotland and STV between 18 August and 18 September 2014. The file records the date, duration, channel, and type of each item in this coverage and whether or not the following frames were present: policy, strategic game, social justice, divorce, democratic achievement, constitutional change, national division, self determination, and national identity. The programmes themselves are available from the respective broadcasters. These data complement the interview data(see Related resources below), which also form part of this project, as the quantitative data show which frames emerged in the television coverage and the interview data what factors may have influenced their creation. These data also complement the sources analysis data(see Related resources below) as those demonstrate which actors were used as sources in the news and, therefore, which actors were explicitly given access to television space to promote their own frames of what the referendum was about.

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