Study examines social media advocacy for reproductive rights

What to say? How to say it? These are questions advocates ponder before conducting a social media campaign. It was also the central focus of a qualitative analysis conducted by CUNY SPH faculty, published in the Journal of Communication in Healthcare.

The study examined social media framing by physicians trained in a leadership program for reproductive health advocacy as part of a larger evaluation project led by CUNY SPH professors Heidi Jones and Diana Romero. The intensive nine-month leadership program trains physicians to become self-directed, life-long advocates for abortion care, contraception, and comprehensive sexual & reproductive health care for all.

Communications framing highlights specific values, facts, and interpretations over others to shape public opinion. For this qualitative analysis, the CUNY SPH researchers investigated "rights," "justice," "opportunity," "health," and other frames as they relate to pro-choice advocacy.

"Framing is often discussed in advocacy communications, but it's still not very well studied," said Chris Palmedo, lead author. "We looked at how and when advocates tweeted that abortion is 'healthcare,' for example, or an issue of social justice, or a basic right, or all of the above."

The analysis discovered disciplined message framing among the advocates, but Dr. Palmedo notes that "it remains to be seen which frames are most effective in changing hearts and minds."

The authors conclude that research should continue to explore framing for reproductive rights advocacy, with the goal of incorporating the most effective frames into future advocacy trainings.