Framing, Obama, Jesse

And while we're on framing:

The Obama/Jesse controversy is a perfect example of "framing" with regards to racism in America.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-te.md.jackson11jul11,0,3451704.story

The civil rights frame is "racial justice". Obama's is something to do with "beyond race." Some middle-of-the-road and right-wing listeners don't want "racial justice" to incur a penalty on them for things they didn't do ("I'm not a racist, why should my government have to use my tax money to create racial justice?") They want everyone to have a chance to make it in America, black or white, and to take responsibility for their own success or failure. That's the "personal responsibility" frame.

So, the argument that Jesse Jackson is making is essentially this: By Obama's adoption of the "personal responsibility" frame, he is rejecting the social/racial justice frame that created (and creates for many today) meaning with regards to civil rights and justice.

The communications lesson is that choosing a frame right can help you appeal to specific, desired audiences -- and at the same time keep you from appealing to other audiences, depending on the amount of bias for or against certain frames. I expect Obama knows what he's doing here. The risk for him is not capturing the middle. He knows he's got the left. So the personal responsibility frame can work for him from the middle to the right. As analysts have said, Jesse's comments probably make white middle-class people comfortable.