The New York Times' Framing of Involvement of the Russian Federation in Arms and Nuclear Trade with the Islamic Republic of Iran in 2009-2011

Abstract

This study examines the mediated portrait of nuclear and arms trade between Russia and Iran in The New York Times in 2009-2011, applying framing theory as a tool. I used three frames, pre-defined in earlier studies: attribution of responsibility, conflict and economic. I content analyzed 78 newspaper articles to see the salient points in coverage of the controversial business that Russia does with Iran. I also was interested to see if the declared "reset" with Russia was indicated in the publications. The results showed that the conflict frame was most commonly used in the coverage of the issue followed by the economic and attribution of responsibility frames. Nevertheless, overall, the frames indicate the policy of "reset." The study contributes to better understanding of media framing and its effects and sets the ground for further research on the topic.