SHANNON AHR, SPRING 2026
Media, especially news media, has the power to shape the way that the public thinks about, interprets, and interacts with the world. As such, the framing and language of news pieces has a direct influence on public opinion and perception of events. This influence comes with the potential to be exacerbated by pre-existing biases that the media may serve to reaffirm.
Below are two articles, both of which are written about the same scenario. Despite this, they are written in the tone of authors that hold two different views. The third article is a comparison that highlights where the differences come about, and key words that shape why you may interpret a piece of media differently based on the language used within it.
City council greenlights retail development, bringing 180 jobs to Baile.
Outcry grows as outside developers plan to demolish last open land in east Baile.
A comparative analysis of these two articles, and the realities they create.
Everyday, we are interacting with thousands upon thousands of new pieces of information. We consume information at such a rapid rate, and that information influences our actions and our thoughts.
Knowing this, and seeing the impact of language and framing on a story, it is so important to be conscious of the media that we consume. Thinking through the way that an article made you feel, and cross-comparing stories that seem like they may be only telling one side allows for more conscientious reading to be done.
I hope that from this, you come away knowing that everything you read impacts you, even when you think it doesn’t. Especially when you think it doesn’t.
How does the American newspaper media perception of nationalist radical groups born of the same need differ depending on the relationship between the US and the countries they fight for, with a focus on the Provisional IRA and the Second Intifada from Ireland and Palestine respectively?
The current climate.
In early 2025, I studied abroad in Ireland for my spring semester of college. While I was there, I was able to get a certificate in Irish Cultural Heritage, and one of the most valuable things of the experience was being so immersed in Irish culture. Seeing what they valued, how they acted, and how they were so aware of their history and how they are still feeling it – all of this was such a rich experience I wouldn’t trade for anything.
One of the greatest experiences and expressions of Irish values, was the deep connection to Palestinian liberation and support for a Free Palestine. Throughout Dublin, the capital city and where I was spending my time, there were so many Palestinian flags waving, and frequent marches and protests through the street. This was a theme I saw continued into Galway on the complete other coast, and saw most prominently when my best friend and I made a trip to Derry in Northern Ireland.
There is such a recognition of and empathy for Palestinian suffering within Ireland, and it was felt everywhere that I went. The street murals, the Palestinian flags in shop windows, the organized marches, the protest signs in city centres, they were woven into everyday Irish life. What struck me most was how the language of resistance was treated with legitimacy.
In Derry and Dublin alike, Palestinian struggle was spoken about as a political movement. The murals depicting solidarity between the Irish and Palestinian flags, the calls for boycotts and apartheid accountability, the posters naming genocide were not fringe expressions but visible, public commitments. In Ireland, Palestinian political aspirations were heard.
Read our documentation to learn more about how you can use CBOX OpenLab to create a commons for open learning.
Powered by:
