The gun tragedies that have received a significant amount of coverage and attention in their wake can be considered symbolic events in America’s overall gun control discourse. While other nations have been quick to respond to an individual event with major policy change, the United States has not yet done so. Nevertheless, Kristin Goss argues how ‘Columbine and the other high-profile shootings that followed appear to have… planted the seeds of a sustained, visible, grassroots, nation-spanning gun control effort’ (2006 p.2). It may just be that stronger, better-organised and longer sustaining activism is needed in order to promote such change.
Additionally, the answer, as suggested by Kingdon (1995), may lie in the misalignment of the policies, …show more content…
In better understanding the shifts that occur between such levels in terms of response, the discourse can be better understood as a more comprehensive whole. Further such understanding can allow for further insight into what pressures the national discourse may be under, and how these correlate to the overall lack of change when it comes to American gun control. Chapter One has identified a particular case study to be examined in relation to response. Chapter Two has examined they way key actors and the media, as active at the local state level, immediately responded to the shooting. Finally, Chapters Three and Four focused on the national response of actors through media and social media in terms of the overall reactions that are readily apparent: a pro gun control response and a pro gun rights …show more content…
This may be due in a large part to the effects of a very polarised national media (Levendusky 2013), as this dissertation has found this to be the case in the varying representations of two of the most prominent media stations, Fox News and CNN, particularly in their respective televised broadcasts. It is possible that if such stations have ‘taken sides’ in this controversial debate, that they may be representing issues in line with wither a pro gun control or pro gun right agenda. Furthermore, lobbyists and organisations in favour of gun rights and ownership, most notably the National Rifle Association, are not as active at the local level, but are strongly manned and funded at the national level and may be working to keep policy in their favour by heightening the debate around other issues related to the case that do not directly pertain to gun control legislation and policy. For one, emphasis on mental health concerns is a reoccurring part of the discourse when it comes to mass shootings, however such has been labelled to be ‘scapegoating’ the problem of gun violence (Wolf 2014, Online). As was evident from looking at the event in Isla Vista, each shooting brings new issues to light that can be debated in conjunction with gun violence, while distracting from discussions of control. While
Additionally, the answer, as suggested by Kingdon (1995), may lie in the misalignment of the policies, …show more content…
In better understanding the shifts that occur between such levels in terms of response, the discourse can be better understood as a more comprehensive whole. Further such understanding can allow for further insight into what pressures the national discourse may be under, and how these correlate to the overall lack of change when it comes to American gun control. Chapter One has identified a particular case study to be examined in relation to response. Chapter Two has examined they way key actors and the media, as active at the local state level, immediately responded to the shooting. Finally, Chapters Three and Four focused on the national response of actors through media and social media in terms of the overall reactions that are readily apparent: a pro gun control response and a pro gun rights …show more content…
This may be due in a large part to the effects of a very polarised national media (Levendusky 2013), as this dissertation has found this to be the case in the varying representations of two of the most prominent media stations, Fox News and CNN, particularly in their respective televised broadcasts. It is possible that if such stations have ‘taken sides’ in this controversial debate, that they may be representing issues in line with wither a pro gun control or pro gun right agenda. Furthermore, lobbyists and organisations in favour of gun rights and ownership, most notably the National Rifle Association, are not as active at the local level, but are strongly manned and funded at the national level and may be working to keep policy in their favour by heightening the debate around other issues related to the case that do not directly pertain to gun control legislation and policy. For one, emphasis on mental health concerns is a reoccurring part of the discourse when it comes to mass shootings, however such has been labelled to be ‘scapegoating’ the problem of gun violence (Wolf 2014, Online). As was evident from looking at the event in Isla Vista, each shooting brings new issues to light that can be debated in conjunction with gun violence, while distracting from discussions of control. While