Reframing Narratives of Value in the New Media Landscape

The Future of Liberal Education in a Post-Truth EraAAC&U Forum for Presidents and Foundation Leaders

January 2019

Debra Humphreys, Vice President of Strategic Engagement

Kirk Carapezza, Education Reporter, WGBH

What does “reframing public narratives”

require?

Understanding

existing narratives and

frames;

1

Understanding current

media landscape and

how narratives now

get formed and travel;

2

Understanding

cognitive science on

why people believe

what they believe and

how they “change

their minds.”

3

The power of

confirmation

bias

We believe news/narratives

that confirm pre-existing

beliefs;

Simple exposure to contrary

facts or challenges to mistaken

notions can backfire and just

reinforce existing beliefs;

People don’t decide to believe

something because of

statistical validity

What makes us more likely to believe

something?

The source (level of trust)

The harmony with other beliefs

The overlap with existing frames of reference

Need to deliver messages and narratives that

create a sense of cognitive ease and with

compelling human stories

How framing works

The first thing

said about a topic

influences

perceptions,

judgments, and

emotional

responses

“Framing” a topic

effectively means

using words,

images and

symbols that

reflect values and

beliefs people

already hold, and

which encourage

them to support

your goal.

To maximize

support, speak to

values and beliefs

that are

meaningful to the

majority in

audience.

Otherwise, words

will fall flat— or

even activate

ideas that raise

opposition.

Relevant

Frames

• American Dream

• Nature of Work and Economy

• “Merit” and Proper Role of

Government

• Fairness and Responsibility

• The roles, responsibilities, and

accountabilities of public

institutions

Attitudes about Higher Education

from Polls

61% believe higher

education is going in

the wrong direction; of

those 84% cite high

tuition as main reason;

1

65% believe that

students are not getting

the skills they need to

succeed in the

workplace;

2

Less than half have

confidence in higher

education.

3

Sources: Pew Research Center and Gallup, 2018

On the other hand…

• 76% of Americans say “public spending on higher education has been an excellent or good investment.”

• More than 70% say that higher education institutions contributed to graduates’ personal enrichment and growth; to national prosperity and development; to graduates’ wealth and success.

Teachers College, 2018

• Four in ten Americans agree that “for most high school students today, pursuing a college degree is not a worthwhile investment because it will lead to student debt with little chance of finding a good paying job.”

New America, 2017

How to make sense of public opinion

data?

Need to understand

better “why” people

answer these

questions the way

they do;

What are the

underlying beliefs and

narratives driving their

answers?

Measuring and moving narratives

Lumina is working with Protagonist, Inc, a “big-data” consultant, to gain insights into what people believe about postsecondary education and social mobility based on mainstream, online news, blogs, and social media interaction:

• Measuring narrative landscape — proportion of conversation by storyline, based on content volume and audience engagement

• Working to influence existing narratives and creating “white-space” narratives

• Measuring changes in the narrative landscape over time

12

Postsecondary Education Narrative Landscape

8 Narratives Centered on Issues of Affordability, System Inequalities, & Perceived Value

16

Title Abridged Narrative Category

Protect Public EducationThe burden of paying for public education must shift from the

student back to the state.Affordability

Buyer BewareProspective students should weigh their options before they

invest the time and money needed for a degree.Expected Outcomes

Education for

Employment

All forms of higher education should strive to boost students’

ultimate employability.Expected Outcomes

Uneven Playing FieldAccess to higher education is riddled with invisible access gaps

for disadvantaged students.

Systemic Inequality

Sinking Without SupportUnderrepresented students lack the support and stability they

need to make it to graduation.

Systemic Inequality

American Dream Deferred

The high cost of a college degree today means that students who

decided to take the plunge now can’t afford to start the lives they

were promised.

Affordability

Prisoners as PupilsWe need to invest in prison education to reduce recidivism rates

and ease the burden on taxpayers.Systemic Inequality

Liberal Echo Chamber Colleges fail to educate when they refuse to uphold intellectual

diversity.Systemic Inequality

18

The Postsecondary Narrative Landscape: CategoriesOnline postsecondary conversation

Dec 2015 – Nov 2016

Protect Public

Education

Education For

Employment

Buyer

Beware

Prisoners

as Pupils

Sinking

Without

Support

Uneven

Playing

Field

American

Dream

Deferred

❖ Sinking Without Support (13%)

❖ Uneven Playing Field (13%)

❖ Liberal Echo Chamber (n/a%)

❖ Prisoners as Pupils (11%)

Systemic Inequality

❖ Protect Public Education (20%)

❖ American Dream Deferred (11%)

Affordability

❖ Education for Employment (15%)

❖ Buyer Beware (17%)

Expected Outcomes

19

The Postsecondary Narrative Landscape: CategoriesOnline postsecondary conversation

Oct 2018 – Dec 2018

❖ Sinking Without Support (24%)

❖ Uneven Playing Field (29%)

❖ Liberal Echo Chamber (3%)

❖ Prisoners as Pupils (1%)

Systemic Inequality

❖ Protect Public Education (19%)

❖ American Dream Deferred (6%)

Affordability

❖ Education for Employment (13%)

❖ Buyer Beware (5%)

Expected Outcomes

Protect Public

Education

Education

For

Employment

Prisoners

as Pupils

Sinking

Without

Support

Uneven Playing

Field

American

Dream

Deferred

Liberal

Echo

Chamber

Buyer

Beware

Take-Aways from Baseline 2016 Analysis

Narratives on Economic Opportunity and Social Mobility

Final thoughts

Understand the landscape as it is – not as you wish it to be.Understand

Know your audiences, who they are, and what they want.Know

Meet people where they are –move them when possible.Meet

Redirect, reframe – don’t repeat the negative frame or deficit language.Redirect

If something’s missing, try to make it appear – find allies, work together.Create and

Collaborate

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CLIPS

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