The Cultural Framing Hypothesis: Attributes of Cultural Alliances and Conflicts

Abstract

The “clash of civilizations” theory states that “culture and cultural identities, which at the broadest level are civilization identities, are shaping the patterns of cohesion, disintegration, and conflict in the post—cold war world.” This notion of cultural conflict promoted initially by political scientist Samuel Huntington stirred a discussion among journalists, academics, and other intellectuals around the world. In the current project, the authors investigate whether the media reinforce Huntington's conception. Using the war in Kosovo as a case study, a quantitative content analysis of coverage in The New York Times and Ta Nea was completed. Two research questions are explored: (1) Were there references to cultural alliances based on distinct cultural traits? and (2) Was the conflict between Serbs and Albanians portrayed as a cultural conflict? The study concluded there is some preliminary evidence of cultural framing.