Lazy Person's Guide to Framing: Decoding the News Media

by Brian Dean

From Futura Pocketbooks, a “Lazy Person’s Guide” to media framing. This updated and extended 2023 edition explains how headlines and news stories can be decoded with the latest know-how from the cognitive sciences. Discover how media narratives and political spin are unravelled and deciphered by frame semantics – an essential part of what has been labelled, “The Cognitive Revolution”.

“Essential reading in these times of framed narratives” — James D. McCallister , award-winning author of Fellow Traveler

“Goes to the heart of how the very basis of our thinking on a wide range of topics is powerfully shaped by rhetorical framing” — Malcolm Bradley , author of The Passions of the Mind.

“A witty, alternative look at the working character of contemporary society.” — The Guardian (on Brian Dean’s Anxiety Culture)

Lazy Person’s Guide to Framing is a fun and highly readable guide, which popularises the new linguistic field in a way that makes it accessible and deeply relevant for anyone concerned by the power wielded by those who “frame the message” in media and politics. This new 2023 edition brings it up to date with recent global occurrences and advances in media technology, such as the rise of algorithm-based social media platforms.

Author, Brian Dean, has previously written regular columns for The Guardian and The Independent newspapers, The Idler and Sleaze magazines, and has, for several years, written a popular blog on the topic of news and political framing.

210 pages, Paperback

First published June 30, 2014

Reviews

[Kieran Telo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic in some ways if you have a grasp of ideology and propaganda, and certainly in need of updating to account for the phenomena of social media, fake news, and the role of twitter in hammering home accepted truths. Nevertheless a very able dissection of how what is thinkable, what narratives are palatable, and how language shapes the political. Highly recommended, as are all Brian Deans other “anxiety culture” publications. A good bloke.

[James McCallister · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential reading in these times of 'framed' narratives promulgated through the ubiquitous voice of corporate PR channels (ie, 'mainstream journalism').

[Tomj · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thought provoking and a fun read.

[Richard Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent resource for understanding social media and the methods used to manipulate popular opinion.