Shaping Abortion Discourse

Democracy and the Public Sphere in Germany and the United States
 

By: Myra Marx Ferree, William A. Gamson, Jürgen Gerhards, and Dieter Rucht

Cambridge University Press 2002
 

Click on the variables for additional information about that variable. For the cross-tab of the data click in the center of the chart.
 

Table 8.1: Relative Standing of Religious Speakers by Country
 
Percent of all Germany United States
Religious speakers    
     
Churches [1] 93% 45%
     
Catholic 64% 32%
Protestant (mainstream) 25% 4%
Other 5% 10%
     
Anti Abortion Groups 7% 52%
     
NRLC ---- 17%
Operation Rescure ---- 11%
Other ---- 23%
     
Pro Abortion Rights Groups 0% 3% [2]
     
N [3] = 420 750

[1] Includes affiliated social service agencies and theologians.

[2] Includes the Religious Coalition for Abortion Rights and Catholics for Free Choice.

[3] Of all speakers with religious organizational identification, both offering framing and not.
 

Table 8.2: Media Relations by Type of Anti Abortion Group and Country
 
 
Type of Organization [1] Germany United States
         
Perceived interest and bias [2] Churches [3] Movements Churches Movements
         
Media biased against us 47% 93% 75% 100%
Media is untrustworthy
21%
 64% 25% 67%
Media is not interested in what we have to say 37% 21% 40% 58%
         
Activity [4]
        
         
Contacted journalists
3.3
4.4
6
6.8
Issued press releases
2.7
5
5
8.4
Held press conferences 1.2
1.4
2.4
4.8
         
N =
19
14
5 [5]
12
 

[1] Anti abortion groups only.

[2] % true or somewhat true

[3] Includes affiliated social service agencies.

[4] Mean number of times per group in the past two years.

[5] Because of missing data, the n for the first two items is 4 rather than 5.

 

Chart 8.3: Policy Direction by Type of Civil Society Speaker

United States

Germany

Note: Journalists, state, party, and nonframing speakers are excluded.
 

Chart 8.4: Fetal Life Frame by Type of Civil Society Speaker

Germany

United States
Note: Journalists, state and party speakers are excluded. Anti-abortion ideas only.
 
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