Deana A. Rohlinger
Professor of Sociology, Florida State University
Areas of Expertise:
- Civic Engagement
- Media & Public Opinion
- Social Movements
- Reproductive Health
- Religion
- Women
Connect with Deana
About Deana
Rohlinger's research focuses on mass media, political participation, and politics in America. She is the author of Abortion Politics, Mass Media, and Social Movements in America (Cambridge University Press, 2015) as well as dozens of book chapters and research articles on social movements and mass media. Her new book, Digital Media and American Society, will be published in 2019 by New York University Press. Rohlinger has appeared on numerous radio and TV programs and written commentary for U.S. News & World Report, Fortune, The American Prospect, and The Conversation. Learn more about Rohlinger at www.deanarohlinger.com.
Briefs
U.S. Abortion Politics in the Early Twenty-First Century
SSN Key Findings,
How Social Movements are Using the Internet to Change Politics
SSN Key Findings,
Publications
"Collective Identity in the Digital Age: Thin and Thick Identities in MoveOn.org and the Tea Party Movement" (with ). Mobilization: An International Quarterly 23, no. 2 (2018): 135-157.
Outlines how contemporary movements can cultivate relatively strong and weak collective identities among its supporters, and discusses the implications of these identities for electoral politics.
"Did the Tea Party Movement Fuel the Trump-Train? The Role of Social Media in Activist Persistence and Political Change in the 21st Century" (with ). Social Media + Society 3, no. 2 (2017): 1-11.
Uses longitudinal data to assess who stayed and who left the Tea Party movement and how this may have helped fuel the Trump-Train in 2016.
"Connecting People to Politics Over Time? Internet Communication Technology and Activist Persistence in Moveon.org and the Tea Party Movement" (with ). Information, Communication & Society 18, no. 5 (2005): 539-552.
Assesses how movements can use Internet Communication Technology to engage average citizens and keep them involved over time.
"Mass Media and Institutional Change: Organizational Reputation, Strategy, and Outcomes in the Academic Freedom Movement. " (with ). Mobilization: An International Quarterly 18, no. 1 (forthcoming): 41-64.
Examines how the reputation of activist groups affects their ability to move their ideas into mainstream media outlets.
Abortion Politics, Mass Media, and Social Movements in America (Cambridge University Press, 2015).
Discusses how activists use a variety of mediums, sometimes simultaneously, to agitate for – and against – legal abortion. Examines why some activist groups are more desperate than others to attract media attention and sheds light on what this means for policy making and legal abortion in the twenty-first century.
"Inclusive Discourse? Local Media Coverage of the Terri Schiavo Case" (with ). Sociological Spectrum (2015).
Discusses the many angles surrounding the Terri Schiavo’s case. Argues that mainstream newspapers are relatively inclusive of diverse ideas and perspectives - regardless of whether the newspaper is independently or corporately owned, the political leanings of the target audience, and the geographic location of the outlet. Suggests that local outlets downplay ideas that are likely to be regarded as controversial by their target audiences.
"Democracy, Action and the Internet after 9/11" (with ). American Behavioral Scientist 53, no. 1 (2009): 133-150.
Shows how individuals critical of President Bush’s “War on Terror” used digital communities to engage in political activism after 9/11.
"Cohort Consequences: Political Generation and Change" (with ). Journal of Women & Aging 25 (2015).
Argues that women use their political generation, and the gains of the women’s movement specifically, to oppose cultural constructions of aging. Discusses how The Red Hat Society provides a “free space” for women to foster a collective identity that both visibly challenges aging norms and provides its members new standards for self-approval. Emphasizes the importance of focusing on political generation to understand collective action over the life course and call for more scholarship on the function of political generation in social change.
"Framing Faith: Explaining Cooperation and Conflict in the U.S. Conservative Christian Political Movement" (with ). Social Movement Studies 8, no. 4 (2009): 341-358.
Looks at how politicians and movement leaders constructed frames that united – and then divided – the Conservative Christian Political Movement in the United States.
In the News
"3 Reasons Why Teachers are Striking Right Now," Deana A. Rohlinger, The Conversation, April 26, 2018.
"Under Siege, Abortion-Rights Advocates Must Link Health Care to Economic Prosperity," Deana A. Rohlinger, American Prospect, November 21, 2016.
Guest to discuss the effects of the new ways people consume information on NPR WSFU, Deana A. Rohlinger, November 3, 2016.
Deana A. Rohlinger quoted on addressing the problem of sexual assault in Kate Payne, "Allegations Against Donald Trump Reignite Conversation on Consent" WSFU, October 14, 2016.
Deana A. Rohlinger quoted on the Democrats' sit in in Eddie Scott, "Explaining the House Democrats' Sit" Village Sun Times, June 27, 2016.
"The Far-Reaching Consequences of the Supreme Court Abortion Rights Challenge," Deana A. Rohlinger, The American Prospect, March 1, 2016.
"Here’s Why Ammon Bundy’s Oregon Standoff Might Actually Work," Deana A. Rohlinger, Fortune, January 10, 2016.
"Republicans Need to Rein in Abortion Rhetoric for Their Own Political Good," Deana A. Rohlinger, U.S. News and World Report, December 3, 2015.
Deana A. Rohlinger quoted on injecting the abortion issue into an otherwise unrelated policy debate in Erin Kelly, "Abortion Politics Threaten Bipartisan Bills in Congress" USA Today, March 25, 2015.
Deana A. Rohlinger quoted on the value of protesting in David Siders and Torey van Oot, "Large Protests Anticipated at Political Conventions Fail to Materialize " Bradenton Herald, September 3, 2012.
Guest to discuss the debate surrounding women's health on NPR All Things Considered: Planned Parenthood vs. Komen: Women’s Health Giants Face Off over Abortion, Deana A. Rohlinger, February 1, 2012.
Guest to discuss abortion on NPR Morning Edition: Planned Parenthood: A Thorn in Abortion Foes’ Sides, Deana A. Rohlinger, April 13, 2011.
Deana A. Rohlinger quoted on activism bridging the gap between older and younger generations in Miranda Leitsinger, "Old Guard Back in the Trenches at ‘Occupy’ Protests" MSNBC, October 13, 2011.
Deana A. Rohlinger quoted on the difficulty for Occupy protesters to embrace a political system that they criticize in Alan Gomez, "Tea Party, Occupy Share Similar Beginnings" USA Today, November 16, 2011.
Guest to discuss raising public awareness of Florida's water issue on WFSU: What the Water 'Declaration' Actually Does, Deana A. Rohlinger, January 24, 2014.