Framing Alberta’s NDP: How is the AbNDP, a Vehicle for Leftist Politics, Framed in a Conservative Canadian Province?

Alberta’s identity as Canada’s most conservative province is reinforced by the fact that conservative parties maintained majority governments for over fifty years. However, when the Alberta NDP (hereafter AbNDP), led by Rachel Notley, was elected in 2015, conservative parties during the 2015 and 2019 elections were presented with a history-making disruption of their governance. As a vehicle for centre-left or progressive politics, the AbNDP represents a competitor to and foil for conservative parties, as well as a scapegoat for Alberta’s woes, which conservative parties highlighted through framing within social media. This paper uses frame analysis to determine how framing was used in the election campaigns by conservative parties, how progressives are represented by conservatives, and the implications this may have for progressive politics. This paper points to the overall need for more research attention on social media frames in academic literature, while further demonstrating frame theory’s fractured nature.

Author dc:creator

• Toogood, Kathryn, Ann

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Black, David

• School of communication and culture

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Identifier URI

https://doi.org/10.25316/ir-19712

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:null:10613/28084