Networked frames: theoretical foundations for framing analysis in digital environments
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51385/9bz4td94Keywords:
framing, network activated frames, social media, cultural resonanceAbstract
This article reviews the theoretical foundations of framing as a multiparadigmatic and integrative research program and examines
the limitations of the cascading activation model (Entman, 2003, 2004) in the context of frame circulation through digital platforms. Building on that assessment, it recovers the Network Activated Frames (NAF) model (Aruguete, 2021) and develops its
theoretical bases as analytical tools for studying the framing process in reticular environments. The argument rests on three
complementary dimensions: individual user decisions, network topology as a structural condition, and cultural resonance as an
activation mechanism. The debate over Argentina's Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy Law (IVE) (Calvo, Aruguete, Ingrassia y
Gómez Wagner, 2021) serves as an illustrative case to show how different communities amplify locally dominant frames based on
their alignment with shared interpretive repertoires. The article concludes by discussing how the NAF articulates with frame
building and framing effects research, with the aim of reconstructing the full cycle of production, circulation, and reception of
interpretive frames in today's media ecosystem.
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