Assistant Professor of Political Science, Michael Strawbridge, co-authored an article titled, "Rhetorical Promises: Gender Diversity Among Congressional Black Caucus Members’ Representation on Twitter," in the journal Political Communication. The article presents research that analyzed how Black Congresswomen and men communicate via Twitter and how that rhetoric differs on substantive public policy issues. The research builds on "extant studies focusing on the diversity within the Congressional Black Caucus." Strawbridge co-authored the article with Christopher J. Clark (UNC), Anna Mitchell Mahoney (Dartmouth), and Nadia Brown (Georgetown). You can read the full article in the newest edition of Political Communication.
Abstract:
In 1971, Shirley Chisholm (D-NY) was the only female founder of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). Today, Black women comprise about half of the legislative caucus. As the members of the CBC become more diverse and prioritize intersectional identities in the political representation of Black communities, race as the single-axis priority of the caucus may complicate the coalition’s ability to form consensus. Building on extant studies focusing on the diversity within the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), we find substantial differences in how Black Congresswomen and men communicate on Twitter. Relative to Democratic Black men, Democratic Black women are more likely to discuss substantive public policy issues and to frame them as raced and gendered. Our findings have implications not only for the CBC but also for any single-axis legislative caucus’ ability to represent their constituents.
