Date of Award
2026
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Sociology
First Advisor
Jason Cummings
Second Advisor
Rhys Williams
Abstract
This thesis examines the media portrayal of Colin Kaepernick’s protest against police brutality and racial injustice during the National Anthem in the 2016 National Football League (NFL) season. Using content analysis, I analyze why Colin Kaepernick protested in his own words and how conservative media outlets such as Fox News rearticulated and criticized his social justice stance as an unpatriotic denigration of the American flag and Star-Spangled Banner. As I further argue, social movements such as #BlackLivesMatter and the Colin Kaepernick-inspired “Take a Knee” movement represent a political project to inform racial discourse regarding racial injustice in the United States. Neoconservative political projects from powerful organizations like Fox News, however, sought to shift the national discourse away from racialized police brutality and injustice in America by undermining Kaepernick’s true intent of spreading awareness regarding police-officer unjustified murders of Black Americans. In doing so, conservative media outlets act to uphold the structures and narratives that allow racial oppression and social injustice to persist.
Recommended Citation
Moody, Travis, "Dissecting the Discourse: Colin Kaepernick's National Anthem Protest and Conservative Media as Competing Racial Projects" (2026). Master's Theses. 4586.
https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_theses/4586
