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The American political landscape erupted into chaos on the evening of Monday, May 2nd. The reason: a leaked Supreme Court draft of a ruling that could overturn Roe v. Wade.
In about 12 hours, around 333 US Media sources had amplified or published an article on the leak, with the total narratives clocking in at over 700. Using artificial intelligence and trend data, EdgeTheory has produced a narrative intelligence brief analyzing how the media is reacting to and shaping the abortion narrative.
Left-leaning media has been significantly more active in amplifying articles around this narrative (369 amplifiers), while Right-leaning have been much less vocal (153 amplifiers). The most prolific amplifier of this narrative is The Hill, with 25 stories amplified in under 24 hours.
The top keywords surrounding this trend are unsurprising, but a prevailing theme seems to be the fact that women could have to travel significantly further if they wanted an abortion. Phrases like "nearest abortion clinic" and "new average distance" reveal the mainstream media's focus on the impact the decision would have on women and their immediate access to abortion.
Also found among the top keywords are "Dobbs v. Jackson" and "Mississippi law." These phrases reference why Roe could even be overturned, as the Mississippi case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health, was the kindling to the now raging national controversy.
Much more is still to come from the Supreme Court's leaked draft. Democrats in Congress are racing to codify abortion rights, while the Supreme Court itself has yet to issue a formal ruling. Alongside this narrative, many conservative majority states are restricting abortion at the state level. But unless the Democrats are able to pass Roe v. Wade into law, the future of abortion in America hinges on the Supreme Court once again.
This EdgeTheory brief will update automatically as this story inevitably changes in the near future.
