What’s in a name? People sometimes don’t take kindly when their names are misspelled or called incorrectly as if that affects or changes who they are.

It bothers me not if you call my name incorrectly as long as it was not done to alter it to give a bad connotation. A lot of names have meanings, and a lot of people take pride in their names or who they were named after.

That is when it deals with your individual name. In cases where the name attributed to you is one that reflects poorly on you such as being called a thug, a rapist or an illegal immigrant, then such framing takes up an importance of a different nature.

In the context of immigration which is among one of the hot topics of the day, to refer to anyone as an illegal immigrant is considered inappropriate since people are not illegal. Undocumented immigrants seem more like a better representation of who people are living here without permission or right.

 “The word we use to describe someone or something frame the situation in a positive, negative or neutral light and say as much about us as they do about the person being described.” (Lind 2013)

The media have framed the immigration story in various respects. There is the population which deals with the number of people who presently live in the country. Of these, some immigrate through official channels while others gain their entrance illegally.

Stories in the media across the country frame the immigration story to reflect concern over national security and border control.

The population of the country will be 420 million, 24% of which will be immigrants by the year 2050 according to the Census Bureau.

The situation is made severe by choice of words the media use in immigration debates such as “flood” or “invasion.” It is the responsibility of the government to protect the country from foreign and domestic threats, so concerns about national security and border control come into play that help frame the narrative.

There is, of course, the human rights framework that expresses concern for human dignity, freedom, justice and peace.

How the media select, and report stories depend on several factors that include their interest in keeping their position of hegemonic power.

What’s in a name? A lot.