10/28/2026
By Karen Mullins

The School of Criminology and Justice Studies is proud to announce a dissertation defense by Mengyan Liu.

  • Dissertation title: "County Characteristics and Newspaper Framing of Anti-Asian Incidents in California, New York, Texas and Washington"
  • Date: Thursday, November 12, 2026
  • Time: 2:15 – 4 p.m.
  • Location: Health and Social Sciences Building, Room 431, and via Zoom

Committee

  • Arie Perliger, Ph.D., Professor, School of Criminology and Justice Studies, UMass Lowell (co-chair)
  • Claire Seungeun Lee, Ph.D., Associate Professor, School of Criminology and Justice Studies, UMass Lowell (co-chair)
  • Joselyne Chenane, Ph.D., Associate Professor, School of Criminology and Justice Studies, UMass Lowell
  • Ráchael Powers, Ph.D., Associate Professor, School of Criminal Justice, University of Cincinnati

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic saw a sharp rise in anti-Asian hate incidents across the United States. This dissertation asks two questions: which county characteristics were associated with where anti-Asian incidents occurred, and how did major newspapers frame the motives and emotions behind these attacks? Using a critical realist framework and mixed methods, the study first applies negative binomial regression with county random effects to 152 anti-Asian incidents across 218 counties in California, New York, Texas and Washington (2011 and 2013–2021). It then analyzes 330 newspaper articles about these incidents. The county analysis found that incidents clustered in populous urban counties of the three liberal states relative to Texas, though the Texas comparison rests on only eight incidents. Counties where Asian residents had higher educational attainment relative to White residents had fewer incidents. This result held in most alternative specifications but not when additional controls were included. The newspaper analysis found that framing differed by outlet ideology. Right-leaning outlets were less likely to attribute incidents to right-wing ideology, more likely to dismiss the motive, and more likely to emphasize anger. These differences persisted after accounting for variation between outlets, although the overall motive difference depended heavily on a single outlet. Because the data are small and concentrated, the findings describe associations rather than causes. The dissertation closes with implications for policy, public safety, and news coverage.

Keywords: anti-Asian hate, racialized violence, media framing, hate crimes, sociopolitical factors, critical realism