Citation

Merola LM. Behav. Sci. Terrorism Polit. Aggres. 2013; 5(3): 194-216.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/19434472.2012.714397

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Few researchers have analyzed post-9/11 alterations in the opinions or discourse of the legal community, despite this community's influence on public opinion and legal policy. In fact, to date, no source of data exists capturing the opinions of this community across the post-9/11 period. However, their writings in law review articles provide one source of longitudinal data regarding the issues and concerns that were salient to this influential community during the years of the post-9/11 era. A content analysis of law review articles is performed to examine meaningful shifts in the expert discourse related to civil liberties issues pre- and post-9/11 and across the post-9/11 period. The analysis - the first of its kind - demonstrates significant alterations over the post-9/11 period, including greatly intensified efforts at providing policy leadership. The analysis also reveals the year 2006 as a key turning point in legal scholarship, after which these articles adopted a highly aggressive, confrontational, and non-deferential tone. These findings are important because they inform scholarly debates regarding the role of elites in maintaining expansive civil liberties protections following terrorist attacks.