How propaganda techniques are used to promote legislation.
In this case, a specific individual is highlighted to emotionally hook others into supporting the bill. Arguments for the first law were shaped by referring to it as “Max’s Law” to connect it to a specific individual. Arguments for the second law were shaped by referring to it as “Jenna’s Law”.
The key technique is to personalize the topic to emotionally engage the target that needs persuading: legislators, and potentially lobbyists and the public who are usually needed to support proposed laws.
David Kracke, the Oregon lawyer who was pivotal in passing the legislation, remembers the decision to focus solely on public institutions in the bill named for Max Conradt, a former high school quarterback who suffered a permanent brain injury after back-to-back concussions.
Kracke told the Pamplin Media Group that at the time, he thought having a jurisdictional hook — the state already presides over public schools — was key to getting the legislation to then-Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s desk.
Chesnutt helped craft a bill to extend the protections of Max’s Law to young athletes competing outside of public schools. He made [Jenna] Sneva the public face of the issue.
Note – My comments above are about the propaganda technique that was used – emotional hook via focus on a single person – it is a common technique when pushing for legislation.
I experienced six traumatic brain injuries spread across my life from very young to a decade ago. TBI effects can last for months, years or a life time and until recently were often neglected by medical practitioners in favor of focusing on obvious physical problems such as the bones that were broken during the incidents that also included TBI.