Goffman is a must read for any comm, soc, psych, anth, or mass media scholar. Here he outlines a conceptual definition of framing. On pp 10,11 he defines a frame as, "definitions of a situation are built up in accordance w principles of organization which govern events--at least social ones--and our subjective involvement in them; is the word I use to refer to such of these basic elements as I am able to identify." A little bit of a long read compared read compared to Presentation of Self nd Asylums.