No abstract

A number of studies consistently point at the disproportionate focus on elite news sources such as men in government and business while women, minorities, and working-class people are shown to be underrepresented as sources in the news. At the same time research reveals that soundbites from sources are shrinking while reporters are taking up increasingly more news airtime. In a society that rests on democratic ideals about the mass media's facilitation of a pluralistic public debate, these findings provoke concern. Virtually all studies on sourcing focus on newspapers and nightly television newscasts. This content analysis of 291 news stories focuses on tabloid and traditional news magazine programs. The findings of this study provide some support for the concerns about whose voices are heard in the news. Moreover, striking differences between tabloid and traditional news magazine sourcing patterns are revealed.

This study identifies the different roles that journalists assumed in breaking news coverage of the September 11 terrorism attacks and explores how a change in traditional reporting routines might affect the type of information broadcast journalists disseminate. The first five hours of breaking news coverage of the September 11 attacks on CNN, ABC, NBC, and CBS is examined through content analysis. The data show that journalists who broke the news of September 11 assumed multiple roles to deliver information including that of expert and social commentator; they reported rumors, used anonymous sources, and frequently included personal references in their reporting.

No abstract

This experiment investigates the effects of television crime news portrayals of the accused on evaluations of that person. Forty subjects watched television crime news stories, which contained either visual (dressed in an orange suit, wearing handcuffs and being restrained by a police officer) or aural (mention of a prior record) bias. Results show that subjects who saw the visual bias evaluated the accused as more threatening, dangerous and guilty than those who did not see the bias. Those who heard about a prior record evaluated the accused as more threatening and guilty, but not as more dangerous than those who did not hear about the record. These impressions of guilt remained after a two-week delay. Findings illustrate how common TV news portrayals of a person accused of a crime can prejudice the general public. Also, accidental viewing of a criminal defendant in prison clothes or being restrained can affect snap judgments about that person during the trial. Implications for journalists and the legal system are discussed.