Media bias? : a comparative study of Time, Newsweek, the National review, and The progressive coverage of domestic social issues, 1975-2000 / Tawnya J. Adkins Covert and Philo C. Wasburn.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Adkins Covert, Tawnya J., 1972-

Contributor:

Wasburn, Philo C.

Series:

Lexington studies in political communication

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Mass media--Objectivity--United States.

Mass media.

Mass media--Objectivity.

United States.

Physical Description:

xx, 161 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Lanham, MD : Lexington Books, [2009]

Summary:

Media Bias? addresses the question: To what extent can mainstream news media be characterized as "conservative" or "liberal"? The study involves a systematic comparative analysis of the coverage given to major domestic social issues from 1975 to 2000 by two mainstream newsmagazines, Newsweek and Time, and two explicitly partisan publications, the conservative National Review and the liberal Progressive.

Working from the idea that some biased accounts of social issues can perform several positive functions for the maintenance and vitality of political democracy, Tawnya J. Adkins Covert and Philo C. Wasburn offer a new methodology for empirically analyzing bias, one that is capable of producing valid and reliable findings. They begin by defining the meaning of "bias" and discuss possible methods of empirically and systematically measuring media bias. By comparing each publication's coverage on poverty, crime, the environment, and gender-issues in which the line between the conservative and liberal positions are clearly delineated-the authors consider both the positive and negative consequences of media bias and how the bias plays out within a media-conscious democratic society.

Contents:

Chapter 1 The Media Bias Debate 1

Chapter 2 Mainstream and Partisan Newsmagazines 27

Chapter 3 Measuring Media Bias 49

Chapter 4 Comparing Time, Newsweek, the National Review, and The Progressive Coverage of Selected Social Issues, 1975-2000 71

Chapter 5 The Use of Information Sources in Partisan Publications 93

Chapter 6 Assessing the Role of Historical Context in Media Bias 113

Chapter 7 Have Our Media Been Serving Democracy in Their Coverage of Domestic Social Issues? 127.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 139-149) and index.

ISBN:

9780739121894

0739121898

9780739121900

0739121901

OCLC:

232536713