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Although the lack of diversity in newsrooms and reporting remains a serious issue in the journalism industry, college journalism education and student media provide a critical opportunity for change. Yet prior research has found notable diversity gaps in both. This study analyzed the state of diversity at a Midwestern university student newspaper and found significant gaps in coverage of diverse populations. The findings suggest the need for more comprehensive diversity education within the college classroom and campus media advising. This is important not only for more representative student media, but also for the future of journalism.

This study ties contemporary media dependency theory with the historical reliance on mass media during the American Civil War. Researchers used a thematic textual analysis of references to newspapers and magazines in personal correspondence found in 32 published collections of approximately 1,000 soldiers' letters. Consistent with media dependency research, soldiers needed media information for understanding of self in the horrific world they were living in; for orientation of actions in the battles (or anticipated behavior for battles expected); and for entertainment relief as escapism. Researchers found four additional media dependency components: a validation of the experience; reliance for a better explanation than what an individual correspondent could express; a check on accuracy about the coverage due to what the soldier witnessed or thought; and an emotional longing for local news about family and friends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a first attempt to look at the Greek media coverage of the Russian-Belarus invasion of Ukraine. Three daily newspapers are used during the period of December 2021-February 2022 to measure the frequency of coverage of the issue during the pre-invasion phase and the first day of the invasion. In addition, a qualitative content analysis is employed to account for the three newspapers' stance on the Russian-Belarus invasion. One conclusion that emerges, which to many would appear surprising, is that all newspapers unequivocally condemned the Russia-Belarus invasion without any strings attached to their position. Since these three newspapers cover a wide spectrum of the Greek political ideology, it appears that despite Greece's long historical, economic, and cultural (religion included) ties with Russia, this invasion was considered unacceptable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regional newspaper industry in the UK is in freefall with sales down more than 60 percent in 10 years. With this decline has come cost-cutting. This study looks at how these cuts have manifested themselves in terms of the number of news stories now being printed in newspapers and the number of local people being quoted in the newspapers. The study has looked at a number of regional newspapers across 30 years to show the effect of the changing face of the newspaper business as the audience and advertising have moved online. The research includes interviews with experts on whether story count mattered and if fewer stories and local voices have damaged the product. This paper finds that generally newspaper companies with a web-first culture have been forced to reduce their local news content in their printed products as they concentrate their resources online. While fewer stories and voices cannot be blamed for the complete demise of the newspapers, it is a consequence of cost-cutting and disadvantages the product. Opinions do vary on the needs for high story count, but this paper shows that most experts believe it is important and that without it, printed newspapers have been damaged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines how news images of refugees in the context of the war in Ukraine mobilize intergroup relations. A visual rhetorical analysis is used to examine the rhetorical strategies employed in news images of Ukrainian refugees in a mainstream Finnish national newspaper from February 25 to May 31, 2022. The data consisted of 465 images. The study constructed four humanizing visual rhetorical strategies based on the visual expression in news images: maternalizing, fragilizing, agonizing, and activizing. The rhetorical strategies constructed four subject positions for Ukrainian refugees: vulnerable victims, innocent victims, suffering Ukrainians, and persistent/resilient Ukrainians. All rhetorical strategies implicitly communicated the subject position of evil to Russia. The paper contributes to the current knowledge of the humanization of refugees in media discourse and the potential of media images to mobilize intergroup relations. Methodologically, the paper elaborates visual rhetorical analysis as a means of social psychological study of refugee discourse in the context of war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper aims to trace both the development of the main media channels throughout the centuries, and their often hard to pin down and define influence upon their consumers. From newspapers to the radio, the TV and nowadays the internet, the media has always directly or indirectly shaped the way people think, feel and act. This is nowhere more visible than in the USA, where especially political life and discourse is inextricably linked to the media and its manifold propagandistic and sometimes manipulative strategies and tendencies. Media has moved in recent decades more and more overtly from delivering a message i.e., information, to creating incentives for purchasing goods (via advertising) or for following a certain political ideology. Last but not least, the present paper addresses the complex issue of the media’s influence on human behavior, especially in the case of young people, with critical voices stating that certain types of media may negatively influence behavior and lead to aggression, violence or obsessive behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Studia Iuridica Lublinensia is the property of Maria Curie-Sklodowska University in Lublin and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: The terms idiot, imbecile, and moron are generally associated with notions of intelligence, having served both scientific and mundane roles across cultural‐historical contexts and in many different countries. This study seeks to explore the degree to which the use of these terms is an everyday part of our lives and to map out the meanings being attached to them. Methods: This study reports on their current usage in two arenas: within 29 academic papers published from 2016 to 2021, reporting on interviews or observations undertaken in educational contexts; and within 134 articles from four English language newspapers published in the first three months of 2021. Using a discursive and thematic approach to the analysis, it considers the degree to which these may be considered slur or taboo words, and whether they can be linked to discriminatory practices frequently experienced by groups with whom they are associated. Findings: It is evident is that people use the terms differently in different arenas. However, they see them as negative, associate them with stereotypical characteristics, are happy to apply them to others, but want to avoid having them applied to themselves. Conclusion: This study shows how widely these words are used across social contexts, and suggests that as with other historical terms for marginalized populations we need to regard them as slurs and treat them as taboo. Accessible summary: The study looked at the use of the words Idiot, Moron and Imbecile in 29 academic papers and 134 Newspaper articles.The terms were used by a many different people involved in education and in the news media.These three words are used to belittle others and people do not wish to have them used about themselves.Idiot, imbecile and moron are recognised as disapproving words, but they also act as slurs and so perhaps they ought to be forbidden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child marriage is a problem that has continued to attract global attention. The media have been identified as critical to the fight against the scourge as it discusses the capacity to raise awareness of the issue as well as trigger action in solving the problem. The report of the alleged abduction of a minor, Ese Oruru by one Yunusa Dahiru for marriage jolted the nation and sparked public outcry for her release. This study explored newspaper framing of the incident. Drawing from qualitative frame analysis, it examined how Punch and Daily Trust newspapers framed the alleged abduction saga. The study found that there was contrastive framing of the incident with Punch newspaper portraying the issue as abduction while Daily Trust newspaper depicted it as elopement. The influence of socio-cultural leanings of these papers on the contrastive framing is discussed. The implication of the divergent framing of the saga on the fight against child marriage is highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Anagramas is the property of Editorial Universidad de Medellin and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background South-East Asia is a densely populated region, comprising of 11 low- and middle-income countries and contributing to 39% of global suicides. There are serious challenges to suicide prevention in the region such as lack of high-quality suicide data, underreporting and poor quality of media reporting. The current report aimed to assess the variations in newspaper reporting of suicidal behavior in the World Health Organization–South-East Asian countries. Methods We analyzed the contents of nine research articles on media reporting of suicide, published from four South-East Asian countries (four from Bangladesh, three from India, one each from Indonesia and Bhutan) that used similar methods and presented results in a nearly similar fashion. Results Personal identifying information of the deceased was very frequently mentioned in the newspaper reports across the countries. Suicide notes were reported more commonly in India (9.5–18%) than Bangladesh (4.2–7.5%) and Indonesia (9.5%). No educative material was found in any of the newspaper reports of Bangladesh and Indonesia while it was rarely reported in Bhutan and India. Conclusion Our findings from the four South-East Asian countries suggest that there are variations between the countries while presenting the news reports of suicidal behavior. These findings would help to formulate and regulate the media guidelines for the specific country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of the shock waves of thought sent by mass media through society, on the consciousness, mind, feelings, and behavior of individuals has been argued. The ethnic conflict has been given first priority in the national agenda of Sri Lanka for the last few decades. The role of the news media in the ethnic conflict is something that has not been identified. This study investigates whether the newspapers that targeted the Sinhala population which is the ethnic majority in Sri Lanka did perform professional news functions in covering the final phase of the war in Sri Lanka and what factors affected the situation. For this purpose, news professionalism theory, narratology theory, and structuralism theory were employed. In a society where conflicts occur based on ethnic diversity, this study found that newspapers that target the ethnic majority which possesses the monopoly, engage in covering war using the construction of narrative function instead of professional news reporting. The paper argues that the influence exercised upon the mentality of readers by narratives constructed by the news genre of newspapers in a society facing an armed conflict based on ethnic differences obstructs the ability to look at the ethnic conflict critically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of HiSTOReLo: Revista de Historia Regional y Local is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Centro Editorial Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y Economicas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Covid-19 is the first pandemic to be broadcast and photographed as it happens worldwide. However, despite the plethora of images on countless aspects of the pandemic, few media images have covered its more sensitive issues, such as the collapse of the healthcare system, the process of dying alone, or the disruption to funeral rites and mourning. Consequently, the visual narratives of the pandemic are biased. They lack images that show its more dramatic aspects. This affects not only how the public perceives and reacts to Covid-19, but also the visual evidence that will remain for historical memory in the future. With one of the world's highest case rates and most stringent states of emergency, Spain offers an interesting case study to analyse the pandemic's photographic narratives and its missing images during lockdown. This paper focuses on the presence or absence of images dealing with illness, death, dying and grief, as well as their ways of representation. It delves into the framing of particular visual narratives through an analysis of the images that appeared in Spain's leading newspapers, together with semi-structured interviews conducted with renowned photojournalists who worked on the front line to document Covid-19 during lockdown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When it comes to examining innovation and small-town newspapers, audience expectations and perspectives have received less focus than newsroom practices and processes. This article presents the findings of Australia's most comprehensive national survey of local newspaper audiences (n = 4116), which engaged with readers of more than 170 independently owned, small-town newspapers across the nation. The survey was underpinned by a 'geo-social' methodology, which provides a multidimensional framework for understanding the 'place' of newspapers in the digital age within their specific geographic context, in this case rural Australia. It used ordinal, nominal and qualitative questions to explore respondents' experiences, histories, expectations and perspectives related to their local newspaper. Respondents were asked about their preferences for reading and receiving local news, what their newspaper can do better, and the policy debates and interventions shaping the sector. Results indicate a continued desire for the printed product, a passion for localness in terms of both production and content, and a greater say for local news audiences on the policies shaping the future of news in non-metropolitan settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Tikrit University for Humanities is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article examines the impact of embodied actions in the daily practices of parliamentary debates in nineteenth-century France. The publication of parliamentary transcripts in the main newspapers at the time confirms the interest of the public in political debates. Instead of simply reporting the content of speeches delivered in the assemblies, these transcripts provided readers with highly detailed accounts of the deliberations, including, for example, the reactions of the audience, as well as the movements and vocal characteristics of political actors. Reproducing the articulations of speeches within the material context of the Chambre, journalists and stenographers sought to allow readers to immerse themselves into the parliamentary experience. Using the analytical frame of experience to examine these material elements within the recorded parliamentary activity found in a representative selection of newspapers, this paper argues that the discursive interactions within the assembly relied on practices that used the materiality of the Chambre. These practices shaped the cultural code of the assembly, which merged within its institutional fabric and exerted a strong influence on the debates. Given the volume of transcripts published during the long nineteenth century, the analysis focuses on a significant parliamentary crisis, the Manuel Affair, to serve as a contextual entry point into the topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to expand peace journalism scholarship by proposing a new peace journalism model for analyzing media representations of immigration. By employing framing and content analysis, the paper takes a closer look at the ways in which four Greek newspapers portrayed immigration in crisis-stricken Greece between 2011 and 2014. Results indicate that a conflict frame prevailed in the majority of all newspaper articles analyzed. In this context, immigration was portrayed (1) as an issue that generated conflict among different political and social groups, (2) through stereotypical portrayals of immigrants as a threat to public health and security, (3) as a mass of people in extreme conditions of exception, and (4) as a problem to almost every aspect of the Greek society: for tourism, trade, the economy or even Greece's relationship with the EU. A peace frame, conversely, was identified in around one fourth of all news stories. At the same time, findings lead us to conclusions that transcend the peace and conflict journalism dualism revealing five distinct subframes that provide a more nuanced understanding of the peace journalism concept; (1) a 'direct conflict subframe' enhancing division and dispute over immigration, (2) a 'journalism of conventions subframe' following well-established journalistic conventions with important consequences on the quality of information, (3) a 'journalism of values subframe' being closer to the traditional values of journalism, (4) a 'diversity journalism subframe', including all elements referring to a pro-immigrant approach, and (5) a 'positive peace subframe', closer to Galtung's notion of positive peace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tourist destinations worldwide are periodically jeopardised by natural disaster events that threaten tourists’ safety; consequently, the tourism industry is impacted. Mass media has a role to communicate and warn the public about disaster. Media portrayal on disaster events is likely to contribute to the tourism industry recovery and resilience. However, media has played a role in sending a negative message to tourists, making them hesitate to visit the destination. Limited researches have focused on how the media frames disaster events, and how policy makers could intervene. Based on analysis of media coverage of the Surabaya terrorist attack in 2018 and Mt. Agung eruption in 2017, this paper looked at how media framed disaster events and its consequences to the tourism industry policy. A content analysis of mass media from both national and international newspapers of Australia, Malaysia, and Singapore were conducted. The research identified five different framings on the two disasters, including source of problems, impact, solution, responsibility, and adaptive versus maladaptive. Findings also highlights the limited policy response towards these potentially negative media portrayal. Based on these findings, partnership between media and the government should be fostered to encourage post-disaster recovery [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to compare the reporting of vital agricultural news between the mainstream print media and the farming press in Ireland. To achieve this, this study examined coverage of a recent and significant agricultural news event by mainstream Irish newspapers and the Irish farming press. Taking the 2018-2019 Irish beef sector crisis as the case study for examination, researchers conducted a comparative content analysis of the most widely circulated mainstream national newspapers' (n = 5) and farming newspapers' (n = 2) coverage of the story over a 14-month period. We analyzed the timing, frequency, and placing of some 294 articles published to communicate issues regarding the beef crisis at three specific stages--before the national farmer protests, during the farmer protests, and after the farmer protests. We found mainstream newspapers to be significantly slower to start reporting on the Irish beef sector crisis of 2018-2019 compared to the country's farming newspapers--although national print media coverage of the event increased as the crisis escalated. This early underreporting of the event by mainstream newspapers is compelling considering the importance of the agri-food sector, and beef farming in particular, to Ireland's economy. Building on existing international, but very limited Irish, research on agricultural journalism, we concluded that farming newspapers are more in touch with the critical issues affecting Irish farmers while mainstream newspapers appeared slower to cover a vital agricultural issue of public importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To address the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other infectious diseases, a key intervention is vaccination. Health communications are thus of vital importance for informing the public on the benefits and risks of vaccines. This in turn makes the readability of media content fundamental. Previous studies of COVID-19-related information have found the readability of online information considerably more difficult than recommended. However, studies on the readability of information related to COVID-19 vaccination in Asian contexts have yet to be carried out. Furthermore, especially in the case of the current pandemic, health information is communicated by a variety of information channels, including the internet and mass media. This paper investigates the readability of textual information on COVID-19 vaccination found online and in newspaper articles in parts of Asia where English is one of the main languages, namely Singapore, Hong Kong, and the Philippines. Readability was assessed using a set of readability tests (Flesch–Kincaid Reading Ease, Flesch–Kincaid Grade Level, Gunning Fog Index, Coleman–Liau Index, and Simple Measure of Gobbledygook Grade level). It was found that a low proportion of URLs scored within recommended readability thresholds, and did so consistently across locations and types of sources. Furthermore, a relatively low proportion of web searches returned information from local sources; most URLs linked to sources outside of Singapore, Hong Kong, or the Philippines. Further, local online and newspaper sources scored similarly poorly on readability on average compared to non-local sources. Understanding of fast-evolving health communications concerning COVID-19 vaccination encompasses information about vaccine development and deployment from other locations, as well as locally. Nevertheless, these findings indicated a fairly low proportion of local sources among the top search results, and relatively low (i.e., difficult-to-read) readability scores for top search results and for local newspapers. An important issue for health communications strategies addressing COVID-19 vaccination will therefore be to consider different types of media sources in order to achieve the right mix of local and non-local sources while also ensuring appropriate readability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Print media is the oldest media for news and information. It includes newspapers, magazines, journals and other printed material etc. The print media is responsible for reporting the latest and accurate news and information. The common people find the plethora of thoughts from the newspapers so that they can formulate their own opinions, ideas and judgment about the issues. Health related stories are an important part of the information published in the newspapers. In this research paper the researcher has undertaken content analysis of four national dailies published from Jaipur city over a period of three years (2019, 2020 & 2021) on their coverage of 'World Blood Donor Day'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Modern Turkish History Studies / Cumhuriyet Tarihi Araştırmaları Dergisi (CTAD) is the property of Ataturk Institute for Modern Turkish History and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Media sources can influence and shape attitudes and beliefs towards others. This study explored newspapers depictions of autism. All articles which included keywords relating to autism published in 2016–18 in Australian newspapers were read, coded, and categorised. In 2016, 428 articles relating to autism were published, 532 in 2017, and 391 in 2018. Only 7% of all articles demonstrated a high content focus on autism; most (59%) were heavily focused on opinion and less than 1% included first-hand perspectives from individuals on the spectrum. Over half the articles focussed upon health and medical issues (33%) and profiles of people on the autism spectrum (25%). To minimise the spread of misinformation around autism, the paper concludes with advice for those writing media articles related to autism. Newspapers provide a public account of autism and those with autism, therefore, media portrayals and what aspects of the condition are reported, inform public perceptions. Newspaper articles predominantly focus on the health and medical aspects of the condition, emphasising a 'cure' or treatments for autism. Articles tend to single out individuals with a diagnosis on the autism spectrum, through media depictions or characterisations. Media articles reviewed often only mentioned autism but did not explain or discuss the details related to the syndrome and rarely included the expertise of qualified practitioners. Only 1% of all news stories included first-hand perspectives from individuals on the autism spectrum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to WHO (2020) media use and advocacy are crucial to messages disseminating health promotion. Governments launch welfare schemes regularly and often with a lot of pomp which are directed towards various sections of people. Asmita Yojana is a scheme launched statewide in Maharashtra in the year 2018 which provides subsidized sanitary napkins to girls and women in the state. Jernigan and Wright (1996) assert that it is crucial to know the media advocacy done to further the scheme and the media coverage as well. The study is two pronged as it is concerned with a content analysis of newspaper coverage of Asmita Yojana in Maharashtra. Wherein five newspapers were studied for this purpose which includes news reports, articles, editorials, cartoons and opinion pieces. In the second part a quantitative research was conducted to ascertain the role of mass media in the implementation of the said scheme. A survey was conducted among the sample beneficiaries of the scheme to determine the same. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Political Science / Revue Canadienne de Science Politique is the property of Cambridge University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The December 1872 death of Hawaiian monarch Kamehameha V spurred renewed interest among U.S. citizens and politicians alike in the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands. To satisfy the public's increased curiosity about Hawai'i, in January 1873 the New York Tribune sought testimony in the form of two letters from a well-known expert on the islands: Mark Twain, who had gained nationwide fame based his popular comic lecture "Our Fellow Savages of the Sandwich Islands," which he delivered across the United States and abroad between 1866 and 1873. Between January and March of 1873 at least seventy newspapers and magazines reprinted excerpts of Mark Twain's Tribune letters. This article considers how these reprinted excerpts decontextualize or mischaracterize Mark Twain's insights as well as what they reveal about the American reading public's views of Mark Twain as both a comedian and as a serious expert on Hawai'i in the early 1870s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

U.S. journalists embedded in rural and agricultural communities could adversely affect the health of residents if they avoid alerting and engaging their readers – farmers, ranchers, and community members – on environmental and health issues. We expected reporters would maintain community status quo and inaction by framing local water pollution and quality issues neutrally deemphasizing threats and solutions to maintain their own credibility as unbiased informational sources. In a content analysis of local water quality newspaper articles from five farming and cattle ranching states in the west central U.S. Midwest, we employed seven variables to investigate whether journalists practiced neutral, detached forms of journalism (i.e. dissemination versus interpretative role enactment, government-frame) as well as whether they deemphasized water pollution as a concerning issue (i.e. problem, threat), water pollution solutions, and readers' efficaciousness. The results showed these journalists relied heavily on government-driven narratives presenting water quality issues from an impartial, straight reporting lens in which they primarily followed the journalistic dissemination role enactment, while neglecting to provide readers with interpretative, threat, efficacy, or solution's information. The study seeks to help communicators understand the information diet people living in this part of the country likely receive on environmental and health risks in the context of water pollution. Communicators seeking to reach and affect audiences in this region should understand local information practices to navigate how to craft culturally specific public health messages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traffic accidents represent a major problem worldwide. Public and private entities launch communication campaigns in order to educate the population about this problem. The aim of this study is to analyze the evolution of the presence of road safety in the Spanish media and its influence on the reduction of road accidents. A content analysis of six major Spanish newspapers between 2000 and 2008 (an important period in the reduction of the accident rate in Spain) was carried out in which the presence of news related to traffic accidents and the intensity of them were quantified using a set of criteria designed for this study. Furthermore, the correlation between the accident rates and the presence and intensity of news in the same time frame was measured. There has been an evident increase in the news related to traffic accidents during the analyzed period, both in terms of the presence of such news in general and in terms of intensity. The correlation analysis also shows a strong relationship between the increase in news presence and intensity and a sharp fall in accident rates in Spain. Although correlation analysis is not enough to establish a causal relationship between the variables studied here, the findings suggest that informative campaigns had a positive effect on encouraging pro-social behavior, were successful in disseminating related information, and, therefore, contributed significantly to lowering accident rates, although that was not the only reason. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper analyses the informative coverage made by the newspapers El País, El Mundo and La Vanguardia in their printed editions on the investiture session of Pedro Sánchez as President of the Spanish Government. For this purpose, all the text related to this issue published between Friday 3 and Wednesday 8 January 2020 were analyze through a content analysis (n=333), which consider variables such as the location, the type of the texts, the topic addressed and the prominence of headlines and graphics. The results show that this topic aroused a remarkable interest among the analyzed newspapers, which provided their coverage with a great opinion and interpretive value. Furthermore, other features that define the informative coverage of these newspapers are the moderate use of graphic elements, the predominant attention to PSOE and Unidas Podemos, and the configuration of the agenda setting around the same issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the prevailing conflict framings of national (El País and El Mundo) and Catalan (La Vanguardia and El Periódico de Cataluña) newspapers in response to the management of the regional independence conflict (2010-2014). For this, a new conflict framing typology was developed, based on level of substantivity. The study has verified that territorial origin affects, but does not determine, the media's definition of the conflict and its preference for specific territorial models. The alignment between parties and the media appears to be the variable that best explains the orientation (pro-independence, constitutionalist, or federalist) of each newspaper. We have also verified the media's action as a polarizing agent based on territorial model preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the prevailing conflict framings of national (El País and El Mundo) and Catalan (La Vanguardia and El Periódico de Cataluña) newspapers in response to the management of the regional independence conflict (2010-2014). For this, a new conflict framing typology was developed, based on level of substantivity. The study has verified that territorial origin affects, but does not determine, the media's definition of the conflict and its preference for specific territorial models. The alignment between parties and the media appears to be the variable that best explains the orientation (pro-independence, constitutionalist, or federalist) of each newspaper. We have also verified the media's action as a polarizing agent based on territorial model preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sudden emergence of WeChat, particularly its public accounts, drastically altered China's social media landscape and the ways in which ordinary Chinese people obtain information. However, no study has yet explored whether user-generated content in WeChat public accounts has the potential to influence the agendas of China's traditional state-controlled media. The present study explores the intermedia agenda-setting effects across WeChat public accounts, party newspapers, and metropolitan newspapers in China. The results showed the following: 1) WeChat and the party newspaper's agendas were not reciprocal at any time; 2) a significant, although ephemeral, unidirectional effect of WeChat on the metropolitan newspapers emerged; 3) both reciprocal and unidirectional effects were observed on the party newspaper and the metropolitan newspapers' agendas. The findings provided insights into the conditions under which influential agenda setters can be identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines newspaper photographs related to the COVID‐19 pandemic in Finland. Drawing on social representations theory and positioning theory, we explore social representations and identities related to COVID‐19 in mass media using a visual rhetoric analysis. More specifically, we focus on how newspaper photographs construct subjects' positions for different age groups. The data consisted of 4,506 photographs of people published in the two largest Finnish newspapers between 1 January and 31 August 2020. The study identified the following subject positions for the different age groups: (a) children as controlled pupils and joyful players; (b) youth as future‐oriented graduates and reckless partygoers; (c) adults as authoritative experts, adaptive professionals, responsible caretakers and active recreationists and (d) elderly people as isolated loners. In addition to echoing the positions of villains, heroes and victims identified in previous studies, the photographs seemed to construct an intergroup divide between adults and the other age groups. Methodologically, this study elaborates the usefulness of the analysis of visual rhetoric in social representations research. Theoretically, we seek to advance the understanding of the role of media, particularly images, in the social construction of knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Existing research has documented the dynamics of increased news consumption alongside – paradoxically – increased news avoidance during the Covid-19 pandemic, highlighting its adverse effects on mental health and emotional wellbeing. However, for methodological and theoretical reasons, research still lacks specifics on what types of negative psychological responses were directly triggered by pandemic news, how prevalent they were in the population, how they manifested in daily life, and what could be the alternatives to them. Further, the almost exclusive focus on negative effects has led to a relative negligence of the positive sides of pandemic news. This study takes a mixed-method approach to address these gaps, combining 59 interviews and a follow-up survey with a representative sample of 2,015 adults across the UK. We found that pandemic news consumption, driven primarily by the need for personalised surveillance in an uncertain situation, oscillated in parallel with its severity and associated lockdown restrictions. The influx of repetitive bad news triggered many negative feelings besides general pandemic anxiety – namely fear, despair and moral outage (anger and disgust). This led to various alterations of daily routines, including news avoidance. Such adverse effects were offset by the reassurance, happiness and hope that the news did, at least occasionally, brought to audiences during the pandemic. Participants suggested several potential "good news" categories that point to the need for constructive news forms that not only inform but also inspire, motivate and/or empower people in personal or collective ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an examination of development issues appearing in the highest circulated mainstream English daily newspaper in Bangladesh— the Daily Star (DS)— this study discursively argues that this newspaper provided much less attention and even remained silent on development issues related to education and agriculture that are of close concern to underprivileged people. The newspaper's silence and inconsistent coverage sidelines social needs important to voiceless people. Their coverage pattern can be likened to snapshots that have no value in solving the issues. The newspaper's coverage favours the elite but dehumanizes and ignores the circumstances of underprivileged people. While problems of development need to be debated in the mass media; the DS would rather remain silent and engage in a social exclusion process that breaches the norms of development journalism. The disinterest has impacts, not only in sidelining development issues, but also in dehumanizing and excluding the circumstances of underprivileged people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Transvaginal mesh (mesh) surgeries have been used to treat stress urinary incontinence (incontinence) and/or pelvic organ prolapse (prolapse). In Australia, as in many other countries, the harms caused by mesh eventually prompted individual and collective attempts to achieve redress. The rise of mesh surgery as a procedure, the experience of mesh‐affected women and the formal inquiries and legal actions that followed all occurred in social, cultural and discursive contexts. One strategy to understand these contexts is to track how the mesh and key actors in the mesh stories have been portrayed in mass media sources. We conducted a media analysis of the most highly read Australian newspapers and online news media platforms, focusing on how mesh and the interaction of stakeholders in mesh stories were presented to the Australian public. Method: We searched systematically in the top 10 most‐read print and online media outlets in Australia. We included all articles that mentioned mesh, from the date of first use of mesh in Australia to the date of our final search (1996–2021). Result: After early scant media reporting focusing on the benefits of mesh procedures, major Australian medicolegal processes created a hook to shift reporting about mesh. The news media then played a significant role in redressing women's experienced epistemic injustice, including by amplifying previously ignored evidence of harm. This created an opportunity for previously unreported suffering to be revealed to powerful actors, in settings beyond the immediate control and epistemic authority of healthcare stakeholders, validating women's testimony and creating new hermeneutic resources for understanding mesh. Over time, media reports show healthcare stakeholders responding sympathetically to these new understandings in public discourse, contrasting with their statements in earlier media coverage. Conclusion: We argue that mass media reporting, in synergy with medicolegal actions and the Australian Senate Inquiry, appears to have provided women with greater epistemic justice, giving their testimony privileged epistemic status such that it was considered by powerful actors. Although medical reporting is not recognised in the hierarchy of evidence embedded in the medical knowledge system, in this case, media reporting appears to have contributed to shaping medical knowledge in significant ways. Patient or Public Contribution: We used publicly available data, print and online media outlets, for our analysis. Therefore, this manuscript does not contain the direct contribution of patients, service users, caregivers, people with lived experience or members of the public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Press representations of autism and autistic people both reflect and help shape public attitudes towards autism and neurodiversity and may establish critical barriers to social integration for autistic individuals. This study examined such representations in UK newspapers in the period 2011–2020 using a corpus-based approach. It also considered how press representations changed over time and differed with regard to reporting style (tabloids vs broadsheets) and political orientation (left- vs right-leaning). We created the Autism UK Press Corpus, which included all documents (~24K) referring to autism in 10 national newspapers. We used document counts (normalised by newspaper size) to assess the 'newsworthiness' of autism. We also employed a synergy of corpus-based and critical-discourse-analysis methodologies to study lexicogrammatical patterns and uncover explicit and implicit attitudes towards autism. Our results showed that the coverage of autism increased slightly over time, especially in broadsheets and left-leaning newspapers. Newspapers emphasised adversities associated with autism, often used negative language, and tended to focus on boys. These representations shifted gradually towards more difference-based descriptions and included more diverse age/gender groups, especially in broadsheets and left-leaning newspapers. We discuss the broad implications of these findings for the autism community and those interested in a more inclusive society. Any thriving society must recognise, accept and celebrate all of its diverse talent. But how accepting is British society towards autism and autistic people? This research addressed this question through the lens of the press since the press both reflects and helps shape public attitudes towards various social categories. We used specialised 'corpus-based' methods to carry out a large-scale study, which examined all articles referring to autism or autistic people in 10 national British newspapers in the period 2011–2020. We first investigated how often newspapers referred to autism. We found that the coverage of autism increased slightly over the years, suggesting that autism was becoming an increasingly newsworthy topic. Furthermore, the rise in autism coverage differed considerably between individual newspapers: it was more pronounced in the broadsheets than tabloids, and in left-leaning than right-leaning newspapers. But what was the focus of these articles? We found that newspapers emphasised the adversities associated with autism and portrayed autism with a lot of negative language. Newspapers also tended to focus on autistic children, and particularly on boys. There were some signs of change in more recent years, with some newspapers now representing autism as a difference and, in addition, referring to more diverse groups of autistic people. However, these changes tended to be confined to broadsheets and left-leaning newspapers. Our findings suggest that representations of autism in the contemporary British press are skewed towards stereotypically negative views, which may well hinder the acceptance of autism and the fostering of a more inclusive society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about public reactions to state security officials' suicide in Muslim countries like Pakistan. To explore readers' reactions in online comments, we analyzed 1,765 comments related to 10 news stories about suicide published in five mainstream English newspapers. The findings revealed six themes: stress, depression, and mental health issues; controversial investigation reports and misinformation; need for stronger accountability to address corruption in the country; criticizing media and security institutions; sympathy for the deceased and their families; and suicide and Islam. We recommend that suicide prevention organizations should monitor audience comments to devise and suggest resources for the public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present Meteor, a new inventory for European news sources (i.e. EU + UK, CH, NO, IL): https://wp3.opted.eu/. This inventory will facilitate researchers' efforts to select sources across platforms and gather related textual data. It contains the names of print and online news sources, social media accounts, news blogs, and alternative news media sources, as well as rich meta-information for each entry (e.g. language, audience size, topical focus, ownership structures, access to full-text archives, secondary data, related research). Meteor accounts for the fuzziness of hybrid media systems through an interlinked knowledge graph. Entries are submitted by researchers, validated, continuously updated, and openly accessible to the public. Our inventory allows users to find various European news sources based on a wide range of criteria, putting scholars in a better position to navigate the European media landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In Pakistan, there is lack of official suicide data due to associated stigma and socio-cultural factors. Although, suicide incidents are regularly reported in newspapers there are no official suicide reporting guidelines. Aims: The aim was to study the quality of suicide reporting in Pakistani newspapers and compare it to international media guidelines. Method: Newspaper reports on suicide deaths were searched in four Pakistani national newspapers from 1st January 2019 to 31st December 2020. Data was extracted using templates based on World Health Organization and Reporting on Suicide media guidelines. Results: There were total 2,295 suicides reported in 2 years. The word 'suicide' was mentioned in title of 2,113 (92.06%) reports. In 70.37% news articles, motive for suicide was reduced to a single factor. Method was mentioned in 95.6% suicides. Pictures accompanied 103 (4.4%) news reports. Only 13 (0.57%) the news stories recognized the link between substance abuse and suicide. None of the reports provided education to public about suicide or mentioned resources to seek help. Conclusions: The articles reporting on suicide deaths were regularly featured in Pakistani newspapers with strikingly low level of adherence to suicide reporting guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Media can be a powerful communication tool to promote breastfeeding, influence mothers' breastfeeding behaviour, create positive social norms and generate support among stakeholders and policymakers for breastfeeding. However, negative stories could deter women from starting or continuing to breastfeed. This study aimed to describe the breadth and focus of the media coverage of breastfeeding and the message frames that are found in three of the most widely read national newspapers and three popular women's magazines in Great Britain over a 12‐month period, as part of the Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly in Great Britain (BBF‐GB) study. For this retrospective media analysis, 77 articles were identified and 42 were included in the study for coding and analysis. We conducted two content analyses to examine the articles' (1) message framing and (2) alignment with the eight components of an 'enabling breastfeeding environment' using the BBF Gear framework. Articles featuring breastfeeding appear in British newspapers and women's magazines all year round. Twenty‐four per cent had a neutral tone, while 59% predominantly focused on the positive aspects or positive social support for breastfeeding, and 17% were predominantly focused on the negative aspects or negative social attitudes towards breastfeeding. The articles mainly focused on personal stories reflecting societal barriers and positive shifts (68%), with 12% presenting an analysis of breastfeeding evidence or barriers. There were fewer references to the legislation (5%) and availability of funding (2%) and support (9%). There was no coverage of national coordination and strategy, evaluation systems, or the political will to raise breastfeeding rates. Key messages: During the one‐year study period, articles featuring breastfeeding appeared in the included British newspapers and women's magazines all year round rather than being focused on specific events, such as World Breastfeeding Week.Articles mainly focused on personal stories and were initiated by social media posts or discussions on television by mothers, often celebrity mothers.While articles discussed the difficulties mothers face during breastfeeding, they also detailed positive support for breastfeeding, presenting a more balanced view.The articles did not fully reflect BBF's Gear Model components for an enabling breastfeeding environment. Most were categorised as promotion articles with fewer advocacy pieces. There was little coverage of legislation, services and funding while political support, breastfeeding data and strategic oversight were not covered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last decade, political communication research has scrutinized the characteristics of media systems beyond the developed world. To understand new façades in media/political connections, this article examines how the notion of parallelism unfolds in the O Estado de S. Paulo (OESP) editorials--one of the most influential Brazilian newspapers. We investigate (a) the arguments raised, (b) the policies suggested, and (c) the news companies' evaluation of the political performance of the Lula, Temer, and Bolsonaro administrations regarding pension reform approval. A content analysis of 341 editorials revealed that the OESP adopts a parallelism that strays from the literature's traditional definition. For the newspaper at stake, the contrasting ideologies underpinning the three governments matter less than their willingness--and political strength--to approve liberal economic reforms. The article reinforces its claim for de-Westernizing media research by empirically demonstrating singular dimensions of media parallelism that have not been fully explored to date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To address the COVID-19 pandemic, as with other infectious diseases, a key intervention is vaccination. Health communications are thus of vital importance for informing the public on the benefits and risks of vaccines. This in turn makes the readability of media content fundamental. Previous studies of COVID-19-related information have found the readability of online information considerably more difficult than recommended. However, studies on the readability of information related to COVID-19 vaccination in Asian contexts have yet to be carried out. Furthermore, especially in the case of the current pandemic, health information is communicated by a variety of information channels, including the internet and mass media. This paper investigates the readability of textual information on COVID-19 vaccination found online and in newspaper articles in parts of Asia where English is one of the main languages, namely Singapore, Hong Kong, and the Philippines. Readability was assessed using a set of readability tests (Flesch–Kincaid Reading Ease, Flesch–Kincaid Grade Level, Gunning Fog Index, Coleman–Liau Index, and Simple Measure of Gobbledygook Grade level). It was found that a low proportion of URLs scored within recommended readability thresholds, and did so consistently across locations and types of sources. Furthermore, a relatively low proportion of web searches returned information from local sources; most URLs linked to sources outside of Singapore, Hong Kong, or the Philippines. Further, local online and newspaper sources scored similarly poorly on readability on average compared to non-local sources. Understanding of fast-evolving health communications concerning COVID-19 vaccination encompasses information about vaccine development and deployment from other locations, as well as locally. Nevertheless, these findings indicated a fairly low proportion of local sources among the top search results, and relatively low (i.e., difficult-to-read) readability scores for top search results and for local newspapers. An important issue for health communications strategies addressing COVID-19 vaccination will therefore be to consider different types of media sources in order to achieve the right mix of local and non-local sources while also ensuring appropriate readability.

Science journalism in India is need-based and happens only when the country is in crisis. There are many reasons to it including a lack of journalistic training in presenting science stories. While India has one of the largest newspaper markets in the world, its reach does not extend to one-third of its population. The vastness and vibrancy of the country, teeming millions in need of decent science stories in hundreds of different languages, and a large network of research institutions and think tanks offer enormous opportunities for the proliferation of science journalism. Journalists must tap these opportunities to promote this scientific stream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to describe the way that the Brazilian press reports on episodes of violence involving people with substance-related problems or psychiatric disorders. To develop this documentary study, we analyzed news reports from September 2009 to August 2015 in two major Brazilian newspaper who make their published articles available electronically in the Lexis Nexis Academic® database. The analyses were conducted using descriptive statistics and association tests. We identified 269 news stories related to these themes during the study period. The reported events occurred mainly in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, and 68% of the stories suggested a causal relationship between substance use or mental illness and violence. A marked minority (10%) of the stories made reference to prevention or treatment for the conditions studied. We concluded that the Brazilian press issues incomplete reports on episodes of violence involving people with substance-related problems or psychiatric disorders, emphasizing the relationships between these conditions and potential danger, particularly in cases involving drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the role of the press in Alabama during the "massive resistance" to the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education ruling of 1954 on school integration, and the extent to which newspaper editorials relied on social and legal rationales for segregation based on the High Court's earlier Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896. All three of Plessy's rationales for institutionalizing segregation—states' rights, a dual system of "social rights" based on race, and the doctrine of "separate but equal"—were widely adopted by the press. This contrasted with the approach of "natural law" preservationists who relied on "pure racial ideology" in fighting integration. A content analysis of Birmingham News editorials from 1960 to 1964 found support for our thesis that "mainstream" segregationist newspapers were more likely to use "pragmatic" rationales based on "constitutional" arguments rather than "natural law" arguments to defend segregation. This approach was seen as more effective in persuading the public outside the South on the merits of the "southern way of life." Thus, Birmingham News editors consistently supported "political equality" of races to the dismay of staunch segregationist leaders in Alabama such as Governors John Patterson and George Wallace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compares the balance of newspaper and television news coverage about migration in two countries that were differently affected by the so-called "refugee crisis" in 2015 in terms of the geopolitical involvement and numbers of migrants being admitted. Based on a broad consensus among political elites, Germany left its borders open and received about one million migrants mainly from Syria during 2015. In contrast, the conservative British government was heavily attacked by oppositional parties for closing Britain's borders and, thus, restricting immigration. These different initial situations led to remarkable differences between the news coverage in both countries. In line with news value theory, German media outlets reported much more on migration than did their British counterparts. In line with indexing theory, German news coverage consonantly reflected the consensual view of German political elites, while British news media reported along their general editorial lines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays mass media plays crucial roles in people's lives. Online newspapers constitute a part of media discourse, which makes for extremely important bodies of text for the purposes of research in discourse analysis. In news headlines, careful and sensitive use is made of linguistic devices in order to make the headlines unique and different, influence the readers, create trust for the newspaper, and, most importantly, invite and encourage the reader to proceed to the whole story and the main body of the report/news report. In this spirit, this study is a linguistic analysis of headlines in the political section of established online American newspapers. The data for this study comprises 50 headlines collected from 5 online newspapers revolving around the theme of Donald Trump. It aims to explore the linguistics structure of newspaper headlines in the sample articles from these 5 most widely read newspapers: The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, and Washington Post. In this qualitative-quantitative study, use is made of the model by Montgomery (2007) that takes account of a comprehensive picture that pays due respects to linguistic, semantic and discursive properties of headlines alongside each other in a complete package. The findings are mapped out in the form of figures and charts. The results of the frequency analysis showed that newspapers mostly used 'full sentence' and 'ellipsis' in their headlines. The qualitative analysis revealed that most of the semantic, linguistic and discursive strategies used in headlines are geared to the 'tactical incompleteness strategy', a helpful notion and a part of Montgomery's model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]