International agenda building and media response: How U.S. major newspapers used Saudi Arabia's press releases in its public relations campaign.

Taking agenda building approach, this research analyzed how major U.S. newspapers used Saudi Arabia's press releases during the country's image restoration campaign in the United States. Results showed that more than half of the press releases were used by the newspapers. Among these, nearly half were used in stories with headlines favorable to Saudi Arabia, half in stories positive to the country, and some quoted in front page stories. The majority of the press release was quoted for journalistic fairness. It was concluded that the press releases were used in a way favorable to the country. The possible reasons for the press releases' high odds of entering the major press include the conflict nature of the event, Saudi Arabia's capital-intensive campaign, and the synergistic effect of other campaign strategies. The findings and methodology of the research contributes to the literature of international media relations. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]