Nationwide Newspaper Coverage of Immigration Reform: A Community Structure Approach

A community structure analysis compared community characteristics and nationwide coverage of immigration reform in newspapers in 21 major U.S. cities, sampling all 250+ word articles April 23, 2010 to November 12, 2013. The resulting 262 articles were coded for “prominence” and “direction” (“favorable,” “unfavorable,” or “balanced/neutral” coverage), then combined into each newspaper's composite “Media Vector” (range = .632 to ?.4800). Nineteen of 21 newspapers showed favorable coverage of immigration reform. Pearson correlations yielded 4 significant results, the most powerful of which supported immigration reform. The “vulnerability” hypothesis (media “mirror” the interests of marginal/disadvantaged groups) was essentially confirmed. Higher percentages below the poverty line (r = .607, p = .003) and higher crime rates (r = .490, p = .017) correlated with more favorable coverage of immigration reform. By contrast, higher percentages of women in the workforce (r = ?.543, p = .008) and higher proportions of hate crimes (r = ?.403, p = .048) were linked with less favorable coverage. Regression analysis yielded the percentage living below the poverty line accounting for 37.2% of the variance, and proportion of hate crimes yielded an additional 19.1% of the variance. The Midwest had by far the most favorable coverage of immigration reform, more than any other region.     

Nationwide Newspaper Coverage of Same-Sex Marriage: A Community Structure Approach

Using the community structure approach to compare coverage of same-sex marriage in leading U.S. newspapers in 35 major cities nationwide, all articles of 250+ words were sampled from a 5-year span of January 1, 2007, to June 23, 2011, for a total of 577 articles. Articles were coded for “prominence” and “direction,” and then combined into a “Media Vector” score for each newspaper, ranging from .4523 to ?.1067. Initial Pearson correlations revealed three clusters had significant relationships: stakeholder (stakeholder proportions correlating with favorable coverage of stakeholder concerns), buffer (privilege correlating with favorable coverage of human rights issues), and vulnerability (vulnerable populations correlating with coverage favoring their perspectives). The stakeholder cluster includes: (percentage 25–44: r = .506, p = .001; gay market index: r = .432, p = .005; percentage 65+: r = ?.397, p = .009; percentage voting Democratic: r = .335, p = .025; percentage voting Republican: r = ?.330, p = .026). The buffer hypothesis was also confirmed (percentage college educated: r = .465, p = .002; percentage family income of $100,000+: r = .383, p = .012; and percentage professional/technical occupations: r = .300, p = .040). One vulnerability indicator, percentage below the poverty line, was also confirmed (r = ?.297, p = .041). A varimax rotated factor analysis and regression yielded 2 factors accounting for more than 29% of the variance: privilege/gay marketing/political identity, 24%, and Evangelicals, 5%.     

Nationwide Newspaper Coverage of Posttraumatic Stress: A Community Structure Approach

This study utilized the community structure approach to analyze newspaper coverage of posttraumatic stress (PTS) in veterans in 26 U.S. cities. The study examined whether media placed responsibility for PTS treatment on government or society through a review of 353 articles from March 20, 2003, to March 20, 2013. Researchers coded articles for “prominence” and “direction” to produce a “Media Vector” for each paper, ranging from 0.8403 to ?0.3592. Results showed that 25 of 26 Media Vectors (96%) supported government responsibility. Pearson correlations yielded nine significant findings. Results disconfirmed buffer hypotheses linking privilege with support for government responsibility (privilege defined by percentage of college educated, percentage of family income $100,000 or more, and percentage of professional/technical occupational status; r = ?.486, ?.524, ?.553, respectively, significant at the .006 level). Stakeholder hypotheses were also disconfirmed; greater percentages of age 65 and older correlated with more emphasis on government responsibility (r = .340, p = .048), whereas greater percentages of age 25 to 44 correlated with less emphasis (r = ?.342, p = .047). The only confirmed hypothesis linked percentage of age 45 to 64 with less emphasis on government responsibility (r = ?.559, p = .002). A regional finding was noteworthy: Media in the Midwest supported government responsibility more than other regions. Regression analysis revealed three variables influencing coverage most significantly: Family Income $100K+ (26% of variance), Percentage of Hispanic (8%), and Professional/Technical Occupational status (5%). It must be noted that nearly all newspapers yielded positive Media Vectors. This indicates that coverage in major cities generally favors government responsibility for veterans' PTS treatment, and Pearson correlation results may represent differences in the degree of support and demographic characteristics influencing this support.     

Cross-National Coverage of HIV/AIDS: A Community Structure Approach

Community structure analysis compared cross-national coverage of responsibility to fight HIV/AIDS in newspapers in 18 countries, selecting articles of 250+ words from May 7, 2003, to September 13, 2013. The resulting 291 articles were coded for “prominence” and “direction” (“government,” “society,” including nongovernmental organizations [NGOs]/foreign aid or “balanced/neutral” coverage), and combined for composite scores in each newspaper's “Media Vector” (range = .4974 to ?.1465). Newspaper support for governmental versus societal involvement was 9 to 9 (50/50). Pearson correlations revealed significant relationships in privilege and vulnerability categories: public knowledge of HIV/AIDS preventative measures and general health of the population. Regression of national characteristics against Media Vectors yielded percentage of women who know condom use prevents HIV (63.7% of variance), percentage of men who know condom use prevents HIV, and percentage of population undernourished, collectively totaling 84.8% of variance, all correlated with support for government intervention. A second regression analysis excluding self-report variables found that “% population undernourished” and “% females in the workforce” (combined 52.8% of variance) were linked to coverage supporting government responsibility. “AIDS incidence” (13.6% of variance) was linked to support for “societal” intervention. Most of the variance was linked to coverage supporting government responsibility for HIV/AIDS.     

Cross-National Coverage of Water Handling: A Community Structure Approach

A cross-national community structure survey examined the relationship between national characteristics and newspaper coverage of water handling. Sampling all relevant 250+ word articles from September 1, 2000 (the implementation of UN Millennium Development Goal target 7c) to September 1, 2010 in 21 newspapers worldwide in NewsBank and AllAfrica databases yielded 394 articles. Articles were coded for visual/editorial “prominence” and “direction” (framing of clean water access as primarily “government responsibility,” “societal responsibility,” or “balanced/neutral” coverage), then combined to produce composite “Media Vector” scores for each newspaper (+.5241 to ?.3886, a range of .9127). Thirteen of 21 Media Vectors (60%) reflected coverage favoring government responsibility for water handling. Pearson correlations revealed the potency of 4 variable cluster scales (all α = .70+) as major correlates of water handling coverage: “female empowerment,” “vulnerability,” “privilege,” and “press freedom,” with three clusters connected to “societal” responsibility. Regression analysis reinforced the strong role of female empowerment in coverage emphasizing societal responsibility. Overall, indicators of privilege and press freedom followed suit, also linked to coverage emphasizing “societal” responsibility for water handling, whereas indicators of vulnerability instead correlated with more media emphasis on government responsibility.     

Motivations for Reading the Left Behind Book Series: A Uses and Gratifications Analysis

This uses and gratifications study investigates motivations for reading the Left Behind book series and their correlation to media use patterns; religious commitments; and the Conservative Protestant, Mainline, or Catholic Christian background of readers. The survey of 1,188 readers found that sanctified entertainment and “end times” teaching were the top reasons for reading the series. There was a significant positive relationship between religious media use and spiritual growth/development, content reaction, and accuracy. A significant positive relationship was found between religious commitment and content reaction, and religious commitment and biblical accuracy reading motivations. The study revealed different reading motivations among the various denominations, especially Catholics.     

CONSTRUCTING A POLITICAL SPECTACLE:

Murray Edelman (1988) argued that media accounts evoke a spectacle that is a construction — an interpretation reflecting the social situations of the agents that produced it. Events take on meanings that perpetuate political roles, statuses and ideologies. Examining this perspective, this study compares the accounts of the “Crisis in the Gulf” constructed by a leading American newspaper, The New York Times, and a leading Indonesian newspaper, Kompas. The research bears on two related questions. First, is the account of this political event offered by each of these newspapers better understood as a symbolic representation of political reality or as a symbolic construct reflecting and serving political, economic and ideological interests? Second, do the accounts offered by the two newspapers differ in this regard?The New York Times operates within the context of a “free press” system while Kompas operates as a “developmental press.” Comparison suggests whether formal media system norms affect media news content.     

Factors influencing dietary fat intake among black emerging adults

Objective: To determine what factors influenced dietary fat intake (DFI) among black emerging adults. Participants: Sample included 251 black emerging adults, ages 18–25 years, living in the US. Methods: This was a nonexperimental cross-sectional study based on self-report data. Results: The sample had high DFI. Factors related to DFI were gender (r_pb = ?.22, p < .001), perceived barriers for healthy eating (r = .32, p < .001), and perceived self-efficacy (r = ?.33, p < .001). These variables were also significant predictors for DFI. Gender was significantly related to DFI (b = ?5.894, p = .000). Religious commitment moderated the effect of stress on DFI. Conclusions: Gender, perceived barriers for healthy eating, and perceived self-efficacy were significant predictors for DFI. Religious commitment influenced the relationship of perceived stress and DFI. These findings may lead to interventions designed to reduce DFI and cardiovascular risks among black emerging adults.     

Framing inter-religious dispute: a comparative analysis of Chinese-, English-, and Malay-language newspapers in Peninsular Malaysia

Religious and ethnicity issues in multicultural societies have always been difficult to report. This study aims to conduct a framing analysis of the coverage of the biggest inter-religious dispute in Malaysia to date – the “Allah” dispute. Specifically, the study compares the coverage of Chinese-, English-, and Malay-language newspapers and assesses the factors that lead to differences in frame building. The findings showed that these newspapers reported the dispute with different degrees of intensity and prominence, and they employed different news sources. Although conflict appeared to be the salient frame used by the dailies, the aspects highlighted by them varied. Sin Chew (Chinese-language daily) was the most vocal in its coverage, which reflected a counter-hegemonic discourse. The Star (English-language daily) used a moderate approach, while Utusan (Malay-language daily) strongly supported the status quo. The frames built by The Star and Utusan could be attributed to the fact that these two newspapers were inclined to serve the politically vested interests of their owners.     

Association between femininity and women voters political trust in Pakistan

Political trust has been researched extensively since long in the sociology of politics. However, feminine attributes are rarely tested against political trust, especially in developing countries such as Pakistan. The present research explores the association of feminine attributes possessed by rural women with different attributes of political trust in politicians. A total of 414 registered women voters were recruited through a multistage sampling technique from selected tehsils of Punjab Province, Pakistan. The data were collected through an interview schedule, processed through SPSS (21.0), and presented in a tabular format. Pearson R correlation was applied to find out the association between hypothesized variables. The findings suggest that emotionality is significantly correlated with performance, ability, and the conduct of politicians (r = .302, r = .267, r = ?.216, p < .01). Feminine purity is significantly correlated with performance and the ability of politicians (r = .309, r = .202, p < .01). Feminine stereotypical image is significantly correlated with performance and the ability of politicians (r = .174, r = .196, p < .01). Traditional gender relations in the society need to be looked at carefully to realize the true potential of women in terms of their political participation.     

American Ebola Story: frames in U.S. National Newspapers

The 2014 Ebola epidemic saw the first symptomatic and fatal cases of Ebola in the United States. Concurrently, news coverage in U.S. media about Ebola increased. Research has shown that media’s framing of events influences public perception and understanding. To address framing of the Ebola epidemic in the U.S. media, researchers conducted a content analysis of newspaper articles reporting on the Ebola epidemic during the U.S. contact tracing period from September 30 to December 2, 2014 (n = 718). The top three circulating U.S. national newspapers were used in the analysis. The results show that the human interest, conflict, and action frames had the highest presence across newspaper articles, whereas the presence of attribution of responsibility, morality, and economic frames was lower. This study furthers knowledge of U.S. news media framing and coverage of new public health emergencies, and how newspapers may drive audience understanding and perception of the 2014 Ebola epidemic. This study also discusses implications of the findings and suggests directions for future research.     

A study exploring factors of decision to text while walking among college students based on Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB)

ABSTRACT

Objective: This study attempted to identify critical predictors of intention to both send and read texts while walking based on Theory of Planned Behavior in order to provide resources for practitioners and campaign designers to inform college students of the perils of texting while walking and dissuade them from such a risky behavior. Participants: Three hundred twenty-nine college students were recruited from a large public university in the Southwest in September 2014. Methods: This study used a cross-sectional survey design. Results: Subjective norm (sending: B = .17, p = .02; reading: B = .17, p = .04), personal norms (sending: B = ?.32, p = .001, reading: B = ?.35, p = .001), and self-efficacy (sending: B = ?.27, p = .001; reading: B = ?.24, p = .001) were significant predictors of intention to both send and read text messages while walking. Conclusions: For students who have greater intention of texting while walking, persuasive communication should utilize normative influence and self-efficacy to discourage texting while walking.     

The representation of the Chinese product crisis in national and local newspapers in the United States

This paper examines how national and local newspapers in the United States frame Chinese product recalls in 2007. First, it reviews literature on international communication and framing. Second, it content analyzes the presentations of the Chinese product recalls in two leading national newspapers, including the New York Times and the USA today, and six major newspapers from five Southern states, including Georgia, South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Third, it compares media representations of Chinese products in the two national newspapers with those in Southern newspapers. We argue that American media are still dominated by stories from the U.S. perspectives and Chinese sources are less likely to be cited. Even though Southern newspapers play an important role in constructing local knowledge, their limited scope of coverage and perspectives constrain their role in reporting international news.     

Evaluating phase movement theory with the dramatis personae of time: 1923–1988

Parsons and Bales maintain that the temporal organization of a group's activities is characterized by a periodic swing between internal and external imperatives. The phase hypothesis holds that at the societal level phases characterized by an emphasis on solving external problems will be accompanied by economic prosperity. Temporal organization is also characterized by adaptive upgrading in response to environmental demands and a concomitant secular trend, or increasingly external focus. To test these hypotheses, 3,209 roles featured on the cover of Time magazine from 1923 to 1988 were classified as either internal (educators, mass media, entertainers, athletes, celebrities, private interest group leaders, religious leaders, and labor leaders) or external (politicians, public interest group leaders, military, administrators, scientists, and foreigners). A Phase Index was determined by the proportion of external roles. The level of business activity was established by the Cleveland Trust Company's “American Business Activity” index. While Henry Luce was editor‐in‐chief of Time (1923–1967), the phase and business cycles were correlated at +.58 (p <.01), and for the 60‐year period from 1923 to 1988 the correlation was +.468 (p = .001). Lagged values of the Phase Index produced steadily increasing correlations with business activity, from a seven‐year lag (r = ‐0.048) to a maximum correlation of +0.485 with a two‐year lag, suggesting that the Phase Index is a two‐year leading indicator of the business cycle. The trend hypothesis was evaluated by regression analysis. An increase in the proportion of external roles from 1923 to 1988 was found to be significant (Y = 63.5 + .151(X), p = .0052). Increasing numbers of “villain” roles suggest that high levels of external activity in the 1970s and 1980s may be creating internal problems. These strains may be a sign of transition from an external to an internal phase. These data are interpreted as supporting Parsons and Bales’ phase and trend hypotheses.     

The Relationship Among the Material Welfare,Maternity, and Marital Status of Women in the State of Georgia

Childbearing among unmarried women has been the subject of intense public health debate for decades, reflecting concerns about the impact on family structure and the economic security of born children. This report analyzes 2007 data from the OASIS, the website of the Division of Public Health of the Georgia Department of Community Health. Significant inverse correlations were recorded among the counties' median household income on one side and birth rate (r = –.239, p < .01), percentage of all births from unmarried mothers (r = –.679, p < .001), and percentage of all births from mothers with less than a 12th-grade education (r = –.488, p < .001). We believe that creating a network of maternity education and support programs across the state of Georgia that works under centralized supervision from a maternity committee could help alleviate the negative effect of median household income on nonmarital birth and decrease regional disparities related to nonmarital births.     

Development,Implementation, and Outcomes of Post-stroke Mood Assessment Pathways: Implications for Social Workers

Depression and anxiety are prevalent in the stroke population and can have a significant impact on the patient and their family’s long-term outcomes, however the screening for these conditions does not meet best practice recommendations. To address this deficit, this study developed “Post-Stroke Mood Assessment Pathways” and embedded them into practice by utilising the PARiHS framework (for the implementation of evidence-based practice), in conjunction with staff training. The study examined the rates of mood screening, clinical interviews, and completion of interventions for stroke patients through a retrospective chart audit (n?=?213) one year prior to, and one year post-implementation (n?=?238) of the pathways. The data show statistically significant increased documentation around mood screening and clinical interview 95% CI [4.86, 19.88], p?<?.0012 and specifically, an increase in the number of patients who had a clinical interview following the introduction of the pathways 95% CI [8.05, 19.69], p?<?.0001.     

Mental health and the media: From illness to wellbeing

The media are a main source of information about mental health for many people, and an ever‐growing body of literature is evaluating their coverage of the topic. To help keep track of such research, several comprehensive but now dated literature reviews have been published. We assess more recent studies (2007–2017) and suggest future directions by integrating (a) the “circuit of mass communication” model from media and communication studies which posits that production, content, and reception need to be analysed for an in‐depth understanding of the media, (b) the holistic view of mental health as comprising both illness and wellbeing, and (3) the critical psychiatry literature questioning the assumptions underlying psychiatric knowledge and practice. We find that recent studies have focused on content and “the illness side” of mental health by examining the representation of particular mental disorders and events involving individuals with specific diagnoses. We identify as a promising development the growing interest in “the wellbeing side” of mental health whereby authors have started to analyse recovery messages. We invite more production and reception research and more critical content studies which use diagnostic labels cautiously and analyse the representation of people with mental health problems as the victims of violence.     

Eating Disorder Risk and Body Dissatisfaction Based on Muscularity and Body Fat in Male University Students

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the relationship between risk of eating disorders, body dissatisfaction, and perceptual attractiveness in male university students. Participants: Research was conducted January–April 2012 and involved 339 male and 441 female students. Methods: Eating disorder risk was assessed with the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT) and body dissatisfaction and perceptual attractiveness determined with the Bodybuilder Image Grid (BIG). Results: There was a positive correlation (r = .16, p < .01) between the EAT and fat dissatisfaction and a negative correlation (r = ?.14, p < .05) for muscle dissatisfaction, 28% of the males had an EAT score indicating that they were at risk for an eating disorder. Males chose a significantly more muscular and leaner body type than what females chose to be attractive. Conclusion: College-aged males may be at risk for eating disorders based on distortions in their perceived ideal body image, both for fat and muscle.