Science News: A Content Analysis of Several Media Forms

Abstract

This study describes four attitudes that can be take toward science news. These four are evidenced by the way science news is treated in the three media forms sampled. Two network news broadcasts, two national newsmagazines and four newspapers were surveyed for two months. Aspects of these media that were studied included the amount of science news, the placement of science news, science news topics, the length of science news stories and a host of other variables. The four functions described in this study are the "hard news" function, the "filler material" function, the "health and consumer awareness" function and the "special interest" function. None are used independently and all contribute in some way to the particular flavor of science news coverage in a publication or broadcast. A second contribution of this study is the establishment of baseline data for science coverage in a variety of media. This often overlooked area will benefit from the ability to look at the entire picture.