Media Bias: A Comparative Study of Time, Newsweek, the National Review, and the Progressive, 1975-2000
By (Author) Tawnya J. Adkins Covert
By (author) Philo C. Wasburn
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Lexington Books
17th October 2008
United States
Professional and Scholarly
Non Fiction
Comparative politics
071.3
Paperback
182
Width 160mm, Height 230mm, Spine 13mm
290g
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, Adkins Covert and Wasburn offer a new methodology for analyzing bias empirically, one that is capable of producing valid and reliable findings. They begin by defining the meaning of "bias" and discuss possible methods of measuring media bias empirically and systematically. 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.
This careful study is one of a handful that truly takes an 'unbiased' empirical approach to measuring bias in national news outlets. It persuasively refutes simplistic accusations of journalistic bias and points the way toward greater understanding of the media's role in shaping public opinion. -- Robert Entman, Shapiro Professor of Media and Public and International Affairs, The George Washington University
Tawnya J. Adkins Covert is associate professor of sociology at Western Illinois University.
Philo C. Wasburn is professor of sociology at Purdue University.