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INFORMATION TO USERS While the most advanced technology has been used to photograph and reproduce this manuscript, the quality of the reproduction is heavily dependent upon the quality of the material submitted. For example: • Manuscript pages may have indistinct print. In such cases, the best available copy has been filmed. • Manuscripts may not always be complete. In such cases, a note will indicate that it is not possible to obtain missing pages. • Copyrighted material may have been removed from the manuscript. In such cases, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, and charts) are photographed by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each oversize page is also filmed as one exposure and is available, for an additional charge, as a standard 35mm slide or as a 17”x 23” black and white photographic print. Most photographs reproduce acceptably on positive microfilm or microfiche but lack the clarity on xerographic copies made from the microfilm. For an additional charge, 35mm slides of 6”x 9” black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations that cannot be reproduced satisfactorily by xerography. Order Number 8717728 An analysis of network evening news coverage of religion and politics in the 1984 presidential campaign Smith, Henry Lewis, Ph.D. The Ohio State University, 1987 Copyright ©1987 by Smith, Henry Lewis. All rights reserved. U MI 300 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48106 PLEASE NOTE: In all cases this material has been filmed in the best possible way from the available copy. Problems encountered with this document have been identified here with a check mark V . 1. Glossy photographs or pages_____ 2. Colored illustrations, paper or______ print 3. Photographs with dark background_____ 4. Illustrations are poor copy______ 5. Pages with black marks, not original______ copy 6. Print shows through as there is text on both sides_______ of page 7. Indistinct, broken or small print on several pages/ 8. Print exceeds margin requirements______ 9. Tightly bound copy with print lost_______ in spine 10. Computer printout pages with indistinct_______ print 11. Page(s)___________lacking when material received, and not available from school or author. 12. Page(s) seem to be missing in numbering only as text follows. 13. Two pages numbered . Text follows. 14. Curling and wrinkled pages 15. Dissertation contains pages with print at a slant, filmed as received 16. Other University Microfilms International AN ANALYSIS OF NETWORK EVENING NEWS COVERAGE OF RELIGION AND POLITICS IN THE 1984 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Henry L. Smith, B.R.E., B.S., M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 1987 Reading Committee: Approved By John J. Makay James Golden s\r) Adviser " / Joseph Foley rtmen't of Communicationlicrcit ic Copyright by Henry L. Smith 1987 To my wife and children ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am grateful to my parents, the Reverends Lewis and Mildred Smith, who instilled in me the love for learning. I express sincere appreciation to Wayne Dunn who believed in me and encouraged me to pursue higher education; to Dr. Rudolph Verderber of the University of Cincinnati who provided the first opportunity to pursue graduate work; and to my advisor Dr. John J. Makay who gave encouragement and support during my years at The Ohio State University. I also wish to thank all those at Mount Vernon Nazarene College who supported and assisted me. To Dr. Robert Lawrence for arranging financial assistance; to my colleague Mark Stoner for accepting part of my course load providing release time to complete this study; and to the students who assisted me in the content analysis — Mitch Barber, Lisa Cunningham, Doug Flemming, Jack Jenkins, Jan McCollough, and Renae Scott. To my wife, Teresa, and my children, Dale, David, and Derika, I love you and thank you for your support and acceptance of my frequent absences and constant preoccupation during this research project. VITA November 3.3, 1950. Born - Frankfort, Indiana 1973 .................. B.R.E., God's Bible College, Cincinnati, Ohio 1977 .................. B.S., University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 1977 - 1978 ......... Graduate Teaching Assistant, Department of Speech Communication, University of Cincinnati 1978 .................. M.A., University of Cincinnati 1978 - 1979 ......... Graduate Teaching Associate, Department of Communication, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 1979 - 1981 ......... Instructor of Communication, Mount Vernon Nazarene College, Mount Vernon, Ohio 1981 - 1986 ......... Assistant Professor of Communication and Department Chair, Mount Vernon Nazarene College 1986 - Present .... Director of Broadcasting for WNZR Radio, 90.9 FM, Mount Vernon Nazarene College. 1986 - Present .... Associate Professor of Communication and Department Chair, Mount Vernon Nazarene College FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field Communication Studies in Rhetoric: Professors John J. Makay, James Golden, William R. Brown Studies in Mass Media: Professors Joseph Foley, Thomas McCain, Ellen Wartella Studies in Communication Theory: Professor Victor Wall iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION ............................................. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................... iii VITA .................................................... iv CHAPTER PAGE I. INTRODUCTION .................................. 1 Background .................................... 2 Statement of the Problem and Research Questions ......... 7 Research Procedures and Methodology 9 Review of the Pertinent Literature ......... 18 Organization of the Study ................ 33 II. RELIGION AND POLITICS IN THE UNITED STATES . 42 Religion and Politics in Early America. 47 The Constitution and Religion ............ 51 Philosophical Reflections on Religion and Politics .................... 56 Religion in Presidential Campaigns ......... 58 The Christian Right and Recent Elections . 65 III. FINDINGS OF THE CONTENT ANALYSIS ....... 80 Agenda Approach ............................... 81 Depiction Approach ........................... 83 Coding and Coders .......................... 87 Unit of Analysis ......................... 88 Intercoder Reliability ...................... 91 Comparative Coverage of the Quantitative Measures ................. 96 Comparative Coverage of the Qualitative Measures .................... 106 C o n c l u s i o n ................................ 110 v IV. PENTADIC ELEMENTS IN CAMPAIGN ' 8 4 ............ 115 ACT ONE: Reagan and the Christian Right vs. Mondale and F e r r a r o .................. 120 ACT TWO: Geraldine Ferraro Against the Catholic Church ...................... 134 ACT THREE: The Supreme Court and Religious Interest Groups ................ 145 C o n c l u s i o n .................................... 149 V. THE REPRESENTATIVE ANECDOTE AND RELIGION IN CAMPAIGN * 8 4 ................ 155 "Holy War Games" in the '84 Campaign .... 159 The Warriors — Agents of Good or Evil? . 161 The Battles — Mini-flaps and Skirmishes . 167 "War Game" Strategies and Tactics ........... 177 Network News as Equipment for Living .... 180 VI. C O N C L U S I O N .................................... 191 Review of the Chapters ...................... 194 Preliminary Findings ......................... 196 Major Research Claims ......................... 204 Evaluation of the M e t h o d .................... 210 Implication for Further Research ........... 211 S u m m a r y ........................................ 214 APENDICES A. Sample Coding Sheets .................... 217 B. Transcript of NBC Reports ................ 223 C. Transcript of ABC Reports ................ 255 D. Transcript of CBS Reports ................ 279 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................... 300 vi CHAPTER ONE Introduction September 4, 1984 Ted Koppel (ABC): Religion and politics, already one of this campaign's dominant themes, was center stage today. Tom Brokaw (NBC): Tonight President Reagan has a softer line on religion and politics. When he tied religion directly to politics at a prayer meeting in Dallas, the president touched off a wave of criticism . today the president had a different tone. Dan Rather (CBS): It was campaign-trail combustion by long distance today for Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale both had high-octane rhetoric ready about who was mixing politics and religion improperly ....•*■ These news leads bring into focus a major drama played out on television during the 1984 presidential election campaign — religion and politics. The question of the proper relationship between church and state was brought to the public consciousness with renewed vigor and urgency. Three major cultural forces in American society are key actors in this drama: presidential political candidates, the New Christian Right, and network TV news. Rhetoric from the political candidates, spokespersons for the New Christian Right, and network news reporters abounded on this issue. CBS anchorman Dan Rather characterized the issue as 1 2 "a highly combustable election year mixture of politics and religion."* This statement exemplifies not only the perceived tension between religion and politics, but also the role news rhetors played in the process. The 1984 presidential election campaign saw the intersection of these three powerful institutions which combined