Objectivity & Balance: How Do Readers and Viewers of News and Information Reach Conclusions Regarding Objectivity and Balance?

By

Natalie Jomini Stroud, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Communication Studies Assistant Director, The Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Participation University of Texas at Austin

and

Stephen D. Reese, Ph.D. Jesse H. Jones Professor Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, College of Communication University of Texas School of Journalism University of Texas at Austin

Public broadcasting is legally charged for research related to these issues. with “strict adherence to objectivity and Although the news environment has balance.” Thus, its mission is firmly shifted greatly, research has focused on rooted in uniquely American normative the traditional, institutionalized news expectations of the role of media and media and has been slow to address new journalism in a democratic society. The forms. The discourse surrounding news public makes judgments about media performance often has implied objectivity and balance within a that the media to which people respond historical context, but these concepts are are a monolithic institution. Of course, it often in tension with various is not, nor is it always possible to easily interpretations. At the heart of these distinguish between the professional ideas, however, is the hope that media media and emerging forms of citizen provide meaningful information that journalism. With this caveat, we will helps citizens navigate their lives in a emphasize how audiences in general democratic society and the hope that respond to news and information, and different voices are given a fair how they evaluate it. We structure our opportunity to be heard. Given the White Paper in the following way: declining levels of trust in media, these 1. expectations arguably are not being met. We provide context for our audit by With less public confidence that social reviewing key conceptual and theoretical institutions in general function on behalf issues in the study of news media of the greater good, the causes of and performance. We then turn to discussing solutions to the crisis of trust in the the terminology that has been used when media have become deeply politicized. describing news media performance. The public is more aware than ever of 2. how news is made, and the online world Next, we review research on how the has brought an explosion of media public reaches conclusions about news criticism rooted in a diverse range of media performance. political interests. Lacking a legitimated 3. and trusted middle ground, there is a Informed by our audit, we relate the strong tendency to find bias in research findings to public media information that doesn’t conform to pre- programming. existing viewpoints. The echo-chambers 4. We conclude by making a number of of the blogosphere and growth in media recommendations about: watchdog groups have made media a. criticism an integral part of many How to collect and deliver news content citizens’ belief systems. within the context of objectivity and In this White Paper, we summarize our balance, findings from an audit of what is known b. about how people reach conclusions How to monitor and evaluate objectivity regarding objectivity and balance (as and balance, and well as related terms) and make c. recommendations in response to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting call How to capitalize on public media’s balanced news. unique role in providing objective and 2 that nation-wide, journalists are more Objective 1: Discussion about how the public typical of the average American, but reaches conclusions on issues related to objectivity and balance. certain studies of journalists in large Objective 2: Review of the most relevant eastern cities (including The Media Elite academic research on the issue, with survey of journalists at the elite media) references listed1 show a predictable pattern of journalists Contextualizing Media favoring Democrats over Republicans, CriticismContextualizing Criticism although even then, the attitudes are As media became more commercial and more conservative on economic issues more concentrated in ownership, than social. This location of blame at the particularly post WWII, journalists level of the news producers leads began to operate more as insiders with conservative critics to demand greater respect to the national establishment, “ideological” diversity in the newsroom leading some to express concern about (e.g. CBS News anchor Dan Rather was their elite status as not in keeping with a particular favorite target of the right the public interest. Hallin (1992), for for his alleged liberal leanings). example, argued that the rise of Liberals were slower in coming to the journalistic professionalism solved the media criticism table. By the time they problem of objectivity in part by did, the “liberal media” label was choosing to reflect the inner discussions broadly accepted by the public, a of government, with journalists successful result in large part of the themselves enjoying an insider status in conservative rhetorical strategy (Domke, return for accepting the ground rules of Watts, Shah, & Fan, 1999; Watts, Washington. In time, this produced some Domke, Shah, & Fan, 1999). Liberals in undesirable groupthink tendencies. As turn have focused more on the the conservative movement grew in ownership structure of media and the strength after the 1960s, the ideology of under-representation of public interest the “counter-establishment” branded this groups, women, and minorities. The connection of media with the irony is that “liberal” journalists have establishment as a “liberal” tendency given greater credence to the (Rusher, 1988). conservative critique than the liberal The publication of the book The Media counterargument, a function, it can be Elite: America’s New Powerbrokers in argued, of the fact that blaming 1986 by S. Robert Lichter, Stanley journalists for bias at least grants them Rothman, and Linda Lichter brought some professional efficacy that the special emphasis to examining the ownership and political economy individuals producing the news, locating critique does not. the blame for bias with these So how can the media be both professionals and providing fodder for conservatively and liberally biased? The the “liberal media” claim. Though critics answer lies in understanding the continue to support the claim of a different kinds of explanations chosen “liberal media” by referencing the left- 1 All references are listed at the close of this leaning (though by no means radical) document. political predispositions of journalists, research by Weaver et al. (2007) found 3 Normative Concepts by different critics and assumptions In their call for research, the Corporation about the proper role of media with for Public Broadcasting noted that regard to the state. The general “references to ‘balance and objectivity’ discussion of media must be understood should be broadly defined to include in the context of the politicization of related issues.” We found a number of American institutions in general. Higher related terms in our review. As we will education and science are among other discuss below, the choice of terms itself realms where the ability of a carries a host of assumptions about how professional discipline to produce a reality can best be conceived and legitimated outcome has been brought presented, with corresponding into question. Indeed, efforts implications for media practice. So, to increasingly have been made to address recognize this problematic aspect, we such disciplinary matters – once under encapsulate all of these terms by the control of professionals in those referring to assessments of news media fields – within the political arena. performance. Below, we review some of Because public broadcasting receives the major normative concepts that have government support, it is particularly been discussed. vulnerable to these interventions. In 1. Objectivity journalism, this concern has led Objectivity has been the ethos of 20th foundations and other groups to mount a Century American journalism. And the revitalization of the profession from Western model of journalism has found within, to forestall such outside renewed traction in other parts of the intervention. Initiatives such as the world including Latin America and Project for Excellence in Journalism Eastern Europe, even as the have tried to reassert the fundamental impossibility of its achievement values of the profession in view of becomes more evident. As Zelizer, Park, external attack, including the importance and Gudelunas (2002) note, “...the of truth-seeking, verification, context, public’s insistent demand for objectivity and proportionality. in the news and a naïve faith in its Within this context, a vocabulary for possibility keep bringing debates about discussing the responsibilities and the media back to an insistence on performance of the news media arose. unbiased coverage” (p. 302). As an over- The varied language we use to describe arching concept, objectivity refers news media performance contains variously to a normative ideal (that assumptions about what “good” news journalism can reach the truth), a sense would look like. Objectivity, balance, of detachment on the part of journalists, neutrality, plurality, and bias are among a set of practices designed to produce the concepts used to evaluate news “truth” (reliance on officials), and an media programming. In spite of the rise institutional framework, which has of partisan-based, interest-oriented, and attempted to differentiate news from citizen journalism, these concepts still advertising, facts from opinion. In guide public discussion and are reviewed reviewing these dimensions, Hackett and in the following section. 4 Zhao (1998) argue also that objectivity provides a way in public discourse of evaluating press performance – that is representational neutrality. Neutrality is how far news media stray from fairness increasingly irrelevant in the genres and balance toward bias and beyond hard news (e.g., some partisanship. Donsbach and Klett (1993) programming on 24-hour cable news found that journalists in Western liberal- channels). democracies assigned objectivity four 3. different connotations: absence of Plurality personal subjectivity, fairness in presenting the relevant sides, skepticism Pluralism is a key component of Western toward all of the sides, and providing liberal theories of the press. Pluralism factual context. has been evaluated with respect to In pursuit of the truth, objectivity can be diversity in media outlets, in media said to encourage a worthy goal to the professionals, and in the content itself. extent that journalists seek to be fair, We assume media should correspond to thorough, use verifiable facts, and step the various interests and groups in back from their own personal and society and are expected to reflect organizational interests. Interpreted more relevant social perspectives narrowly, objectivity has been less (Commission on Freedom of the Press, useful or even harmful when it simply 1947). Pluralism developed in reinforces prevailing power relationships conjunction with the idea of objectivity and conceals underlying taken-for- and reflects the marketplace of ideas granted values. For example, the concept, in which society is best served infamous 1950s McCarthy era saw by having power distributed among journalists “objectively” reporting the many competing interests. This can go Senator’s claims without challenge. astray if power is not distributed fairly, 2. Neutrality as is often assumed, and, even if Neutrality is closely connected with the presumed fair, media do not reflect that spirit of objectivity, in the sense of non- distribution. alignment. The journalist does not have Critical political economists dispute the a stake in one interest or another, but is ability of a market-based media to able to stand apart and act on behalf adequately reflect society, while liberal presumably of the public interest (“a pluralism often gives little attention to neutral broker”). In the spirit of how the media construct representations representation, neutrality presumes a in their process of reflection and to how world apart from the perceiver, which well they provide a forum for those can be reproduced. Rejecting this idea is interests to interact. Media come closer the perspective that facts never speak for to indexing the range, or pluralism, themselves, as neutral details, but are within elite opinion than the rest of always enlisted in the service of society (Bennett, 1990), but we whatever interest is paying the bill. shouldn’t go too far to assume they can Journalistic neutrality – avoiding or at be reduced to mere transmitters of least acknowledging conflicts of interest structural power; they have their own – is more achievable than relative autonomy. New media, to the 5 extent they allow greater access to citizens and other groups, may more approximate the ideal of pluralism. 4. Balance sides of a topic” (p. 42). The balance As suggested earlier, some of these idea has been appealing in academic normative concepts are at root research, because external benchmarks philosophically inconsistent. As Hackett of evaluation are often not available – (1984) observes, the positivist making equality of coverage of issue underpinnings of objectivity suggest that sides the default criterion. truth can be approached if enough care is 5. Bias exercised to gather the relevant facts. As one of the more common derogatory The notion of balance, however, charges, bias suggests that there is an suggests that the truth may be found by agreed standard against which a message juxtaposing two competing truth claims, can be evaluated – or “balanced” around. which may arise from completely With its denotations of “slant,” different perspectives, the truth found “diagonal,” and “oblique,” “on the bias” statistically to lie somewhere in between. means diagonal to a designated line of As a normative goal, balance is easier to direction. Popularized by best-selling achieve on the surface by putting two media critics, such as the author of Bias voices against each other – and, (2002), Bernard Goldberg, the concept therefore, the more tempting path to of bias has permeated the discourse, but objectivity. it implies an unstated unambiguous Balance is a measure more associated standard of “truth.” This, of course, with public service broadcasting, allows critics to identify their own mandated for organizations like the standard relative to their particular BBC. McLaughlin (2008) argues that the interests and gauge media accordingly. BBC must be balanced as an institution, The U.S. two-party political system is adapting to shifting societal viewpoints tailor made to this style of discourse, and and ideologies in order to occupy the leads to the notion that an even pairing “center ground.” Thus, apart from such of Democrat and Republican, with a institutional goals, balance often refers non-partisan expert bridging the two, to the more narrow representation of yields a truthful account, regardless of viewpoints within the programming. The the relative merits of the positions goal corresponds to how print journalism advocated by the two sides or the often seeks to balance viewpoints within relative support among the public specific stories and how television pits enjoyed by the two. one side against another on a program. This approach allows journalists to In assuming that a mid-point may be remain entrenched in their professional found where the truth is in equilibrium, routines, no matter how wanting, to the balance is closely tied to bias, which will extent that they are criticized by those be discussed shortly. Domke, Watts, sides and allowed to believe they are Shah, and Fan (1999) define fairness and equally “balanced.” But Hofstetter and balance as “equal, unfettered treatment Buss (1978) usefully distinguished of individuals and groups on differing between “partisan” bias, resulting from 6 Although given less recognition among partisan preferences of journalists, and the public, this latter form is at least as “structured” bias, resulting from more important as the former. deep-seated media characteristics, such Summary. Although there are differences as between television and print. between the reviewed terms, they all share a concern for understanding the • news media’s performance. They all Expertise refers to “a communicator’s suggest a search for fairness – that social qualifications or ability to know the truth groups and leaders should receive a about a topic” (Metzger, et al., 2003, p. chance to speak, that positions receive a 297) bearing, and that this chance not be • corrupted by inappropriate pressure, Trustworthiness refers to “perceptions of suppression, or conflicts of interest. the communicator’s motivation to tell Public Perceptions of News Media the truth about a topic” (Metzger, et al., Performance 2003, p. 297). Although several of the previous • normative concepts point to actual media Media skepticism is a related concept content and to journalists themselves, a that also emphasizes audience number of terms have been used to refer perceptions. Media skepticism is “the to public perceptions of news media degree to which individuals tend to performance. disbelieve or discount the picture of • reality present in the mass media” Credibility is intimately connected to (Cozzens & Contractor, 1987). audience perceptions; as Tseng and Fogg (1999) note, “credibility is a These terms are used throughout perceived quality; it doesn’t reside in an research on how the public reaches object, a person, or a piece of conclusions about news media information” (p. 40). In other words, performance; we turn to this research in media may be objective and fair by the following pages. We organize the various accepted standards, while still research in the following way: being regarded as not credible by the 1. audience. Credibility has been We first review individual factors that connected theoretically and empirically influence public perceptions. with judgments of trustworthiness and 2. expertise. Media credibility has been We then turn to factors in the media that measured with survey items asking the can influence public perceptions of news public to report their beliefs about bias, media performance. trust, fairness, and accuracy (see an overview in Metzger, Flanagin, Eyal, Lemus, & McCann, 2003). 7 national newspapers (Pew Research In the aggregate, trust in the media has Center, 2007). At the same time, people plummeted (Moy & Pfau, 2000; Pew have developed fragmented beliefs about Research Center, 2005). In 1985, 89 which media outlets they perceive as percent of the public had a favorable more trustworthy (Pew Research Center, opinion of network television news and 2004). Conservatives, liberals, 81 percent had a favorable opinion of Democrats, and Republicans are major national newspapers. In 2007, consuming different news outlets on the only 71 percent had a favorable opinion basis of their political beliefs (Stroud, of network television news and 60 forthcoming). percent had a favorable opinion of major Individual factors influencing public than Democrats and liberals (Cappella & perceptions of news media performance Jamieson, 1997; Eveland, & Shah, 2003; A host of individual factors are related to Jones, 2004; Lee, 2005). people’s perceptions of the news This is not to say that the media media’s performance. necessarily are liberally biased nor is it Summary: Individual Characteristics to say that Republicans and Related to Assessments of News Media conservatives are always more apt to Performance find media messages as more biased. 1. There are several reasons that such a Political leanings affect how people conclusion may be hasty. evaluate news performance. First, charges that the media have a 2. liberal bias have been more prevalent People like media that favors their own and publicized than charges that the views. media have a conservative bias 3. (Domke, Watts, Shah, & Fan, 1999; If people distrust one institution, they are Watts, Domke, Shah, & Fan, 1999) likely to distrust others, too. while systematic analysis of media 4. coverage has not revealed consistent Discussion of politics with likeminded evidence of a liberal bias (Watts, others leads to less favorable perceptions Domke, Shah, & Fan, 1999). of news performance. Second, those with strong political 5. beliefs – both Democrats and Media use is modestly related to Republicans – are more likely to assessments of news media performance. perceive the media as biased against their viewpoint (Eveland, & Shah, 2003; 1. Gunther, 1988; Jones, 2004; Lee, 2005). Partisanship/political ideology Third, there are differences in how partisans assess individual media outlets. As news media performance has become For example, strong conservatives find politicized, news audiences are CNN to be more liberally biased than increasingly responding to news media others while strong liberals find Fox based on their political beliefs. In News to be more conservatively biased general, Republicans and conservatives than others (Turner, 2007). tend to trust the mainstream media less 8 thought Nixon did. What arguably has 2. changed since this time is how vocal the Perception of source as likeminded public and other critics have become in expressing their views about media. Research on how people process In general, people believe that sources information consistently shows that sharing their beliefs are less biased and people selectively judge information more trustworthy; Sears (1968) argued based on their political views. With that “the perceived truth value of respect to politics, for example, research supportive communications is greater on the first televised debate in 1960 than that of nonsupportive material” (p. confirmed that Democrats thought 785). Evidence supports the idea that Kennedy won while Republicans likeminded information is judged to be more convincing and legitimate in one direction, therefore, likeminded comparison to contradictory information partisans may perceive the coverage as (Lord, Ross, & Lepper, 1979; Miller, neutral while opposing partisans may see McHoskey, Bane, & Dowd, 1993). it as hostile. This pattern is related to the hostile Gunther and Liebhart (2006) explain that media phenomenon, the finding that this occurs because public perceptions of the media vary “opposing partisans see the same such that partisans on both sides of an content but disagree about the issue perceive “neutral” media coverage valence of that content. Consider, for of the issue to be biased against their example, rivals in a court case during own viewpoint (Vallone, Ross, & the judge’s instructions to the jury. Lepper, 1985). In other words, when Both the defendant and the plaintiff reading a putatively neutral political might listen to a particular article, Democrats would perceive the comment—a comment that a article as biased in favor of Republicans disinterested party would consider and Republicans would perceive the neutral or impartial—and both may article as biased in favor of Democrats. think ‘that observation makes my In this respect, any effort by a news case look bad and is going to organization to be perceived as influence the jury in favor of my completely unbiased is a futile quest. opponent.’” (p. 451). Gunther, Christen, Liebhard, and Chia When reading the same article, partisans (2001) discussed an expanded notion of can come away with very different the hostile media phenomenon that impressions of the valence of the applies to non-neutral sources, the content. relative hostile media phenomenon. Even knowledgeable people are not Namely, when presented with either impervious to the hostile media neutral or non-neutral media coverage, phenomenon. Some conclude that “people in a partisan group will see the perceptions that the media are hostile to slant of news coverage ... as more one’s perspective are more common disagreeable or at least less congenial among those who are more invested in than will those in the opposing group” an issue or knowledgeable about an issue (p. 300-1). If media coverage is biased in (Vallone, Ross, & Lepper, 1985), but 9 are more distrustful of the government others have not found that those who are and politics also are more distrustful of more politically attentive display the media (Bennett, Rhine, Flickinger, & increased hostile media perceptions Bennett, 1999; Cappella & Jamieson, (Dalton, Beck, & Huckfeldt, 1998). 1997; Lee, 2005). This may indicate that 3. media trust and governmental trust are Distrust of other institutions indicators of an underlying distrustful attitude; people are either generally Trust in the media is correlated with distrustful or not (Bennett, Rhine, trust in other democratic institutions. Flickinger, & Bennett, 1999; Bennett, Indeed, both trust in government and Rhine, & Flickinger, 2001). trust in media have declined over the This relationship may be unique to past several decades (Pew Research certain contexts. The relative Center, 2004). Specifically, people who trustworthiness of these institutions differs across countries. A 2006 5. BBC/Reuters/Media Center poll, for Media use example, found that citizens of the United States, the United Kingdom, and There is a modest relationship between Germany all have more trust in the media trust and media use. Although media on average than they have in the Tsfati and Cappella (2003) found that government. In other countries (e.g. mainstream media skepticism was Nigeria, Indonesia, India, and Brazil), related to lower levels of mainstream however, citizens have more trust in the news viewing and higher levels of non- media than in the government. This mainstream news viewing, the suggests that different government and relationship was not strong. Kiousis media systems may yield different (2001) found a small relationship impressions of the media, making between perceptions of newspaper comparisons across countries credibility and newspaper reading, but challenging (although the relationship no relationship between perceptions of may still hold true). television news credibility and television 4. news viewing. In 2005, Tsfati and Discussion of politics with likeminded Cappella clarified the relationship by others documenting that individuals who have a higher need for cognition (an enjoyment Although individual differences help to of thinking) are more likely to use media explain who finds the media more or less that they do not trust. trustworthy, interpersonal factors also In exploring these individual predictors, can influence perceptions of media. it is important to note that audiences Those who discuss politics with generalize their judgments of media likeminded others are more likely to bias, inferring the existence of bias perceive that the news media are biased beyond a single article or broadcast. against their views (Eveland & Shah, In generalizing their judgments, 2003). This is particularly true for self- audiences rate entire news organizations identified Republicans who discuss as more biased after reading a single politics more frequently with conservatives (Eveland & Shah, 2003). 10 similar to news coverage more story they perceive to be biased. For generally” (p. 299). In the Gunther et al. example, imbalanced stories (stories study, people rated the credibility of emphasizing one side of a controversial several articles and the credibility of the issue) not only lead audiences to media in general similarly. People conclude that the story is biased but also extrapolated from their limited exposure to believe that the news organization to two articles to form impressions of the producing the story is less credible media in general. Further, audiences are (Fico, Richardson, & Edwards, 2004). more likely to evaluate a subsequent Gunther, Christen, Liebhart, and Chia article as biased after encountering an (2001) found evidence that “people article that they perceive to be biased believe the news coverage they are (Cozzens & Contractor, 1987). exposed to, however small and Media factors influencing public unrepresentative a sample it might be, is perceptions of news media performance Assessments of news media performance • are based not only on individual Claims about media bias in the media attributes and social factors; audiences 2. do indeed base their judgments on Production techniques actual features of news stories. • Though journalists have conceptions of Tabloid journalism techniques how unbiased news should be written, it • is important to note that the public does Non-high definition broadcasts not always share these journalistic 3. assumptions. Members of the public Perceptions of the institutional / who reach different conclusions than organizational source of a message also journalists about the bias of sources influence impressions of the message. included in the media are more likely to believe that the media are biased 1. (Rouner, Slater, & Buddenbaum, 1999). The content of news stories influences Summary: Media Characteristics Related audience credibility perceptions. to Lower Assessments of News Media Performance • 1. Certain topics inspire audiences to Features of news stories disapprove of news media performance. • The more the media focus on political Coverage of celebrities strategy, scandals, and celebrities, the • less people trust the media (Jones, 2004). Journalist interpretations of news • • Coverage of political scandals News reporting increasingly has • included journalists’ interpretations of Coverage of politicians’ strategies (as the news (Barnhurst & Mutz, 1997). An opposed to issue stances, for example) increasing focus on interpretation and • analysis in news reporting may lead the Uncivil debates public to trust the media less overall • (Jones, 2004) but to trust those Stories that are hard to believe interpretations with which they agree— • contributing to the Stories not presenting both sides of an issue (imbalanced stories) 11 2 Content analysis is a method for systematically polarization in views about the media. In and quantitatively evaluating communication Out of Order (1994), Patterson observes messages. The method requires that the strategy for evaluating the messages be reliable such that that over several decades, journalists if other researchers wanted to replicate the have inserted themselves more in analysis, they could do so. One common strategy shaping the tone of news stories, and that for assessing reliability is to have human coders this interpretation has come mainly in independently code the same content and then the form of comments on the “game” of evaluate whether they reached the same conclusions. See Krippendorff (2004) for more politics (ostensibly to avoid charges of details. bias that issue commentary could entail). Current research suggests that this form Media coverage of political strategy of “interpretation” is not the same as may lead people to develop more cynical “neutrality,” to the extent that trust and attitudes toward the media (Cappella & credibility has declined during the same Jamieson, 1997; Domke, Watts, Shah, & period. Fan, 1999). This type of coverage, known as strategy or horserace framing, Stories featuring analysis contain has several attributes: “(1) winning and more material with which audiences losing as the central concern; (2) the can disagree. This is in contrast to language of wars, games, and fact-based reporting without analysis competition; (3) a story with performers, which may give audiences less critics, and audience (voters); (4) ground for disagreement. centrality of performance, style, and • perception of the candidate; (5) heavy Media coverage of political scandals weighing of polls and the candidates also appears to enhance media distrust. standing in them” (Cappella & Jamieson, Disapproval of media coverage of the p. 33). Essentially, strategy and Lewinsky scandal, for example, was horserace political coverage conveys that related to disapproving of news media political actors act in their own self- performance (Bennett, Rhine, & interest, rather than the public interest. Flickinger, 2001). In addition, the more This type of coverage is in contrast to cynical the coverage of the president, the other styles of reporting about politics, lower the public’s opinion of the press’s such as discussing politicians’ issue performance (Kiousis, 2002). In the stances. Kiousis study, cynical coverage was measured using a content analysis that • asked trained coders to evaluate Uncivil debates on public affairs newspaper articles.2 The coders programs, where heated debate and examined the extent to which the articles disrespectful statements are the norm, described manipulative behavior on the corrode trust in the government and part of the central actor of the article, for politics in comparison to civil debates example. Results showed that as cynical (Mutz & Reeves, 2005). An informal coverage increased, perceptions of news survey of cable news discussion media performance declined. programs suggests that incivility has increased. • 12 found the uncivil program to be more entertaining. This suggests a tradeoff: As trust in government is related to trust although uncivil programming may be in media (Bennett, Rhine, Flickinger, & more entertaining, it also depresses Bennett, 1999; Lee, 2005), uncivil trust. debates on public affairs programs also may erode public trust in the media. In • their series of experiments, Mutz and Stories that are “hard to believe” are Reeves (2005) found that while rated as less credible regardless of audiences rated civil and uncivil whether the source of the story is highly programs as equally informative, they reputable (e.g. New York Times) or not reputable (e.g. the Star, Austin & Dong, media reported on accusations of liberal 1994). Skepticism of media also media bias in the 1988, 1992, and 1996 increases when news reports conflict presidential campaigns, the more the with the reports of another person public perceived that the media were (Cozzens & Contractor, 1987). liberally biased (Watts, Domke, Shah, & Fan, 1999). Domke, Watts, Shah, and • Fan (1999) argue that the liberal media Imbalanced stories, stories that critique is part of a emphasize only one side of a Republican/conservative strategy that, at controversial issue, lead audiences to see least in the late 1990s, was unanswered bias. Balanced stories that present both by Democrats and liberals. The finding sides of controversial issues in equal that public perceptions of bias are related proportion are perceived as less biased to publicity for bias claims is consistent than imbalanced stories that emphasize with the conclusions of Zaller (1992), one side of a controversial issue (Fico, who argued that public opinion often Richardson, & Edwards, 2004). Certain follows elite cues about where to stand features of articles seem to trigger on issues. When elites claim the media audiences to label articles biased. When are biased, the public will follow suit. asked to identify biased portions of news articles, audiences are more likely to While Watts et al. found that elite label quotations within the article as statements about whether the media introducing bias rather than facts or in general leaned to the left or to the summary statements (D’Alessio, 2003). right were related to public opinion about media bias, critiques that • specific media outlets are biased in Claims about media bias made in the one direction or the other are more media can affect public perceptions of prevalent today. Of course, this news media performance. In particular, reflects in part the reality of the rise statements about media bias made by of more opinionated television news journalists, party officials, and programs dedicated to a particular candidates influence public perceptions partisan stance – an approach of media bias. The more frequently the followed successfully by several 13 mainstream media find mainstream cable news programs. The creation media less credible. Jones (2004), for of Fox News Network itself was example, found that those who listen based on a political thrust (arguably to more talk radio or who use the across both opinion programs and Internet to obtain political hard news), which has led to ratings information are more likely to success and imitation. Accusations distrust the media. Consumption of that various media outlets are biased “fake news” programming such as – regardless of whether they are – The Daily Show also is related to could lead members of the public to lower levels of media trust among conclude that these outlets are biased younger citizens (Baumgartner & on the basis of what they’ve heard. Morris, 2006). These programs likely Supporting this idea, audiences for depress media trust by frequently programming that is critical of the mocking the mainstream media. In sum, public perceptions of news media performance follow how elites 3. (both journalists and public figures) The institutional or organizational publicly assess the news media’s source of the message is another performance. important influence on people’s 2. assessments of news media performance. Production techniques also influence audience credibility judgments. Preconceived notions about whether a media source is biased can shape how a • person interprets information attributed Tabloid journalism production to this source. When presented with an techniques (e.g. music, sound effects, identical news report attributed to slow motion, flash frame transitions, and different sources, audience perceptions an obtrusive reporter tone) lead viewers of objectivity, balance, credibility, and to see news as less believable and as less trustworthiness vary (Baum & Gussin, informative (Grabe, Zhou, Lang, & 2008; Iyengar & Morin, 2006, Turner, Bolls, 2000). Tabloid journalism 2007). Baum and Gussin (2008), for production techniques also lead viewers example, found that labeling an identical to believe that reporters are more transcript as from FOX or from CNN subjective – this is particularly true for significantly influenced people’s public affairs news topics (Grabe, Lang, perceptions. Even though the article was & Zhou, 2003). identical, people perceived the FOX- labeled article as more favorable toward • President George W. Bush than the Not all production attributes yield lower CNN-labeled article. Thus, source trust, however; high definition news impressions color people’s ability to broadcasts lead viewers to perceive the evaluate the content of media news as more credible than news not messages. broadcast in high definition (Bracken, 2006). 14 prepared for PBS by GfK Roper Public Public perceptions of public Affairs and Media found that 41 percent broadcasting reported that they trust PBS news and In comparison to research on audience public affairs programs a great deal perceptions of specifically commercial (PBS News, 2008). broadcasting, there has been less Despite these positive indications, there research on public broadcasting. also is evidence of a partisan divide in There are some indications that credibility assessments of public audiences have a positive perception of broadcasting. The Pew Research Center public broadcasting. A 1999 survey of (2006) found that that 15 percent of northern Floridians found that PBS was Republicans and 30 percent of rated as more trustworthy, informative, Democrats believed all or most of what and educational compared to Discovery, NPR said. Further, 13 percent of TLC, A&E, Nickelodeon, and Disney Republicans and 32 percent of (Chan-Olmsted & Kim, 2002). More Democrats believed all or most of what recently, publicly-available research was reported on The NewsHour. This gap has fluctuated somewhat over time, As the charts document, Democrats and is displayed in the following charts. consistently have found The NewsHour Figure 1: Believability of NewsHour, and NPR to be more believable than NPR over time Republicans. For both The NewsHour Believe All or Most from and NPR, Republicans have found the NewsHour0%10%20%30%40%2000200220 programming to be less believable over 042006DemocratsRepublicans Believe All or Most from National Public time, while the pattern for Democrats is Radio less clear. There also is some indication (NPR)0%10%20%30%40%2000200220042 that the gap may increase during 006DemocratsRepublicans presidential election years in comparison Data from the Pew Research Center, 2006. to mid-term election years, though more Percentages are of those able to rate the programming. data would be necessary to sufficiently test this idea. 15 performance. Academics have assessed Beyond the Mass Public: Other news media performance either by Approaches to Assessing News Media analyzing the media’s content or by Performance analyzing other aspects of the news Although it is important to understand making process; we discuss both of these how the mass public reaches conclusions in turn. about news media performance, it also is Content measures. Attributes of media important to investigate how a variety of coverage are frequently assessed using organized publics approach these issues. the technique of content analysis, which These perspectives can be usefully is a method where media content is compared to the ways academics have systematically and quantitatively approached the systematic evaluation of analyzed. The method requires news media performance. Such a researchers to obtain measures of comparison reveals some similarities in reliability to ensure that the results are method, because the tools for analysis replicable by others. (Krippendorff, are no longer the sole province of the 2004). scholarly world. But important D’Alessio and Allen (2000) review a differences arise between a usually more number of ways in which news media dispassionate academic approach and bias has been assessed in scholarly ones based on a political agenda. research. Academics • Academics have employed many Column inches devoted to different sides measures for assessing actual news • media performance. As the “Best Number of headlines or photographs Practices in Assessing Objectivity and devoted to different sides Balance” is the topic of another White • Paper for the Corporation for Public Amount of time spent covering different Broadcasting, we devote only short sides attention to this issue here. • Though academics have researched what Number of overtly opinionated the public believes about the media (see statements about different sides research reviewed above), they also have proposed other indicators of news media As previously discussed, our two-party research, D’Alessio and Allen find little system lends itself to an analysis of evidence of a systematic media bias, whether each side is being treated defined as an imbalance in coverage equally in the media. Accordingly, the received by competing political assessment techniques described by campaigns. It is important to note that D’Alessio and Allen are seen as this meta-analysis looked at the media as indicating biased coverage when one a whole instead of focusing on specific side (e.g. Democrats or Republicans) outlets. receives a disproportionate amount of In addition to the techniques mentioned space, time, or attention in the press. In by D’Alessio and Allen (2000), scholars their meta-analysis of media bias have investigated media bias by: 16 indication of Congressional members’ • partisanship) for various media outlets. Conducting content analyses where They concluded that many news trained coders evaluate the tone of media programs have a liberal bias, including coverage and whether media coverage is NPR’s Morning Edition. This study also more favorable toward one political found that The NewsHour with Jim candidate compared to another (e.g. Lehrer was only slightly left of center. Aday, Livingston, & Hebert, 2005; The authors defined the center by Dalton, Beck, & Huckfeldt, 1998; estimating the average U.S. voter’s ADA Project for Excellence in Journalism). score.

• Non-content measures. Though Using computer content analysis to analyzing messages in the media assess media bias. For example, Domke, represents one strategy for assessing Watts, Shah, and Fan (1999) analyzed news media performance, other the proximity of candidate names to strategies have been employed. positive or negative terms (e.g. success • or attack) using a computer program. Assessing the partisanship and This allowed them to create measures of political ideology of journalists (e.g. the valence of news coverage. Domke et Pew Research Center & Project for al. checked the validity of their Excellence in Journalism, 2004; Weaver computerized content analysis strategy et al., 2007) by comparing the computer coding results with human coding results, • finding considerable agreement. Examining the media industry to see if journalists are beholden to advertising • corporations and official sources (see, Relating Congressional voting records for example, the film The Myth of the to media bias. Groseclose and Milyo Liberal Media: The Propaganda Model (2005) noted the frequency with which of News) (a) members of Congress and (b) media outlets cited various liberal and Summary. Academics have employed a conservative think tanks and policy wide variety of methods to assess news groups. Groseclose and Milyo used this media performance. Content analyses information to compute ADA scores (an frequently include only a few aspects of coverage. Zelizer, Park, and Gudelunas best methods are those that: (a) assess (2002), however, argue that that looking multiple aspects of coverage, (b) provide at only one feature of news presentation clear criteria that permits others to is problematic because bias can manifest replicate the analysis, and (c) capture itself differently in different features of content differences that are meaningfully the news. In their examination of bias in connected to news media performance. newspaper coverage of the Israeli/ Media watchdogs Palestinian conflict in September of As the media have become more 2000, for example, these authors powerful, along with public awareness examined visuals, graphics, frames, of their importance, there has been a language, and placement. In general, the 17 found below) have had an advantage in corresponding rise in the number of prominence and longevity (although the groups monitoring media performance. left seems to have closed the gaps in the Time magazine characterized these blogosphere). groups dismissively in 1991 as “The Schudson (1995) notes, “Another story Media’s Wacky Watchdogs,” suggesting is that the main development in the news that “media bashers” were only out to media has been a sharp move of news make a buck (Aug. 5, 1991, p. 54). Since content to the right (a favorite theory on that time, these watchdogs have grown the left) or, alternatively, that the dramatically and are taken more national news media have been captured seriously by the mainstream media. by a corps of too well paid, too Interest groups of all kinds have comfortable, too Eastern, too Ivy incorporated a media critique in their League, and too liberal journalists (a political projects, including identity favorite, naturally, on the right)” (p. movements centered around gender, 182). In observing this discourse of race, and ethnicity which want more contending critiques (often not engaging favorable treatment. Other organizations directly with each other), Schudson have made news media criticism a more continues by categorizing media central part of their work, but differ watchdogs as left- and right-leaning, significantly in the way they approach noting many of the same details as we do this analysis. below. Media monitoring outside the academic Media watchdog organizations employ world, and including the blogosphere, is many different methods for assessing still largely an American phenomenon, news media performance. Their claims given the greater acceptance in Europe must be carefully evaluated in light of and elsewhere that journalism and their method. These organizations are politics are naturally tied together. valuable, however, in making the public Citizens in these regions would find more aware of how the news is created charges of media bias unremarkable. and the characteristics of the news. The Many interest groups include a media findings provide valuable insights as monitoring component, but a number long as the methods are reported clearly have made media criticism their primary and can be replicated. The cases below role. Based on funding, the right-leaning exemplify the range of approaches and critics (roughly categorized examples of political positions. right- and left-leaning critics can be 1. Conservative organization. No systematic evidence from specific programming was • Accuracy in Media (AIM) introduced, relying instead on a poll of Accuracy in Media, founded by the late what respondents thought about the Reed Irvine, is the granddaddy of media network, with claims that it is a monitors with a conservative, anti- propaganda outlet (an example of communist agenda and support from “perceived” vs. “actual” bias) and noting conservative foundations. Recently, for the borrowing of personnel by Al- example, AIM attacked Al-Jazeera for Jazeera English from the Arabic being anti-American and a terrorist 18 monitor, advocating greater diversity in division. AIM has been critical of public media especially for under-represented broadcasting as left-leaning in the past groups and dissent. It identifies media (AIM Report, 2005). bias rooted in corporate control, • Media Research Center (MRC) advertiser and public relations pressure, The Media Research Center calls itself and advocates structural reform, the “leader in documenting, exposing including independent public and neutralizing liberal media bias.” broadcasting. PBS also has been Clearly one of the leaders among the criticized from this perspective. In watchdogs and well funded by studies of The NewsHour program in conservative foundations, the MRC 2006 and 1990, FAIR examined the addresses bias in the culture at large, sources appearing and determined that encompassing entertainment as well as they were overwhelmingly male, white, news media. Although its mission with Republicans outnumbering statement calls for balance in the media, Democrats in the more recent study 2 to the more pointed expressed goal is to 1. As in commercial news, officials provide information useful for dominated the lineup with the rare conservative activists. Starting with the representative of public interest groups. liberal media premise allows the • PR Watch evidence to consist of anecdotal Supported by the Center for Media and statements selectively culled from the Democracy, PR Watch and its related mainstream media that would indicate “Sourcewatch,” focus on efforts to criticism of America, the government, or manipulate or spin the news, usually on Republicans. MRC leader Brent Bozell behalf of corporate and government has distributed a guide for detecting interests. media bias, which include conventional • Project Censored indicators of emphasis, omission, and Project Censored examines “news that sourcing. A recent “Media Reality didn’t make the news,” primarily from Check” report on media coverage of Iraq the perspective of structural constraints criticized coverage for underplaying on media based on their interconnections American “success” and “heroism.” with corporate interests. 2. Liberal • Media Matters • Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting Media Matters for America is a (Fair) relatively recent and well-supported Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting watchdog, dedicated to presents itself as a progressive media “comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative standards in finding a disparity favoring misinformation in the U.S. media.” conservative voices in areas such as op- Employing similar techniques to FAIR, columns, talk-show guests, coverage of Media Matters’ reports document what it religion, and under-representation of regards as imbalances and double- women and minorities. It also has been 19 publicly distributed reports about issues an advocate for public broadcasting and people in the global media. Sources independence (from political and of news are well documented, but a corporate interference). positive or negative evaluation of the 3. Other monitoring organizations content is more subjective. In a political • The Center for Media and Public campaign, the positive/negative valence Affairs (CMPA) may be clear because it is always with The Center for Media and Public Affairs reference to how the campaign is going claims it’s nonpartisan, nonprofit, and compared to the opponent’s. In more scientific. The founders Robert and complex issues, however, a positive Linda Lichter are known as the authors evaluation is always with reference to of The Media Elite, the previously some normative benchmark, which is not mentioned book which launched a strong always easy to identify. A declining critical attack against the mainstream stock market, for example, still means press based on the claimed political profits for someone. In spite of its leanings of journalists at the elite (New ostensible scientific method, its York and Washington) media. Funding affiliation with Robert Lichter of CMPA for the center is primarily from and the interpretations it sometimes conservative foundations, and Lichter makes of the data have left Media Tenor was an AEI fellow and consultant to Fox open to charges of subjectivity. News. Their studies use traditional • The Project for Excellence in content analysis methods, but have been Journalism (PEJ) criticized for generalizing from the The Project for Excellence in Journalism limited data that supports the claim that conducts systematic analyses of news media tilt left. For example, a 1992 media content. Though PEJ used to be study of 225 PBS documentaries found a affiliated with the Columbia University liberal slant, but that was based on a Graduate School of Journalism and the small fraction of the total segments from Committee of Concerned Journalists, it those programs – those clearly stating a is now part of the Pew Research Center. thematic opinion – and ignoring the non- PEJ conducts large scale content documentary programs that often analyses of major newspapers, websites, contained conservative commentary morning shows on network television, (e.g., Wall Street Week). evening news programs (ABC, CBS, • Media Tenor NBC, & PBS), cable television Outside the U.S., Media Tenor is the programs, and radio programming. most well known media monitor, Human coders assess the story topic and conducting systematic content analysis newsmakers. PEJ also offers for a variety of clients, particularly commentary on the state of the news business, and partners with academic media. experts in communication. Using human Both The NewsHour and NPR’s coders, they have conducted a number of Morning Edition are included in PEJ’s regular media coding, and PEJ provides analysis. For example, in assessing commentary on the results of their 20 significantly more likely to support coverage of the presidential hopefuls in Clinton over Obama compared to men.” the Fall of 2007, PEJ drew three In one sense, this is news – this may be conclusions about The NewsHour’s based on the results of a poll, for coverage: (1) The NewsHour gave less example, where there was a statistically attention to the primaries in comparison significant difference between men and to the nightly network news (2) The women in their support for the NewsHour gave more attention to lesser- Democratic presidential hopefuls. In known candidates, and (3) “When it another sense, however, this is opinion came to tone, however, The NewsHour or analysis – the researcher chose to upheld its pattern found in other research analyze gender, chose to report about for more neutral coverage than other gender, chose to discuss the Democratic media” (Project for Excellence in presidential hopefuls, and chose to use Journalism, 2007). the word “significantly.” Objective 3: Comparison of how news Though the lines quickly become blurry, consumers view the difference between news, analysis, commentary, and opinion, and academic research still provides some whether the standards are different for insight into how news consumers – who commercial news outlets versus public media themselves have been socialized with Increasingly, the public responds to these distinctions – distinguish between news and information with little regard news, analysis, commentary, and for the traditional distinctions made by opinion. The results of research indicate media professionals between reality and that, in general, news consumers are entertainment, news and opinion, neither rigorous nor consistent about commercial and public, and indeed dividing information into fact and between “professional” and “amateur,” opinion categories. or citizen. The news and information 1. environment now is more fluid, with When the task of dividing information signposts for bias provided less by the into categories of fact versus opinion is content itself than by non-media actors easy, news consumers have little who integrate media criticism into a trouble making these distinctions. broader rhetorical strategy. Within this context, it is challenging, Graney (1990), for example, provided even from the perspective of academic subjects with paragraphs from editorials researchers, to develop a priori or from news without telling them the distinctions between news, analysis, source of the content. After receiving a commentary, and opinion. Yet it is part brief training on distinguishing between of American press ideology that they can fact and opinion, subjects were asked to be clearly distinguished. The editorial evaluate the paragraphs as either fact or page of a newspaper is set apart from its opinion. Subjects were correct over 90 news coverage and analysis is distinct percent of the time. In the study, subjects from breaking news. All news decisions, were asked to make distinctions between of course, have an element of fact and opinion; whether they do so in subjectivity. Consider, for example, a their day-to-day lives is unclear. sentence that says “Women were 21 The public’s ability to distinguish Even fictional television images can between factual reporting and influence people’s perceptions of reality. editorializing has been offered as one Cultivation effects can be dampened, explanation as to why the public has however, by motivating and/or historically found television to be more enabling the public to more carefully credible than newspapers. Until 2000, think about their assessments television broadcasters were not (Shrum, 2002). This research permitted to make political suggests that encouraging effortful endorsements while newspapers were and careful mental processing can (Metzger, Flanagin, Eyal, Lemus, & help the public to make distinctions McCann, 2003). According to this between news and opinion. explanation, the public perception that newspapers were less credible than • television was because the public knew If people are good at distinguishing that newspapers were able to endorse between news and opinion, they should while television news was prohibited be able to detect media leanings. from endorsing. This explanation could Research, however, shows that the represent the public’s knowledge about public is not very good at detecting the endorsement practices, however, not political leanings of the media that their ability to distinguish between fact they consume. Robinson (1972) and opinion. reported that just over half of his sample 2. was able to detect the partisanship of the Though the public sometimes does newspaper they read (newspaper distinguish between news, analysis, partisanship was assessed using reports commentary, and opinion, there is in Editor & Publisher). This seems to evidence that they do so inconsistently. have changed little over time. Using data that paired a content analysis of media • leanings with public perceptions of The public is not always vigilant about media leanings, Mutz and Martin (2001) categorizing incoming information. If reported that only 48 percent of the public were vigilant about making respondents correctly reported the distinctions, then they should avoid presidential candidate favored by their using fictional information when making newspaper. Using the same data, Dalton, assessments about reality. Yet research Beck, and Huckfeldt (1998) found that suggests that the public is prone to do “most newspapers did not take strong just this. Studies on cultivation effects partisan stands, and a large proportion of show that people incorrectly estimate the the respondents did not perceive their prevalence of many different daily newspaper (or television news occurrences (e.g. crime, single-parent program) as preferring one candidate” families, etc.) based on their exposure to (p. 119). television images (Gerbner, Gross, Morgan, Signorielli, & Shanahan, 2002). Dalton et al. did find, however, that citizens were able to detect their 22 preference was clearer and more newspapers’ political leanings when extreme in the coverage. This again the newspapers’ candidate suggests that when distinctions are easily made, the public is able to debate analysis such as the statements delineate between news, opinion, made in the “spin room” (more analysis- analysis, and commentary. based exposure). Dalton and colleagues also showed that people who were more attentive Post-debate analysis does influence to a political campaign had only a political perceptions (Fridkin, slight advantage in accurately Kenney, Gershon, & Woodall, 2008; perceiving the political leanings of Tsfati, 2003). Post-debate analysis, the newspaper they read. however, has less of an effect on • those watching the actual debate in Audiences are more likely to identify its entirety. These studies suggest certain types of content as biased. In two things. First, in the absence of one study, D’Alessio (2003) asked viewing the actual news event, news people to indicate where they found bias analysis is influential. Second, after in news articles. He found that people viewing the actual event, people may were far less likely to label factual not be influenced by news analysis. content as biased compared to summary This gives some indication that content and quotations in news articles. people can recognize news analysis Similarly, Baum and Gussin (2008) and will discount this information if found that media content that did not they are able. contain any substantive political content • was not perceived as biased, while Even if people are able to accurately media content including substantive assess differences between news and political content was perceived as biased opinion at the time of exposure, it is by study participants asked to code unclear that they are able to retain paragraphs of media content about the these distinctions over time. Yegiyan 2004 presidential campaign as favoring and Grabe (2007) found that over time, Bush or favoring Kerry. the public’s ability to distinguish between information presented in news- • like ads (an opinionated source) and If people meaningfully distinguish information presented in news (a factual between fact, opinion, analysis, and source) was severely hampered. Only a commentary, we might expect to find week after exposure to the news-like differences between the effects of ads, “information presented in news-like exposure to these different types of ads was incorrectly attributed to news information on people’s attitudes and about 70% of the time” (p. 391). beliefs. Research on political debates has examined how audience reactions differ Summary. People can distinguish depending on whether audiences (a) between news and analysis, watched a debate (more fact-based commentary, and opinion when (a) exposure) and/or (b) watched post- 23 are able to accurately assess differences distinctions are easy and (b) they are between news and opinion at the time of asked to do so. In general, however, exposure, it is unclear that they are able people are not great at making these to retain these distinctions over time. distinctions. Further, even when people Implications for Public News Media • Outlets This gap in credibility perceptions could The research reviewed above has several be the result of an actual bias. When implications for public broadcasting presented with biased material, people which we review below. To the extent can detect that the news is slanted (see, that public broadcasting indexes the for example, Fico, Richardson, & same elite opinions and sources, Edwards, 2004). amplifying the same voices already heard in the commercial arena, public Analyses aiming to understand media will be regarded as just another whether public news media actually part of the mainstream media (and, no are biased yield decidedly mixed doubt, already is in many respects). results. This likely is due to the • variation in employed methods for Though there has been less research assessing bias, in the programs and about audience perceptions of public time periods studied, and in the broadcasting in comparison to research different organizations conducting on audience perceptions of commercial the analysis. For example, while news broadcasts, there are parallels. CMPA’s limited sample 1992 study Similar to perceptions of commercial of PBS documentaries found a news broadcasts, perceptions of public liberal slant (see above), FAIR found news broadcasting vary based on that The NewsHour sources were partisanship. Democrats rate The more likely to be Republicans, and NewsHour and NPR as more believable the Project for Excellence in compared to Republicans (Pew Research Journalism commended The Center, 2006). NewsHour for its neutral coverage relative to other outlets. • • Further, in 2003, publicly-released data This gap in credibility perceptions also gathered for the Corporation for Public may be the result of media coverage and Broadcasting documented that just over elite discussion about the alleged 20 percent perceived PBS and NPR as partisanship of public news media liberally biased while around 10 percent broadcasts. Though media discussion of perceived a conservative bias a liberal tilt may have subsided recently, (Corporation for Public Broadcasting, there certainly is evidence for this type 2003). The percentage seeing a liberal of coverage: bias in public broadcasting may have o changed as the partisan gap in credibility “The Corporation for Public assessments of The NewsHour and NPR Broadcasting is at the center of debates have changed (Pew Research Center, about perceived liberal bias” – June 15, 2006). 2006, New York Times

24 considered a liberal bias in public o broadcasting.” – December 20, 2006, “Tomlinson had sought to add more Washington Post conservative-minded shows to the line- up to counter what many conservatives Media critics charging a pro- news stories. For example, when stories conservative tilt received far less present only one side of an issue or use coverage. As Watts, Domke, Shah, tabloid production techniques, audiences and Fan (1999) document, media judge the story to be less credible. coverage of bias can translate into perceptions of bias irrespective of 4. the actual bias of media content. Audiences generalize their judgments of • media bias beyond a single article or To the extent that public media are broadcast to entire news organizations. known for their “civility,” this is an asset. Research shows that the public 5. associates this trait with greater trust and The elite-generated rhetorical context credibility. matters. Public perceptions of the news media are linked to how elites publicly Summary: Key Research Conclusions assess the news media. Charges that the 1. media have a liberal bias have been The public does not always think about more prevalent and publicized than bias in the news in the same way that charges that the media have a journalists do. conservative bias.

2. 6. The media may be objective and fair, Impressions of news sources strongly while still being regarded as not credible color people’s ability to evaluate the by the audience. content of media messages from that source. 3. Judgments of news media performance are influenced by the actual features of 25 The process of delivering news content Recommendations for the Future on public media could be improved Based on our review and synthesis of the within the context of news media literature about news media performance by giving the public more performance, the Corporation for Public information about efforts taken to ensure Broadcasting requested that we make quality. For example, how do reporters recommendations for improving news go about selecting sources for a story? delivery, evaluating news objectivity, Why did the news outlet broadcast one and capitalizing on objective and candidate’s speech and not another balanced content. The following pages candidate’s speech? What standards are review these recommendations. in place? Making these available to the Objective 4: Recommendations on how the public will help audiences understand process of collecting and delivering news content on public media could be improved the process of news content collection within the context of objectivity and balance. and delivery. 1. Public media professionals must engage Describe efforts to ensure quality news the public with dialogue about news and media performance. journalistic decisions. These discussions – spurred in part by media watchdogs – are a major feature in the on-line world, and media voices must engage with it. In completely trust the product without an the past, responses to charges of bias and accompanying honesty about how it was other journalistic weaknesses have been done. met with limited or defensive comments This recommendation is related, but not from broadcasting spokespersons. identical, to the “media beat,” which has Instead, public media should embrace become more popular in newsrooms this discourse, featuring any claims of over the past decade. Journalists bias on associated web sites with assigned to the “media beat,” however, supporting evidence, adding a clear tend to cover other media outlets and background on how decisions were their articles and segments tend to be reached, posing related issues, targeted toward other media acknowledging weaknesses where professionals as opposed to the public appropriate, and encouraging public (Fengler, 2003) and becomes an comment. “insider” discourse. Our The popularity of programs like the recommendation is to make newsroom Daily Show and Fox News suggest that decisions more transparent. In the face citizens are drawn to news with a sharp of rhetorical attacks (and their effects on point of view – even if comedic. They public perceptions), journalists cede the know intuitively that news is a battle unless they redouble their efforts constructed product and, to the extent at openness and transparency. that news organizations are able to Admittedly, there is limited empirical acknowledge and build on this evidence suggesting that publicizing awareness, they will increase credibility. efforts to ensure quality news media Otherwise, no amount of care in the performance translate into higher media journalistic process will lead viewers to 26 Slater, & Buddenbaum, 1999), these trust. There is some related evidence efforts at greater transparency could help regarding codes of conduct, however. to educate the public about how to assess Codes of conduct represent efforts to news media performance and the publicize standards. When political standards in place for ensuring quality. campaigns have used codes of conduct, 2. citizens believe that these types of codes Provide credible information that allows are important and find that issues are the public to accurately assess news discussed more frequently during media performance. campaigns (Maisel, West, & Clifton, 2007). Just as codes of conduct in In attempting to assess news media political campaigns are seen as performance, people may require beneficial, we believe that publicizing additional information to validate claims efforts to ensure quality news media made in the media. A number of scholars performance would be positively and activists have developed media reviewed by the public. Original literacy campaigns to encourage people research could be solicited to investigate to more carefully and thoughtfully how to most effectively increase process media content (see, for example, transparency. Potter, 2005). By documenting As the public and journalists differ in individual sources of news information their assessments of bias (e.g. Rouner, and efforts to obtain additional information, news organizations could increase credibility perceptions of online empower people to make assessments information. The Internet makes about news media quality on their own. providing this information to interested Jackson and Jamieson (2007), for citizens far easier than in times past and example, provide a number of rules for is relevant as an additional tool for evaluating the quality of news content. broadcasting. Examples of their rules for assessing 3. news information include: check primary Facilitate opportunities for public input sources, know how numbers are in the news making process. calculated, and know background information about sources. By making Incorporating the public in the news this information easily accessible to the process may be helpful in increasing news consumer, news media perceptions perceptions of credibility. This could be improved. suggestion stems from the public, or Research on how people assess civic, journalism movement. Though credibility provides key insights into the many definitions have been offered for types of information that increase public journalism, Lambeth (1998) credibility. Metzger (2007), for example, offers the following: reviews factors such as source citations, Public journalism can be viewed as a citations to scientific data or references, form of journalism that seeks to: 1) author qualifications and credentials, and listen systematically to the stories the notification/ presence of an editorial and ideas of citizens even while review process or board, which can all protecting its freedom to choose 27 Several Wisconsin media outlets, what to cover; 2) examine alternative including the public television and ways to frame stories on important public radio stations, put together a community issues; 3) choose frames public journalism project called We the that stand the best chance to People. The program included town hall stimulate citizen deliberation and meetings, debates, and a civics training build public understanding of issues; program to educate citizens about 4) take the initiative to report on political strategy. Citizens had many major public problems in a way that opportunities to participate. For advances public knowledge of example, there was a call-in public radio possible solutions and the values program following the debate. The served by alternative courses of investigators asked citizens whether the action; 5) pay continuing and program made them feel more positively systematic attention to how well and toward the organizations sponsoring We how credibly it is communicating the People; “Before the election, 29 with the public (p. 17). percent responded positively; after the Numerous public journalism initiatives experiment, the figure increased to 42 have been conducted and evaluated, percent” (Denton & Thorson, 1998, p. several with particular relevance to the 156). There is some precedent that objective of improving the collection positive feelings are related to trust; and delivery of news content. Several Tsfati (2002) found that ratings of the are reviewed below: press in covering presidential elections • were highly correlated with trust in an outlet. This suggests that projects like journalism increases, even after the We the People will increase trust in the effects of party, age, race and education media. (People will likely generalize a have been filtered out” (Rosen, 1999; good example to the large enterprise as Meyer & Potter, 1998). they do for bias judgments.) Furthermore, this project was responsive • to citizen interests; Cappella and In a study surveying newspaper editors Jamieson (1997) found that when and journalism educators, Dickson and citizens were asked about what is right Topping (2001) conclude, “This study about how the media cover politics, the suggests that media credibility is a public indicated that they “preferred concern for newspaper editors and news events included those that involved newspaper journalism educators and that the news media least – debates, lengthy they think public journalism might be interviews, and unedited speeches” (p. one means for improving credibility” (p. 227). 82). • Looking at newspapers in twenty media The implication of these studies is that markets during the 1996 election, Meyer involving the public in some aspects of and Potter described their findings from news creation and production may be the Poynter Election Project; “Media helpful. Certainly this recommendation bashing declines as citizen-based is not without objection – some have 28 MSNBC.com, NBC News, and expressed concern that relying on the MySpace sponsored a contest to send public’s thoughts may not be in society’s two citizen journalists to cover the best interests (see a review of critiques Democratic and Republican National of public journalism in Rosen, 1999). Conventions (Friedman, 2008). Further, civic journalism efforts do not • uniformly increase citizen trust in the Fox News asks viewers to participate in media (Grimes, 1999). Additional uReport while CNN asks viewers to research on how to best increase trust participate in iReport; both ask viewers could be conducted in order to isolate to send in photos and videos. factors that are most important in public • journalism projects. The BBC has incorporated citizen In many ways, the public journalism journalism. As director of BBC’s World movement has been superseded by the Service and Global News Division rise of citizen journalism and its partial Richard Sambrook (2005) notes, “We embrace by the mainstream media – know now that when major events occur, which has incorporated various the public can offer us as much new components of the blogosphere – in an information as we are able to broadcast attempt to capture a wider array of to them. From now on, news coverage is public voices. By citizen journalism, we a partnership” (p. 14). mean efforts to include citizens directly in the news making process. There are To this point, however, we are lacking numerous examples of these efforts. systematic research about the effects of • citizen journalism on assessments of news media performance. There is some indication that citizen journalism may structure the social world” (Reese, positively affect news media 2001). Facts don’t speak for themselves perceptions. Research suggests that but are embedded in narratives that tell a hostile media perceptions (whereby compelling story, an idea with crossover partisans judge putatively neutral appeal that is understood intuitively by messages as biased against their point of the public, political leaders, and media view) decline with student reporters in professionals. Pejoratively regarded as comparison to journalists (Gunther & “spin” when political managers do it, Liebhart, 2006). In the same way, citizen framing is a part of democratic life, and journalists may lead the public to rely the idea has given greater importance to less on their previously held beliefs the way we look at public discourse. In when evaluating news media the simple awareness that there is more performance. than one way to frame a story, even 4. journalists are more accepting that they Incorporate a more diverse array of can never perfectly mirror society, but perspectives in news reporting. that news reports are inevitably structured in a number of ways. Through In recent years, the idea of issue framing a greater awareness of framing, the has taken hold in the academic literature public is more likely to have a as a way of understanding news and transparent understanding of the political communication. Frames are message construction that goes on defined as “organizing principles that behind the scenes, with important work symbolically to meaningfully choices in language, sources, visuals, 29 that the truth is found between two and narrative story-lines. Certainly, the extreme positions. language of framing leads to more useful Rodney Benson (2008) is among the discussion of news media performance emerging media sociologists finding than the more pejorative and more ways to evaluate the multi-perspectival limited concepts, such as bias, which can dimension cross-nationally. In spite of signify the critics own implicit standard. the political and economic differences In one of the most widely cited works on between the U.S. and French media, he the sociology of news, Deciding What’s finds that the French news media News, sociologist Herbert Gans (1979), provide a more diverse array of frames calls for a more multi-perspectival news. concerning key issues, and they feature By this, he intended for the news to more civil society news sources who are incorporate a wider variety of voices, not not within the traditional governmental just limited to official and economic and economic elites. Benson speaks elites – what he called “the knowns.” favorably of how French journalism has Current serious public affairs would be institutionalized a “story ensemble” wise to consider this idea, moving format, which – regardless of the news toward greater pluralism and beyond the of the day – commits to a single event or simplistic notion of balance as an evenly trend on the front and first few pages. A matched pitting of one side against variety of elements is grouped together, another, a structure that often plays into including breaking news, analysis, the polarization of opinion and suggests transcripts of interviews, and background information. What is true for “civil” tone), it will be subject to the print media also can apply to television. same public perceptions and criticisms Much of broadcast news formats that attach to the rest of the encourage the idea that the truth is found mainstream press. between two competing, often official Objective 5: Recommendations on how to better monitor and evaluate news and public and political, sides. By moving away affairs programming related to issues of from this traditional format of competing objectivity and balance. talking heads, to present a variety of 5. perspectives and styles both within and Have the public evaluate media content across programs, television news may to assess news media performance. serve to move the perceptions of viewers beyond a simple evaluation of “balance.” One way in which news media By incorporating a more multi- performance could be monitored and perspectival array of voices, going evaluated is to have the public assess beyond the “inside-the-beltway” experts news content. Based on the results of and ideologically-aligned sources, this analysis, news and public affairs viewers may be obliged to put aside their programming could demonstrate their traditional cues as to what constitutes objectivity and balance or could use it to bias. If PBS tracks the same array of adjust and monitor news content. As sources and formats found in perceptions of a media outlet can color commercial media (even though with public perceptions of a message a less hurried and more serious and 30 evaluate whether magazines leaned left attributed to the outlet (Baum & Gussin, or right to find magazines that on 2008; Turner, 2007), the source of the average, people perceived as centrist. As message could be eliminated when the magazines were not well known, it asking the public to provide their was possible to assess perceptions perceptions. Blinded transcripts of news without removing information about the content could be evaluated by a random source. Specifically incorporating The sample of the public. Based on the NewsHour into a study, Feldman (2008) hostile media phenomenon, we would asked undergraduate students to examine not predict that all members of the three short news segments: one from public would assess the content as MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith objective and balanced. Based on this Olbermann, one from CNN Headline phenomenon, however, neutral news News’ Glenn Beck, and one from The programming should be assessed as NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on PBS. liberally biased by those with After removing information about the conservative leanings and as news program and host from the conservatively biased by those with transcripts, she found that Olbermann liberal leanings. After taking into and Beck were perceived as biased while account the proportion of liberals and Lehrer was perceived as neutral. This conservatives in the sample, neutral provides some precedent for evaluating sources, on average, should be judged as the content of news media by making objective and balanced by the public. viewers unaware of the source. Similar strategies have been employed in Summary: Steps for Evaluating News the past. Stroud (2006) asked subjects to Media Performance 1. partisanship, and beliefs about any issues Obtain articles, transcripts, and any discussed in the programs. accompanying visual material. 4. 2. Analyze whether the sample perceives “Blind” the materials by removing any the content to be biased, taking into feature that could identify the public account the political beliefs of the affairs program. sample. a. 5. This includes removing names of Repeat this across a variety of issues and reporters or anchors, mentions of the programs, as there will likely be news broadcast, and any distinctive variation. features of the programming such as the names of the segments. Objective 6: Recommendations on how public media outlets can capitalize on their b. increasingly distinct role as providers of For visual materials, this would include objective and balanced news in public affairs digital removal of any material that programming. could lead someone to guess the In today’s media environment, it is program being evaluated. impossible for any media outlet to be 3. seen as objective and balanced by all Have a random sample of the public members of the public; even neutral evaluate the blinded programs for signs media content is perceived as biased by of bias. Afterward, ask the sample to strong partisans (Vallone, Ross, & report their political ideology, 31 32 • Lepper, 1985). In order to help public Assessment using audience media outlets capitalize on their distinct perceptions. Using the technique role, however, we make the following mentioned under Objective 5, recommendation. differences between news programs can 6. be assessed and publicized in order for Contrast coverage with other news public media outlets to convey their media outlets. distinct role.

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