How the media influences public policy: A case study on the New Brunswick government’s failed attempt to sell NB Power by Daniel James McHardie Bachelor of Journalism, Political Science, Carleton University, 2000 A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master’s in Philosophy (Policy Studies) in the Graduate Academic Unit of the School of Graduate Studies Supervisor: Paul Howe, PhD, Department of Political Science Examining Board: John Kershaw, PhD, UNB, Forestry, Chair Tom Bateman, PhD, STU, Political Science Tom Beckley, PhD, UNB, Forestry This thesis is accepted by the Dean of Graduate Studies THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW BRUNSWICK February 2014 © Daniel McHardie, 2014 ABSTRACT Politicians, policymakers and journalists have witnessed a dramatic change in how they do their jobs in the last decade, particularly because of the growth of online and social media. Canadian public administration experts, particularly Donald Savoie, have observed significant changes to the policy-making process and specifically a shift toward governing from the centre. The media have been credited with gaining more influence on the policy process. Traditionally, agenda-setting research has explored how the media shapes the issue salience among citizens and how that affects politicians. But there has been less focus on how the media affects actual policy decisions. Using a case study methodology, this interdisciplinary study will explore the relevance of the governing from the centre model and how the newspaper, television and online media coverage influenced key political and policy decisions during the failed attempt by the New Brunswick government to sell NB Power between 2009 and 2010. An analysis using qualitative interviews with key politicians and policymakers during the NB Power process shows to what extent public policy and political decisions were made from the centre and how the media influenced policy and political decisions. The study raises questions about how future policy decisions should be made given demands for more public engagement and changing media consumption patterns. ii Dedication I would like to dedicate this thesis to my wife, Lisa, and my three daughters, Emmanuelle, Isabella and Madeleine. iii Acknowledgements This thesis may have my name on it, but thankfully I was not forced to walk alone on this long and winding academic journey. I would like to thank my supervisory committee, Dr. Paul Howe, Dr. Donald Savoie and Dr. Fred Mason. Each of my committee members offered a tremendous amount of insight and guidance throughout the last year and for that I am grateful. It has also been an honour and a privilege to work with the many faculty and students at the University of New Brunswick, particularly those who were associated with the Master‟s of Philosophy in Policy Studies program. Finally, I am blessed with tremendous friends and family members, who patiently listened to me during the process of researching and writing this thesis, encouraged me when the journey seemed without end and celebrated with me as I moved closer to achieving my goals. iv Table of Contents ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................ ii Dedication .......................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ iv Table of Contents ................................................................................................................ v List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... ix List of Figures ..................................................................................................................... x Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 2. Literature Review............................................................................................................ 7 2.1: Public Administration .............................................................................................. 7 2.2: Literature Review: Political Science...................................................................... 17 Agenda-setting, Framing and priming ...................................................................... 17 Influence of public opinion research ......................................................................... 21 Complex political environments ............................................................................... 22 2.3: Literature review: Journalism and Communication............................................... 26 Evolution of the news cycle ...................................................................................... 27 How the media covers politics .................................................................................. 29 Changing media consumption patterns ..................................................................... 32 Online commenting, social media use and political engagement ............................. 34 2.4: Finding “Power” in the centre ............................................................................... 40 Public consultation and engagement ......................................................................... 47 Online vs. offline engagement .................................................................................. 50 v Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 56 Research questions ............................................................................................................ 64 Question 1: .................................................................................................................... 64 Question 2: .................................................................................................................... 64 Question 3: .................................................................................................................... 65 Question 4: .................................................................................................................... 65 4. Case Study: Introduction............................................................................................... 68 5. New Brunswick media landscape ................................................................................. 77 5.1: Media effect on policymakers and politicians ....................................................... 82 5.2 Decision-making trends ...................................................................................... 83 5.3: Overview: Media coverage .................................................................................... 87 5.4: Telegraph-Journal coverage ................................................................................... 90 5.5: CBC Television coverage ...................................................................................... 94 5.6: CBC.ca Coverage................................................................................................... 97 5.7: Social Media ........................................................................................................ 105 6. Policy decisions during the NB Power debate: Governing from the centre in Fredericton ...................................................................................................................... 110 Outside experts............................................................................................................ 116 Polling during the NB Power debate .......................................................................... 118 Concerns at the top...................................................................................................... 120 Influence of third-party organizations ........................................................................ 124 Agenda Setting during the NB Power debate ............................................................. 127 vi A failure from the start ................................................................................................ 130 Refusal to communicate .............................................................................................. 133 Framing and priming................................................................................................... 136 6.1: The Ganong Panel ................................................................................................ 142 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 149 6.2: The impact of MOU2 ........................................................................................... 150 Removing NB Power Transmission from the deal ................................................. 158 6.3: The influence of Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams in the media ........................................................................................................................... 161 Newfoundland and Labrador‟s history with Hydro-Québec and its energy aspirations ....................................................................................................................................