INTERNATIONAL AGENDA-SETTING AND AGENDA-BUILDING: THE CHANGE OF U.S. PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF SOUTH KOREA By EUNJU KANG A THESIS PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN MASS COMMUNICATION UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2012 1 © 2012 Eunju Kang 2 To my beloved family 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to say thank-you to all the people who influenced, encouraged and supported me. Even though there were unexpected barriers and difficulties, I could pull through the difficulties thanks to their encouragement and supports. I owed my achievement to my advisor, Dr. Juan-Carlos Molleda, and my committee members, Dr. Spiro Kiousis and Dr. Ronald Rodgers. Without their supports, I never could have finished this thesis track. I will never forget their sincere attention and supports even when I work as a professional in the field. I heartily pray for their happiness and prosperity. I also want to thank to my seniors and classmates who helped me recognized guidelines for graduation and encouraged me to finish the work. I especially thank to my man, Kyung-gook, for his generous encouragement and supports. And lastly, I dedicate my thesis to my beloved family. Thanks for unconditional love and supports that led my studying abroad to finish successfully. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...............................................................................................................4 LIST OF TABLES ...........................................................................................................................7 ABSTRACT .....................................................................................................................................8 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................9 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE .................................................................................................13 Agenda Setting and Public Agenda ........................................................................................13 Agenda Setting and Public Opinion .......................................................................................15 International News Coverage and Its Influence on Public Opinion .......................................16 Public Relations Contacts and Agenda Building ....................................................................18 Foreign Principals, Public Relations Counsel, and FARA Report .........................................20 U.S. Public’s Interests on South Korea and Its International Reputation ...............................21 3 METHODS .............................................................................................................................24 Public Opinion ........................................................................................................................24 Media Content ........................................................................................................................25 FARA Reports ........................................................................................................................27 Data Analyses .........................................................................................................................28 4 RESULTS ...............................................................................................................................32 Media Salience and the U.S. Public Perception of South Korea ............................................32 Affective Attributes of U.S News ...........................................................................................32 Issue Salience of News ...........................................................................................................34 Relationship between Subjects of Public Relations and News Subjects ................................34 Public Relations Activities and Affective Attributes of News ...............................................35 5 DISCUSSION .........................................................................................................................39 Agenda-Setting Influence on Public Opinion .........................................................................40 Agenda-Building Influence on Media Agenda .......................................................................41 Implications for Agenda-Setting and Agenda-Building Influence .........................................44 Limitations and Future Research ............................................................................................45 APPENDIX A CODING GUIDE ...................................................................................................................47 5 B CODING CATEGORY OF MEDIA CONTENT ..................................................................49 LIST OF REFERENCES ...............................................................................................................51 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .........................................................................................................55 6 LIST OF TABLES Table Page 3-1 Coding category of media content ......................................................................................31 3-2 The type of issues of South Korea ......................................................................................31 4-1 Changes in affective attributes of news of South Korea between 2008 and 2010 .............36 4-2 Differences in affective attributes of news of South Korea under substantive frames between 2008 and 2010 .....................................................................................................36 4-3 Issue salience of news of South Korea in 2008 and 2010 ..................................................37 4-4 Correlation between topics for public relations activities and news topics ........................38 4-5 Correlation between subjects of PR activity and affective attributes of news of South Korea ..................................................................................................................................38 7 Abstract of Thesis Presented to the Graduate School of the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Mass Communication INTERNATIONAL AGENDA-SETTING AND AGENDA-BUILDING: THE CHANGE OF U.S. PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF SOUTH KOREA By Eunju Kang August 2012 Chair: Juan-Carlos Molleda Major: Mass Communication This study explored the agenda-setting effects of The New York Times on the U.S. public opinion about South Korea. Also, this study investigated whether there were agenda-building influences between South Korean principals’ public relations activities in the United States and the U.S. news coverage at the specific subject level. The current study found a significant change in affective attributes of news of South Korea between 2008 and 2010 and its connection to the U.S. public’s perception change between 2008 and 2010. Furthermore, the study discovered a significant change in affective attributes of news holding involvement frames between 2008 and 2010, which is contrary to overall attention. This result indicated stronger agenda-setting effects of the involvement frame than general description of a foreign country. In terms of the agenda- building influence, the study observed a significant difference in issue salience of news between 2008 and 2010, however, any correlations between subjects of public relations activities and news subjects and between public relations activities and affective attributes of news were not discovered. This study provided several points of professional implications for public diplomacy professionals and policymakers. 8 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION According to a Pew Research Center’s survey released February 24, 2011, the U.S. public has expressed considerable interest in Asia, particularly in news about China (69%) and South Korea (69%). South Korea tied for fourth place with China, followed by Iraq (78%), Afghanistan (77%), North Korea (70%), and Iran (70%). The Pew Research Center interpreted these findings to mean that the U.S. public is interested in news from “global trouble spots,” such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and North Korea, and the findings reflected “the public’s growing focus on Asia” (Pew Research Center, 2011). Moreover, in the February 2011 survey, Pew published another study stating that “47% of respondents said that Asia is most important to the United States, while 37% considered Europe to be the most important region” (Pew Research Center, 2011). In addition, in a 2010 National Survey of American Public Opinion conducted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, there was a change in Americans’ feelings toward South Korea between 2008 and 2010, which was 52 in feeling thermometer indicating slightly favorable in 2010, on the other hand, 45.7 in 2008 indicating slightly unfavorable in 2008 (The Chicago Council on Global Affairs, 2010). The rising trend of U.S. public interest in South Korea has been demonstrated in these two public opinion surveys. Why has the Eastern Asian country located on the eastern edge of Eurasia been considered one of the important countries to the U.S. public? Historically, the United States and South Korea have maintained their alliance militarily as well as economically. Since the initiative of the Mutual Defense Treaty signed