Teaching a Stealth Information Literacy Class on Reading The New York Times: Final

We analyze New York Times coverage of international events and offer what is perhaps the first test for the reciprocal effects of media coverage and fatalities in militarized interstate disputes. Our results suggest that once disputes go public, the probability of fatalities rises dramatically. Simply stated, if it leads, it bleeds. We also find qualified support for the well-known “if it bleeds, it leads” hypothesis, and relatively robust evidence of the effects of distance and news bureaus on media coverage of international crises.

This study employed a content analysis approach to consider the coverage of nanotechnology reports in the New York Times from 1985 to 2004. Patterns and trends of discourse within the national newspaper in terms of political, economic, social, cultural and technological factors were examined using a socio-linguistic approach. Results from the analysis of 243 news articles show a significant rise in the number of reports in general, with a specific focus on political, economic and technological factors. Analysis revealed that the three categories not only increased in relation to the rise in the number of articles, but also tended to positively reinforce each other over time. The implications of these findings are significant in relation to how the media reports on nanotechnology and the social and cultural dimensions of technology during the critical start-up phases of the innovation. Furthermore, this study brings into focus the issues of transparency of risk and sustainability of future nanotechnology applications.

This qualitative, interpretive study sought to examine New York Times coverage of Geraldine Ferraro, the first female vice presidential candidate in the United States, during the 1984 presidential election. Employing previously established frames, the analysis found that The New York Times treated Ferraro as a viable vice presidential candidate. Some stories about Ferraro veered into Italian-American ethnic stereotypes when the angle focused on questions about her husband's finances. Although the 1984 stories published by the Times overall showed promise that political women would move forward with equitable coverage to men, the study found that Ferraro's bold prediction that "American women never again will be second-class citizens" did not hold true. Comparison with mainstream media coverage of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin 24 years later and of other candidates such as Hillary Clinton revealed that hegemonic masculinity in political coverage is firmly entrenched. In fact, Ferraro's treatment by the Times in 1984 was more gender-equitable than more recent media coverage of female political candidates in the 21st century.

This article employs the lens of media framing to investigate the editorial choices by the New York Times in covering the summer 2014 bombing and invasion of Gaza. Using an extended content analysis of front-page stories published by the New York Times from 8 July when the assault began through 26 August when a semi-stable cease fire was announced, primary explanatory frames, preferred sources and selective evaluations of events are identified. The findings suggest that a 'both sides' narrative, selective identification, and legitimation of sources and omissions of significant contextual facts provided readers, with singular diagnoses favouring acceptance and tolerance of Israeli actions with corollary condemnations of Palestinian actions. References from the United Nations and alternative news sources indicate that other evidence and frames would hold Israel guilty of war crimes and encourage increased support for ending the occupation.

Unlike the al-Qaida, which was the mastermind of 9-11event, the brothers of Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the bombers of the Boston bombing case, were named American "home grown terrorists". The study analyzed the news coverage on the bombers of the Boston Bombing Case in New York Times to show how the media represent homegrown terrorists. It found that the reports had amplified the identities of Muslim and immigrant of the bombers, and set a frame of "the Other- the Evil Islam" to build a subtle relationship between the Muslim immigrant and the homegrown terrorists. It showed that the US media had supported the Islam Threat Theory.

Wire service stories published in the 'New York Times' presented unbiased reports on the Soviet Union's plans to participate in the 1952 Olympic Games in Helsinki. Articles, columns, and editorials by staffers, however, had a negative or suspicious tone concerning the events, particularly the Soviet intention to participate. One writer claimed that the Soviet presence "scarred the Olympic movement." Articles on disputes over judging and scoring made athletes seem instruments of Soviet propaganda. 'Times' publisher Arthur Sulzberger's views of the Soviet Union colored much of the reporting of these events.

This study examines how the New York Times covered a culturally significant event:
the 2008 presidential election. A content analysis of Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin,
and their male counterparts examined coverage of “masculinized” and “feminized”
issues and traits, and explicit novelty references. Analysis revealed that the Times
promulgated stereotypic trends by providing heavy emphasis on women’s novelty,
and more attention on masculinized content. Furthermore, a time-frame analysis
showed that the Times gave men more issue and trait coverage than women as the
primary and general election came to an end.

The birth control pill is a scientific innovation turned cultural phenomenon whose use has been entangled with health concerns, ethical choices, religious opposition, and political and legal controversies. Although two generations of Americans have learned most of what they know about the pill from the news media, media coverage of the pill has received limited attention. The fiftieth anniversary of the pill provides a vantage point to examine journalism history, and especially, how news of scientific and medical developments accompanied by challenging issues has been reported. This qualitative and quantitative content analysis of five decades of coverage in the New York Times finds that journalists have been impacted by enduring news values that influenced their choice of sources, their use of frames, and how they constructed their stories. Types and gender of sources and the prevalence and dominance of media frames changed dramatically over a half century, reflecting changes in both journalism and society.

This article introduces a protest news framing cycle and presents the results of a longitudinal analysis of news attention and framing of protest movements. To identify the frame-changing dynamic occurring over time, a content analysis of the news coverage of Occupy Wall Street was conducted on 228 articles and 37 editorials in The New York Times from the start of the protest in September 2011 until long after the protest had subsided in July 2014. The article identifies longitudinal changes in news frames about the economic substance of the protest and the ensuing conflict between protesters and city officials during the occupation. Findings suggest that conflict had a significant impact on the number of news stories about the protest. Further, the results demonstrate how news framing opportunities changed as the movement reached different stages of the news attention cycle. As the movement grew, journalists focused on the movement's economic grievances, including economic inequality, bank bailouts, and foreclosures. As the movement peaked, news attention shifted to the intensifying conflict between city officials and protesters.

This multi-method study examines how the New York Times reported the Darfur conflict in the Sudan, which has led to an estimated 300,000 deaths and over 2.3 million people displaced by the fighting. Drawing on normative media theories and prior studies of Africa's representation, the role of sources in the frame-building process was analyzed, together with the impact of news-making processes on journalists' reporting about Darfur. The textual analysis largely supports results of prior studies on news framing of Africa. However, interviews with four New York Times journalists reveal that the individual biases and motives of the journalists and their sources significantly influenced the coverage. While the journalists participated in news-making processes distinguishable by journalist goal, source availability, and source credibility, their sources also provided information that reinforced certain media frames.

This study explores agenda setting, framing, and the concepts of media advocacy and mobilizing information through content analysis of The New York Times and The Washington Post news coverage of autism from 1996 to 2006, the year the Combating Autism Act was passed. Findings revealed that science frames decreased over time, while policy frames increased. Medical, government, family, and nonprofit sources were most common in news coverage. Solutions were mentioned more frequently than causes; however, mobilizing information was limited. Theoretical implications and practical applications are discussed.