SYDNEY Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences GOVT2603: Media Politics & Political Communication Semester 1, 2015 Unit of Study Outline ‘You oro hore: Home » Worl» World leaders join 1 million people at historic march for Paris attack victims envoy 12, 2018, Read tater Nok tior Europe Correspondent ‘iow more atetes from Nick Miter AT bp, ©? Foloweick on Titer: Eat NekUnit Coordinators Unit coordinators are listed on undergraduate and postgraduate coursework semester timetables, and can be consulted for help with any difficulties you may have, Unit coordinators (as well as the Faculty) should also be informed of any illness or other misadventure that leads students to miss classes and tutorials or be late with assignments. Unit Coordinator: Dr Peter John Chen Location: Room 263, Merewether Building (H04) Email address: Peter.chen@sydney.edu.au Phone: 0432 845 766 Consultation: Wed 1-2pm Unit Teachers/Tutors: Dr James Young Caroline Yarnell Farah Nez 267 Merewether 267 Merewether 276 Merewether James.young@sydney.edu.au caroline, yarneli@sydney.edu.au ‘az9528@unl sydney.edu.au This Unit of Study Outline MUST be read in conjunction with the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Student Administration Manual (sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/student_admin_manual.shtml) and all applicable University policies. In determining applications and appeals, it will be assumed that every student has taken the time to famillarise themselves with these key policies and procedures,GOVT2603: Media Politics & Political Communication This unit is primarily about news, its production, contents and impacts. It will examine the special demands of different news organisations and of reporting different news areas; the news media as an arena in political conflicts and the consequent interests and strategies of various groups in affecting news content; and the impacts of news on political processes and relationships. Our primary focus is on Australia, but there is some comparison with other affluent liberal democracies. The substantive areas the unit will focus on include election reporting, scandals and the reporting of war and terrorism, NINERS My objectives for the course are: + To provide students with a broad overview of the range of areas of research under the general rubric of "media politics". This includes: Different ontologies of thinking about media politics institutional, behavioural, functional, constructivist) Contemporary debates about the impact of the media system on the conduct of politics Issues relevant to policy-makers consideration of the regulation of media Strategic understanding about how media can be employed to achieve political outcomes ° ° ° ° These learning outcomes will require the use of: + Primary and secondary research + Written communication + Critical thinking and analysis + Recail of key concepts Preparation for class (completion of assessment tasks and readings) Is required for successful completion of this course. The subject will be taught with a combination of lectures (2 hours per average week) and tutorials (1 hour per week). Tutorials start in week 1. Week "| Week starts [Lecture Introduction: what is the media? How do different 1 02 March | views of it shape our understanding of its political ____|impact and role? 2 09 March _ | Ne foot joes/how does the media shape our understanding of politics and political behaviours? 3 16 March__| A free press in the land of liberty: Democracy and the role of the media / wise up sheeple! 4 23 March | Vote won: Elections and electioneering —featuring the NSW State election Going soft: “Soft” news, comedy and political 5 30 March* satire BREAK 6-12 April | SESSION BREAK 7 EASTER. Bs if 6 13 Aprit_ | Propaganda, issue management and the “PR state: Fi Ministry of truth or the lamest ad tory? 7 20 Aprit I's the Sun what won it: Media ownership and Its 8 27 April impact on what we read, hear and see, from Newscorp to Veridian Dynamics New media 2.0: Social media and politics - It’s all 9 04 May about the conversation / your digital graffiti disgusts me New media 1.0: The empire strikes back — 10 li May _ | institutional adaptions to the new media environment. War! What Is It good for: Media and Its role In i 18 May | sustaining peace “War Is the best subject of all”? Média and Its role 7 25 May | in reporting conflict FEY 01 june | Conclusion STUVAC 08 June* STUVAC EXAMS | 15 June, | EXAM PERIOD commences * NB: Public holidays on Friday 3 April, Monday 8 June, READING REQUIREMENTS A reading brick is required for this unit. The volume Is available from KopyStop. Week 1: Lecture, Wednesday 04 March - Introduction * O'Shaughnessy, M. and J. Stadler, 2002, “Defining the media" Media & Society, 4th edition, Oxford University Press: Oxford, pp. 3-9. * Winner, L., 1986, “Do artifacts have politics?” The Whale and the Reactor: A Search for the Limits of high Technology, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, pp. 19-39. Week 2: Lecture, Wednesday 11 March - No fool! * Wolfsfeld, G, 2011, “The media you get when you’re not paying attention”, Making Sense of Media and Politics: Five Principles of Political Communicaiton, Routledge: London, pp. 99-118 * Stone, D., 2002, "Symbois", Policy Paradox: the Art of Political Decision Making, Revised Edition, W.W. Norton: New York, pp. 137-62.* Franti, M. and R, Tse, 1992, "Television, Drug of the Nation", Hypocrisy Is the Greatest Luxury, 4th & B'way/Island/PolyGram Records. Week 3: Lecture, Wednesday 18 March - A free press in the land of liberty * Sawant, P.B., 2001, "Viewpoint: Media in democracy", Media Asia, 28(1), pp. 44-50. * Norris, P., 2000, "Evaluating media performance", A Virtuous Circle: Political Communications in Postindustrial Societies, Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, pp. 22-35. * Blair, T, 2007, Lecture by the Prime Minister The Right Honourable Tony Blair MP On Public Life, Reuters, Canary Wharf, London, 12 June. Week 4: Lecture, Wednesday 25 March - Vote won * McNair, B, 2011, “Party Political Communication |: Advertising”, An Introduciton to Political Communication, 5 edition, Routledge: London, pp. 85-117. * Young, S, 2011, “Creating election news: Journalists”, How Australia Decides: Election Reporting and the Media, Cambridge University Press; Cambridge, pp. 107-125 * Lewis, J., Inthorn, S., and K. Wahl-Jorgensen, 2005, "Reporting opinion polls", Citizens or Consumers? What the Media Tell Us About Political Participation, Open University Press: Maidenhead, pp. 51-69. Week 5; Lecture, Wednesday 01 April - Going soft * Nolan, D., 2012, “Lessons from America?: News and politics in hard times”, Media International Australia, Incorporating Culture & Policy, 144, pp. 127-136. * Hart, R. and J. Hartelius, 2007, “The Political Sins of Jon Stewart”, Critical Studies in Media Communication, 24:3, pp. 263-272. Week 6: Lecture, Wednesday 15 April - Propaganda, issue management and the PR state * Tiffen, R., 1989, "Covert manoeuvres: Leaks and briefings", News and Power, Allen & Unwin: Sydney, pp. 95-124, * Marsh, |., 2007, "Australia’s political institutions and the corruption of public opinion", Australian Journal of Public Administration, 66(3), pp. 329-341,* Louw, E, 2010, “Selling Political policies and beliefs”, The Media and Political Process, 2" edition, Sage: Los Angles, pp. 128-40. Week 7: Lecture, Wednesday 22 April - Censorship * Schimpfossl, E. and |. Yablokov, 2014, “Coercion or conformism? Censorship and self-censorship among russian media personalities and reporters in the 2010s”, Demokratizatsiya, 22(2), pp, 295-311. * Gelber, K., 2002, "Expanding speech liberties? A capabilities approach", Speaking Back: The Free Speech Debate Versus Hate Speech Debate, John Benjamins: Amsterdam, pp. 29-48. * Horsley, W. and J. Harrison, 2013, “Censorship by bullet”, British Journalism Review, 24(1), pp. 39-46 Week 8: Lecture, Wednesday 29 April - It’s the Sun what won it * Doyle, G., 2002, "Conclusions", Media Ownership: The Economics and Politics of Convergence and Concentration in the UK and European Media, Sage: London, pp. 171-179. * Herman, E. and N. Chomsky, 1988, "A propaganda model", Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of Mass Media, Pantheon: New York, pp. 1-35. + Ill, et al, 1991, "A letter to the New York Post", Apocalypse 91...The Enemy Strikes Back, Reach Music, Week 9: Lecture, Wednesday 06 May - New media 2.0 * Papacharissi, Z., 2009, “The virtual sphere 2.0: the internet, the public sphere, and beyond”, A. Chadwich and P.N. Howard, The Routledge Handbook of Internet Politics, London: Routledge, pp. 230-45. * Christensen, H.S., 2011, “Political activities on the Internet: Slacktivism or political participation by other means?”, First Monday, Volume 16(2-7). * Barlow, J.P., 1996, A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace, https://projects.eff.org/~barlow/Declaration- Final.htmt * Serazio, M., 2014, “The New Media Designs of Political Consultants: Campaign Production in a Fragmented Era”, Journal of Communication, 64, pp. 743-763. * Chen, P, 2013, "Elite new media and new media elites", Australian Politics in a Digital Age, ANU E-Press: Canberra.Week 11: Lecture, Wednesday 20 - War! What is it good for? * Thompson, A., 2003, “CNN War Porn, 'Shock and Awe' and a Set Designed in Hollywood”, Pacific Journalism Review, 9(1), pp. 32-38. * Galtung, J., 2013, “Peace Journalism”, Media Asia, 20(3), pp. 177-180. * McGoldrick, A., and J. Lynch, 2014, “Audience Responses to Peace Journalism”, Journalism Studies, 14(8), pp 1041-1058. Week 12: Lecture, Wednesday 27 May -_ May “War is the best subject of all” McKnight, D, 2012, "The road to Bagdad”, Rupert Murdoch: An Investigation of Political Power, Allen & Unwin: Sydney, pp. 188-210, * Hayes, D. and M. Guardino, 2010, "Whose views made the news? Media coverage and the marchto war in Iraq", Political Communication, 27, pp. 59-87. * Winch, S., 2005, "Constructing an ‘evil genius': News uses of mythic archetypes to make sense of bin Laden", Journalism Studies, 6(3) pp. 285-99. a- 25 ae 3 2 a gg $ £9 3a aa an 2 en 5 sf 2x oa 22 os os So Ea Sz Pu 32 55 a 8g a 2 Q S 3 8 3 é 9 a 3 2 a CONES This unit requires regular use of the University’s Learning Management System (LMS), also known as Blackboard Learn. You will need rellable access to a computer and the Internet to use the LMS. The easiest way to access is through MyUni (click on the ‘MyUn! ink on the university home page, http://sydney.edu.au or link directly to the service at https://myuni.sydney.edu.au/. There is a ‘Blackboard LMS’ Icon in the QuickLaunch window on the left hand side of the screen. If you have any difficulties logging in or using the system, visit the Student Help area of the LMS site, http://sydney.edu,au/elearning/student/help/. Mobile Learn You can also access your LMS sites via the Sydney Uni App for IPhone and Android. The full set of features available on the mobile app for the University LMS can be found in detail in this PDF document: Features in the mobile App for the University LMS (PDF) To download the University of Sydney mobile app directly to your phone or mobile device you need to be able to access the marketplace associated with your device's operating system. + iTunes store on your iPhone/iPod touch or iPad * Play Store or the Android Marketplace (depending on the phone's Os)+ BlackBerry App World® on your BlackBerry® smartphone device + Palm App Catalog on your HP webOS device Once you are at the marketplace or app store: 1. Search for University of Sydney 2. Installl the app 3. Open the app and click on the icon ‘Bb Learn’ to access the LMS 4, Login to the LMS with your UniKey and password. Important: due to the limitations of mobile devices you cannot submit assignments using the assignment tool. You should not complete graded tests (quizzes) using your mobile device due tc the possibility of Internet drop out. The University’s Privacy Management Plan governs how the University will deal with personal Information related to the content and use of its web sites. See http://sydney.edu.au/privacy.shtmt for further details. ASSESSMENT TASKS AND DUE DATES Task 1: Research report (see: Attachment A) Due: COB 2 April 2015 (week 5) - Submission via turnitin Length: 500 words (+/- 10%) Weighting: 15% Description: In a short report format, submit a political analysis of media (including an analysis of data collected by the student into media content). Task 2: Analytical essay (See Attachment C) Due: COB, 7 May 2015 (week 9) - Submission via turnitin Length: 1,800 words (+/-10%) Weighting: 40% Description: From a provided list of topics, the student will address one question in long-form response and drawing upon course material and additional research. Task 3; Final examination Due: Examination period (weeks 15 and 16) Length: 2 hours Weighting: 45% Description: This examination will survey the course using a combination of muitiple choice and short answer questions. You will need to study all course content for this examination (lectures and readings). ASSESSMENT CRITERIA This unit uses standards referenced assessment for award of assessment marks. Students’ assessment will be evaluated solely on the basis of students’ achievement against criteria and standards specified to alignwith learning outcomes. For reference to criterla and standards, please consult grade descriptors at http://sydney.edu.au/arts/sociology_social_policy/undergrad/grades.sht mt SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN WORK Compliance Statements All students are required to submit an authorised statement of compliance with all work submitted to the University for assessment, presentation or publication. A statement of compliance certifies that no part of the Work constitutes a breach of Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism Policy. The format of the compliance statement will differ depending on the method required for submitting your work (see “Assessment Submission” below). Depending on the submission method, the statement must be In the form of: a. a University assignment cover sheet; b. a University electronic form; or ©. a University written statement. Assessment Submission: Online submission only Electronic submission of assessment tasks via the University’s Learning Management System wili be required by the due date. Essays and assignments not submitted on or before the due date are subject to penaity. Refer to http://s ydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/late_work.shtml for the Policy ‘on Late Work. IACADE MIC DISHONESTY AND PLAGIARISM Academic honesty is a core value of the University. The University requires students to act honestly, ethically and with integrity in their dealings with the University, its members, members of the public and others. The University is opposed to and will not tolerate academic dishonesty or plagiarism, and will treat all allegations of academic dishonesty or plagiarism seriously. The University's Academic Dishonesty and Plaglarism Policy 2012 and associated Procedures are available for reference on the University Policy Register at http://sydney.edu.au/policies (enter “Academic Dishonesty” In the search field). The Policy applies to the academic conduct of all students enrolled in a coursework award course at the University, Under the terms and definitions of the Policy, + “academic dishonesty” means “seeking to obtaln or obtaining academic advantage (including in the assessment or publication of work) by dishonest or unfair means or knowingly assisting another student to do so, + “plagiarism” means “presenting another person's work as one’s own work by presenting, copying or reproducing it without appropriate acknowledgement of the source.”The presentation of another person's work as one's own without appropriate acknowledgement is regarded as plagiarism, regardless of the author's intentions. Plagiarism can be classified as negligent (negligent plagiarism) or dishonest (dishonest plagiarism). An examiner who suspects academic dishonesty or plagiarism by a student must report the suspicion to a nominated academic in the relevant faculty. if the nominated academic concludes that the student has engaged in dishonest plaglarism or some other sufficiently serious form of academic dishonesty, the matter may be referred to the Registrar for further disciplinary action under the terms of the Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism Policy 2012 and Chapter 8 of the University of Sydney By- Law 1999 (as amended). USE OF SIMILARITY DETECTION SOFTWARE Students should be aware that written assignments submitted in this Unit of Study will be submitted to similarity detecting software known as Turnitin, The detection and Identification of work that may be suspected of plagiarism Is an academic judgment for the unit coordinator, and similarity detecting software is one of the tools that an examiner or marker may use to Inform a decision that plagiarism has occurred. Turnitin searches for matches between text in your written assessment task and text sourced from the Internet, published works and assignments that have previously been submitted to Turnitin for analysis. It produces an originality report showing matches with various sources, and an overall level of match or similarity index, There will always be some degree of text-matching when using Turnitin. These are caused by the use of direct quotations, technical terms and phrases, and the listing of bibliographic material. This does not mean you will automatically be accused of plagiarism. Further information about Turnitin is available at http://sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/piagiarism_and_turnitin.shtm The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences assesses student requests for assistance relating to completion of assessment in accordance with the regulations set out in the University Assessment Policy 2011 and Assessment Procedures 2011, Students are expected to become familiar with the University’s policies and Faculty procedures relating to Special Consideration and Special Arrangements. Students can apply for: + Special Consideration - for serious illness or misadventure + Special Arrangements - for essential community commitments + Simple Extension - an extension of up to 5 working days for non- examination based assessment tasks on the grounds of iliness or misadventure.Further information on special consideration policy and procedures is avallable on the Faculty website at http://sydney.edu.au/arts/current_students/special_consideration.shtml. The Faculty’s Student Administration Manual is available for reference at the “Current Students” section of the Faculty Website (http:/sydney.edu.au/arts/current_: jents/). Most day-to-day issues you encounter in the course of completing this Unit of Study can be addressed with the information provided in the Manual. It contains detailed instructions on processes, links to forms and guidance on where to get further assistance. ENRON For full information visit The Learning Centre assists students to develop the generic skills, which are necessary for learning and communicating knowledge and ideas at university. Programs available at The Learning Centre include workshops in Academic Reading and Writing, Oral communications Skills, Postgraduate Research Skills, Honours, masters Coursework Program, Studying at University, and Workshops for English Language and Learning. Further information about The Learning Centre can be found at http://sydney.edu.au/stuserv/learning centre/. The Write Site provides online support to help you develop your academic and professional writing skills. All University of Sydney staff and students who have a Unikey can access the WriteSite at The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences has units at both an Undergraduate and Postgraduate level that focus on writing across the curriculum or, more specifically, writing in the disciplines, making them relevant for alt university students. To find out more visit sydney.edu.au/arts/teaching_learning/writing_hub/index.shtml and In addition to units of study on writing, The FASS Writing Hub offers drop- in sessions to assist students with their writing in a one-to-one setting. No appointment Is necessary, and this service Is free of charge to all FASS students and/or all students enrolled in WRIT units. For more information on what topics are covered in a drop-in session and for the current schedule, please visit http://s ydney.edu.au/arts/writing hub/writing support/index.shtmt Pastoral and academic support for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students is provided by the STAR Team in Student Support services, a dedicated team of professional Aboriginal people able to respond to the needs of students across disciplines. The STAR team can assist with tutorial support, mentoring support, cultural and pastoral care along with @ range of other services, More information about support for Aboriginal 10and Torres Strait Islander students can be found at http:/isydney.edu.au/current_students/student_services/indigenous_sup tml. por The Library offers students free, online tutorials in library skills at http://sydney.edu.au/library/skilis. There's one designed especially for students studying in the Humanities and Social Sciences at http:/libguides.library.usyd.edu.au/. And don't forget to find out who your Faculty Liaison Librarians are. Disability Services is located on Level 5, Jane Foss Russell Building G20; contact 8627 8422 or email disability. services@s ydney.edu.au. For further information, visit their website at http://sydney.edu.au/stuserv/disability/. Counselling and Psychological Services (CAPS) are located on Level 5, Jane Foss Russell Building G20; contact 8627 8433 or email caps.admin@sydney.edu.au. For further information, visit their website at http://sydney.edu.au/current_students/counselling/. ll Ge EA LOL | 1, Inthe immediate aftermath, naws eutlets will get It wrong, 2, Don't trust anonymous sourcas, ‘3. Don't trust storias that cite another news outlet as the source of the Informatic 4, Thera's almost never a second shooter, 1 1 1 1 ' i | §, Pay attention to the language the media uses. : + "We are getting reports"... could mean anything, ‘| + “Wo ara soeking confirmation”. means they dov't hava it 1 ' 1 ' ' ' 1 + “[Nows outlet] has learned”... means It has a scoop or Is going aut on limb. 6, Look for nows outlets close to the Incldant, 7. Compare multinle sources, 8, Big news brings out the fakers, And photoshoppers, 9, Beware reflexive retwaeting, Some of this is on you. UT THE MEDIA)Attachment A: Research Report Content analysis is a way to consider a range of questions about the media we consume. Consider these examples: Are ethic minorities under-represented in TV drama? Do men talk more than women in chat shows? Does political Journalism tend towards “meta commentary"? Are non-hetronomative women “punished” more in reality TV? Does talk radio mobilise stereotypes and “folk devils"? Are anti-vaxxers getting the benefit of “false equivalency"? ls he dog whistling? Task 1 charges you to ask this type of question in a formal content analysis report. You will: 1, Read Niranjala and Weerakkody (2009) “Content Analysis”, Research Methods for Media and Communication, Oxford. (Attachment B) 2. Determine a question to investigate 3. Design a data collection regime 4. Collect the data 5. Analyse the data 6. Write up, in a report format, the data You can: + Do this task as a solo effort (a 500 word report), or + Combine with additional students to pool your words and expand your sample (each participant will get the same standardised grade). Miro Q&A Why are we doing this again? * Content analysis is a standard research tool for media analysis. Interesting observations have come from the analysis of content about normativity, implicit assumptions and bias, and the mean world phenomena, Knowing the method also highlights our understanding of the limits of it. How many tweets, videos, newspaper articles, paintings, etc, should ke analyse? * Spend about six hours on the analysis process of the content. The number will variety based on their length, but also the nature of the Content analysis you undertake: simple versus complex, manifest Versus latent? Report format, WTF? * FTW OMG: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/writingcentre/learning_guides/learning Guide_writingAResearchRe port. pdf 2Research Report's Attachment Reading Attachment B: Niranjala and Weerakkody (2009) “Content Analysis”, Research Methods for Media and Communication, Oxford. In Chapter 6, we discussed the quantitative research method of surveys. This chapter is devoted to content analysis—the other quantitative research method covered inthis book, st as when reading the chapter on surveys, this chapter also requires you to be ‘familiar with sampling (Chapter 6) and measurement (Chapter 7) as well as surveys {Chapter 8), asthe procedures folowed ithe survey method share many similarities with content analysis. This chapter examines the following: © everyday applications of content analysis 10 functions of content analysis © manifest and latent content of messages © how to conduct a content analysis (©. practical uses of content analysis © Limitations of content analysis © lists of archives of media content applications of content analysis in journalism, media and communication, and public relations. EVERYDAY APPLICATIONS OF CONTENT ANALYSIS ‘You may be new 10 the concept of content analysis as a research method, but its spplistions in everyday hie are farilare all of us, Fux example, each ne ou cay ‘outa Googe search using keywords or phrases ina sequence, or ue the Find funtion ‘in wor! procesangto search fora word or phrase ine document, you benefit from ofan pplication of content analysis. Simlaly, every time you search a Mbnars eectonic or ‘ther catalogue usingthe keyword, tle, or zuthor search you are using an application of content analy Try this Cary out Googe each under your rane, ore ste you tow ‘holt tino dh tha tans pene pt tom. lb sped wa you tne wees ces ond eked ota pene how anya4] Hal | | | A APPLICATIONS IN SURVEILLANCE Ine thm The Baume lat (Go, Bs & Greg, 2007), thee 2 cro he ai fom th UX Ciao neepane Sion Ras lage Wy uy Cones on ho mobe phone mein 0 Basra? se cert ogun che in toned ieempuerece nae ate Ck sagies brome oct bene be prada mention Sfewor nnovofwaron in suche gion an oer sfc vie sdby lcm ages otc mabe and dine phone cones cro cur docs in wih pened nua, ovsin pos ci cr ears do we comp far dete ums spending vi inca cet cre aeung tori by maton wer Tagen es MT THOMAS. THE ‘CRIME CAPITAL OF AUSTRALIA > Compare media representations of groups, issues and evens to thee real-world occurrences —using statistical Ggures, content araljss compares the media and reelworld occurences of paricular groups, issues and events. For example, in TV programming, professionals such as doctors, lawyers ard medis workers &r ‘outeumber their rable igures; portrayal of minaitis in TVor fils well below ‘heir popelation figures; and the incidence of violent crime is much higher in media portrayals n comparison with rae ste, se Study 9.2 45 ‘The popular Ausraian TV police drama Bue Feeters (1994-2006) was sein the feo, scenarios depicted in ts srylines. This s commen in TV or fs and s designed to Content analyss was used in forensic literary studies (or forease linghistis as authorship ‘sues or atibution sti) to uncover the real author ofthe novel Primary colors (Anonym, 1986) published a “Anonymous'by Joe Kin, ‘journals with the Washmgtn Post Don Foster ‘sed Stylomearics 10 compare and match the saylstc aspects ofthe novel with the author’ ‘mown work. The novel ia finalised version ‘of Bill Clon 1992 presidental primary lection campaign and was made into the 1998 film wits Jobin Teavoa as presidential candidate Jack Staton, Forensic teary suis ae often ‘sed by law enforcement agencies to checke the authentic of various documents and auxbusion oftheir authorship (Vickers, 2002) the pci of comes nas, rl Vicorin ownofMt Thomas An actor rate dramatic ccc and audience peat : Pee Paying female pois ofcer said hat her Content anal can nae and comgare as - re ES a friends who are real-life police officers call ‘ts depictions of violent crime with real- GSETUH ST cima noes NOSE EAN STO 2 eee ee dueto the mole ard unomulenme Me Thomas. » Examine the images of specific groups in society in media messages—generally spplied wo marginalised, powerless or sgmatised groups. Conte: analysis examines how these groups are depicted in media images and if changes have oocured across time, for example, examining how gays have been represented in Hollywood Alms across time ard the correlation of these representation with aws and pualic airades towards gays at various ines in history ALE TAPES OF ‘ABORIGINALS DRINKING’ AND GUEENSLANDTVNEWS Case Study 9.3 Hondy Hint ee ee et nee FUNCTIONS OF CONTENT ‘Using content enalysis of file tapes, Peter walking around or ginerally doing nothing Eaktcaeiae cer ermnevome — ANALYSIS Pumnis (1994) examined how Queensland TV The ape ibartan at one TV station had created (Dane caus he mesape aaron. tes ews programs depcred Aboriginal people catagory of'Abongrals drinking for caesying (Dost en vom nes ard say sled ops (Content analysis is probably the most com eins eeaoniion dae sie a opooae monly used esearch method of examining ‘media messages. This technique or research method is woeful becwuse ca: cesrbe the coment of mea or communication messages this could be a8 & ‘Gagioninal ad Gor Chapie 6) oa Row covetage of speci groupe (for ‘comple, women or mince) ores (or example, pore or unemployment) fave changed overtime or remained the same, Other elements, sich 2 {nterpercal nerastion between professionals and cers, cm be examined for area foc emprovernet rec questions or test hypotheses —for example, ‘How did the Australian ‘core he 2008 Bejing Obras, with rflence tothe Anslian tan and thet perfomance? (research question); and The Ansvaian media coverage of he 3008 Beijing Olympics was exiusvely concramated onthe Ausalan te and thet sucess Caypoes). ‘which was predominantly negative. The people ‘wore often shown siting in groups under tee, such visuals. > Serve a a sartng point fof researching media efects—rests obuained fom & content analysis of media messages can be wed fr future sues to examine media eas, This is because tied content aralysis can only describe wats cepicted— rot predict what tean dots ‘Content analy can ao only decide what media messages were tansmited’ and not f audience members actully ‘recived ‘e veacted to them in anjoay. Therefore, Fanher studies using deh interviews, focus groups, field stuies, surveys or casestudies ae carted out 10 examine what azadience metabers think about spel media messages ot the groups, issues and vents depicted inthe medin—and the mach between what depicted and what audiences thnk nother words, comer analy en lad to esearch ating the relaionships between the media agenda and the audience agenis, ‘videoclips, because dhe was always asked for“a6 PART &: SEATON APOROAGHES) QUANTITATIVE Case Study 4” EFECTSOF VIEWING THE COSEY SHOW ongoing fa corzenteaiicol aed didvnage mast be duo thes Aree Goll depuacdon USTV — faultof ben. rather han duet conte AOR tat tay hie Beoome mor pote, rmizaion or lack of pporumities culminating wih The Cay tow 1984— ‘On the oes band, eparid South Souyakee beleazcmuple were weaihy Afi whies watching The Coy tow begin priessonls—a doctor and a ewes to qusion te esumpion ner society eee mucyoaminngheceasef abot blake bong inerenly les elignt suave poneaploofmineties using and incapable of poesional succes oc higher Pere ane people Su hay and education which ad ose dhe Back Jetstens 1000) bend tarsome sijents populations margraiied sams and sa, (Rem eaceees du to Afiracve posed panei plies de Kl, 1996) ‘Action policies adopeed nce the Civil Rights "These examples indicate dt audlences ‘owe of 1965 eliminating bere o minority interpre: given media message i illerent advancement Some subjects angued that, swaysand media effects ae not unary forthe therefore, if any Avcan-Americans ae sill poor site messigs. MANIFESTS LATENT CONTENT OF MESSAGES ‘Content alysis ean be both quansitave and qualitave. Quantitative content analysis ‘Grote: ce oamacon of mafestcotent—the nel, denote, geaiy accepted tae have meanings of message, such 5 of wore, pra, opezch, eeruseten OF inet mala mescoge. Quansative content alysis involwes counting 1@ describe the Stantocr sontent ana meagre te eounts’ of the estgoies of vbles empialy fed gutemaucaly That pean exiting «Ssematically sled saraple of mers ting ow seees of sight and hearing rater than aneedowl erence. ge Copisasona, such 25 corporations or goverment departments Hie # soedar ontorng company to content analee media porteyas oftheir organisations Reta have thems grouped into poste, negative and neural depictions to rai qhon onpublereatons purpose, See wormediamoritrs. coma for examples of how dey operate) cer coment of mesange the hidden, pled. connotatve meanings of the ssbge nd saad qualitatively using ove analy, narasve nals. "Egovut aaa Sra or xii analy, interpretative amy, comvetsation Pepe rad normative naj Clevendor, 2002) Some of es sane thode aoe zee tne tel alysis in Chapter HOW TO CONDUCT A CONTENT ANALYSIS “The proseure followed in conducting content analyse consists often steps (Wim: ‘Dorac, 1006), which are comet sma to those of survey research. Content FORMULATING RESEARCH QUESTIONS OR Handy Hint © THECONTENT ANAYSS OF THE COVERAGE OF THE ~ LOSANGELES OTS 8Y THE LOS ANGELES TIMES 0n29 ape 1992, de four whit ofcers fom 1. What waste volume of tens coverage the Los Angeles Police Deparment (LAPD) ceed othe widely cleveed being oblack to theirconlsion? motor Rodney King were found not gulky What wasthe emountof oveepe Doran lovee jury That everng, any lack seidents of impoverished South Cental Los Anges took theses and roted, bing durngthe ts? and destroying propery. The Loe Angee police foro was conspicuously absent enforce law ted onde endthe ot went on necked unl the Calornia Governor ced the National Guard. Rioters attacked the white truck driver 4 What was the incidence of phowographs Regeald Deny. which wasals tlensed ve, «Sepang nen eaves Gezours) “The following five research questions were of the nos? fe ccamined in conten araljss that amined 5 What wae the topics tat reeied the coverage of the Los Angeles riots by the Los Angeles Tes newspaper coverage of thers? formulating research questions or hypotheses defining the mniverse sampling selecting the uit of analysis coding the content and conducting rehability checks analysing daua ‘nnerpretingreslts, making cancusions and reporting the findings Nes, these eps ae dhasrated using & eal example of « conten analysis of mews- paper coverage. Ae the principles of content analyss across media are the same, the ‘method used in analysing newspaper conien can be adapted tof hur media teas— sch as magazines, TV, radio, websites, blogs video Blogs ai sevorKing ses Uke Space—as applicable HYPOTHESES —, kama ans ot sreuson "research study involingacontentanalysisneeds good research | an sl be apt mre ‘questions or hypotheses to develop acurste ar sertive coding, ie seing See categories and gabe the necessary data, “Case Study 0.5 devoted to the riots fom their outbreak devoted to hard news, commentary, snalysis, human interest and features 3. What specific sources were most, frequently reed upon in reprting the Hos to local and nancral readers? tear emphasis in the Las Angeles Tes? Refer to this books Online Resouross Centre (avwoup com au/or/veerakody) for the studys report in Atwater and Weerakcody (1994),sein the ent re ee oc a ie ao eer a of compre suns tin es fr seh Gestion relevant cuter sses, conditions, practical problemsand sources of sonten: Cee oe or cua cet oe a a otha bea Pv -Oumih 79d A a en ats Se tengo a ee ac pomp woe fom Teo eo Le coe cred Wray 9. Te a ee cone aplaniedeme pet roam tng cot 95 cerns THE UNOESE Grou wigs oul emg pt Dela Be we SS gary at ae to decom Ser Tee gb tsuneo ee ee Sy Cmts witness See SSSA trae se ee Se ae ae aime ee ia varied TV ete Poreame, an ate Arbon py 7 ace pops [News and Fax News), video or DVDs of TV programs (for example, the TV documentary Tn enc eam owe mae eT can ayarb tony bra cong seein a So cn ae pre nd eos esto Te ciomcen rence are eae Gaso Study 9.6 OPERATONAL DERNITIONS OF THE 105 ANGELES ROTS STUDY ns sed ait at Inthe Arges os se Ls gles re nenpuper ese ee aS altel ewseper inte Arg wih aoa aning Tie mab Se ee St es dae ong Fact om Pe, ch nn 29 Ap Sipe notbe nd 3 Vay 192 athe ay ey oBcal ened SAMPLNG: ; i oe that concepts cused under sampling (Chape 6) ate as applet content er anny tar i cues «roars love te ‘multistage sampling method to select: he conor for camp, which newspaper o ane) 3 er he dine pid for ais 2 Gesumple of moage fom the Unwerse ofthe cont “Content analysing 2 censs ofall coment relevant to the study (analogous tothe sampling fare for peopl) would be an deal. But fb censs isto lrge—espeially if ne period uncer arly spans cont or several yean—a simple sete A spe sect coneng te lca coment wes nd ein te cx tne pe rane. Hewat tntve sos bel on ch torapen Sristesand TY ad mo suns me tobe scat noch a a town You may cote brett an od newspaper om hese mses camaro ow tse vn orto wa cored cach fot carl Te ‘(cde he Her Sn (abled Mobwerne or Relat eso tine periods forthe conn ns toad bed one search eons and he en plo even cade oy Forage he Clik stl Le Anges is re ie das ered fre nen cotge te trains ot 30 Ape to # ay 1982, eth ion par esee 9 Ap 3 May he conte ae vote phenomenon tht speed ng pe of tinea poral wines nthe longing Asin ep ope Neus ee ent per nomi gotta be sana cana chong Nosy ecg ‘Wendy Ty and aye cachions olnc a eamgee sl oe eee tear eee eet test mater seed bmn we top er ot goup Sa my civ te nada ot expe, iy Cin) anger eed a tooo pas enied soba np nag nae : Twsjoie smal ch nce ce ain Be ned hes soa be presen ne Cont aed - THE EURPOSNE SANPUNG OF UNTSOF ANADSISINTHE Case Study 9.7 LOS ANGELES RIOTS STUDY “The Los Angee sty selected a purposive sample of al coverage—news tes, commentay eorex, ters ote editor and mnnoancements—reated to the Los Angeles ts that peared in he Los Arges Tine fom 30 pri to# Nay 1992 (Tests sted the evening 29 apr and oficial ended on3 May 1992) PURPOSIVE SAWPLING ‘To examine how the Chinese Government presented its fmage of Chinese wimen tothe world {fom 1956 to 2003, Yunjuan and Xiaoming (2007) sleced the covers ofthe only official English- Jnguage women’ magsine in the county}—Women in China—for analysis fr The enti peri “They excluded the covers tha had no women ont (Ghai, children or men) end obtained a 352-caver sample. The magazine s sate-cwred, so is published by the Chinese goveraert. 'm spite of ll precautions taken in selecting the sample, systematic biases in the content ean oacar due to unexpected factors. Pat 7 Case Study 9.8Case Study 9.9 SSTEMATC BAS NOATACOLEGTON. THE GAS BOLOGON In the early 1990s x content analysis was conducted on the overage of New Jersey news ithe news ballets of New York City and Philadelphia commercial TV atone. A non- profit group funded the project o examine ‘The project had randomly selected ‘sosweek period to collect the dat from the main evening news: of al the TV stations ‘These broadcasts were to be amined to selec each story related to New Jersey marten o content anaes gp Sample sie “The spl st hold ese and manageable To examine pene Sena INOMee OF Deming, the peormance ofa daly newmpepes or Thence Powis or TV avetienens in given timeslot such pine ns Progaming, a two-week peri s manageable sn sulbcon, orcs 1 pg ade a el ee sel elon pest covey Teen ae oe ‘New Jersey—a sol but prosperous sate sandwiched betwen the twe large TV markets of NewYork City and Philadelphia, but with ho commercial TV stations ofits ovm—was ‘being adequately sere by these TV stations which would serve asthe unit of analysis, ‘Unfortunately, on the third dey ofthe datz collection, a gs explesion oscurced ate large aparument complex in New Jersey which recived blanket coverage fom all the TV i. Neviomeadctstee nomcre = Taam otistemenfonaltbeTY Hf oetmacetentoncam tage uy Setby seman Ho gommmitiioseiinyaldtiyite Secreta Mere Y. penmemtratev rma TV inne sea eregetedaacacin ‘ for New Jersey, to be discarded, : iH ‘SELECTING Z Selene uni of nabs the mest impotan: sep in content ams, Tero, sé shouldbe clearly defined and decided on before the coding manval is designed. Take “Tok ata sample of he content to be analysed before dicing on the unt of aly 5 ‘with reférenée to the research questions or hypotheses examnined, "Case Study 8:10 the unt OF ANADSI INTHELOS ANGELES HOTS SUUDY Jn the content analysis ofthe Las Angeles riots coverage, he unt of analysis was each news te, analy exture, commentary, editor, Jeter to the ector et hat adcessed any sue or tops related co the ots Handy Hint seme haben an ote ede oY ote nas crs, + Wien ems el mesons. the tf ais SA rat Beaton, ins nivamek eietunsore a tae ee ee resca8 atom decsson sarin conesyde a penne nae ieee oe ‘mssgn eine reve, @ mage ood. ¢ Fela crazy wee» pte arty rani’ eteae or eo, anal Yves Hester et ati ee pinay ad ‘ore ctsent may ase wien cre erg te sts (ace rat pan eg) sae TaSeee Fasbck + asda necoges ob ao ne er fe boty ros sare ect docs, {Sesto comeanan, vend re. conarance Emcee pope se + WV. fins oohersaosi! ac, int of rus on bee curs or eae fen oF fare) an cir ele of vols peck sample Beeman, 2007), EB sweszn “Cog manual ere cf wo ypes: emergent = ritual durig te coding wea anple, the lis of open ‘The frst research question ofthe Los Angeles ots Gee Case Study 9.5) coverage study was, “What was the volume of coverage devoted 1 the ‘os from their cutbreae to thei conclusion? This means the length of each news fer or unit of szlyss im column cemtmeties needed to De coded. The study also exartined on which age each coded unit of analy appeared THE LOS ANGELES RIOTS SI uy Facer nes os coverage sud the purposive spl ofa esc ated tems othe {ved peed hat appeared nthe Las Age Tes compen ened po ee ‘units of analysis. This in fact was also a census ort fa 7 sti he sample fame for that concent. CONSTRUCTING CONTENT CATEGORIES ‘Types ofcodingeategories The ic ofitems and the coding categores inched ina alli codingcategons ae designed serch or cori for Sarl, atl hora neces. Ee because frontpage news is whit the etoria staff considers as the mast important stories of the day. Research question 2 was, What was the amount of coverage devosed to hard news, Seatures and analysis during the rots? This ‘meanteach unit of analysis was coded under its ype of story thas, hard news (time bound te Case Study 9.11 as aa oe aonaicss soeecon ae‘spot news), commentary or analysis stores Gut provide context and perspecuive, furnish ‘background information and give mote reflective sccount), human interes or eatutes items that ‘are not ine bound ard that elt o the human ‘ide) or the ‘ther casgory (for example, eters tothe editor). The operational definitions used sn developing these exegoriesof news coverage were adapted ftom pax sudies such as Meeske and jevaheri (1982) Lzeraturerevews2f previous stdes that, ealt with news covenge ofocher ences such | a the Iran Hostage Csi (Larsen, 1986); the opi’, the second m zoe tind most emphasised topic ta identify ‘Yellowstone forest Ses, the Eaton Valder spill nd the Loma Prieta earthquake (Stith, 1992), and media anc the polis of crisis (aboy & Dagenais, 1992) were used to seek. sulabl operational dfntions and guidelines for developing the coding manta ‘Research question 3 was, ‘What specific sources were mos: frequently relied upon ‘a reporting the retst local and national seadets? To obtain data to answer this ‘question, the information sources cited ln each unit of analysis were coded under seventeen categories, stch as local journals, sacionaVinemationa urls, police olficers/spokespersons fre fighters; National Guard or amy olfcils and spokespersons; ‘sore owners; ad community leaders. Each of these was coded as yes orno, For research question 4—"What wat the incidence of photographs accompanying news accouns of the note?—the coding marval {included Tf photograph appears with che sory with the responses yes o no. "What were the topis that received major caps inthe Los Angels Tine coverage of the crisis? was research question 5, The coding sanval used te tems he most ex n aaabed asd ‘hem fom the content. Some ofthese topics ‘were listed asa prior (in advance) categories \u dhe coding manval such asthe Redney King tial, loocing and related violence, repercussions ofc disubanoes Reginald Denny asault nd crimes against Korean-cwned basinesns because they were well known, Others arose from the data as emerging categories and were added to ‘he coding manaal as the coding proceeded, ‘An ‘ther category was also added 10 accommodate unusual ones or the ‘odd ones out! nal che coding manual included tiny tems and there categories Sowce: Avatar b Word (1004), Preparingthecoding manual, instructions to coders and thecodingsheets The Te ae of econ orp date cog rel anaes Sodersand od hero be wed during ie acta coding Tisinvelves consiacng the cong cusries by looking aa sample of cen ia be aah hing and "viewing the lerature for comparable studies (for example, css coverage) and coding, egos and developing relevant operational definions “The example of a coding manual provided in this chapter is designed to analyse samples fron: thes newspapers (Las Angeles Tes, New York Tnes and Wishlgion Pas) and shows how is prepared for coding unis fom more than one source and involng ‘ip co 1000 units of arly Ge Atwater & Weeakkody, 1994) iowever ese‘ ors’ categories chold ox analjis coded. A higher percentage indicates that more UPTER»: conan ANALYSIS a5 cong catego are needed for hat tera, is beter to have more cagories under an sem fan Is as ctegvs can be easly combined but breaking up ategeres incurs ig ofa uni of analysis The categories ofan ‘The coding manual for the Los Angeles riots study [efolowing isthe ty ite coding uanal prepared fo the content eslyb ofthe Lor Ares Tra coveage of the Los Angeles ros coverage by Ane and Weert (190). COVERAGE OF THE LOS ANGELES OTS BY THE MAINSTREAM PRNT MEDIA 4 w amber fai on oF aay) coded: 00110 1000 & Nevepae anise 1 sarge is 2 Now tk Tes 3 Wagon Pot 3. Du of te dayfzoath Orig of ty 4 Secon 5 Pagenumber © Leng ofr (othe eae clunn cm) 7 trphoagh appears wath tory Dt a ke 8 Serrope 1 Had cews 2 Commentaryanahas 3 nan tersfere 9 Oder ts caterer tobe be ‘ober eatery as 9.99) tue nan tpies emphasised ten 9 Themou exptasied topic 10 Tae cond mow empansed topic 1 Thethed mo emphussed ope Te catego oof opis applble coitems 9-11 ae 1 Rodney Kgl 2 Looung ard mated vilence 3 Repmeusions of cil derbances 4 Maesnng iw nd one 5 Repaid Demy axait © Relaed ei dtuancesin oer Useties’ 7 Reacion of scl groupe 8 Reactions ofUS got and polis 9 Rectons of Rodney Kingand his family/friends 10 Reactors offen digniis 11. Reactions of domestic and tmeraonl press 12 Los Angeles Police Depts CAPD) handling the ree 13. LAPDS defence autem 14 ‘Reconseveon of tos Angle 15. Apprehension and prosecution of looters ad riers 16 Salad protection of eadents 17 Cemes span Korean owned ‘sneer 18. Arecedent condones or these 19° lxprovemenstesoitin of cal tensions 20 Gaim renms 99 Other i casomacy to nuxber te ‘the ono apple’ cago as 9, 9 etc.) (Move categories may be added ac ew oes are encore (meg) dtrng he coding)154 Sourees cite inthe news story 20 Eyewiiesses (not victims) {items 239) Qt Biot victins (as referso people interviewed by 22 Community kaders journals for thet reports) The coding 93. Stor owners categories ar: 24 Residents of Los Angeles 1 Yes 2 No 95. Califoria residents outside of tos 42 Local ourmliss (Las Angeles and ‘Angeles Caiomia) 96 ‘Sate prosecting offcais 413. Navona and iemationeljouratiss 97 Defence somes for police officers 14. LAPDoffcials/spokespersns accused in Rodney King beatings 15 Fie Gghers 28 Proponents ofthe Los Angeles Pole 46. National Guard or Amy officer? Deparment (LAPD) spokespersons 29 Opponents of LAPD $7 Los Anges cy offical ‘eris maybe added as new ones emeree) spokespersons 99 Others 18 Caifonia sae oficalvopokespasons 5 ccxomay to label he ‘oh? 19 Fedenl offcalespokespersons canpoys9, 0c) Instructions to coders The coding manual needs clear and unazubiguous expan ‘Hons abeut what shouldseally be included under each category when codinga unt of snalyis. Tiss provided as Instructions 1 coders’ and helps maintain the reliability and validity of the coding process. Examining a few units of analysis provides an ‘understmcing of what sor of explanations may be needed in the Instructions to coders. ample 9.2 provides such explanations, in a paral list of insiractions to coders, iustate how to prepare them. Coder subjectivity Often, researchers seek to code a media message’ ‘valency’. as being postive, negative or neutral when reporting on a person, group, sue, phenomenon ete, For example, criticism of the obvious failures ofthe Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) handling the cies in its inital sages can be coded as negtive ofthe LAPD, while pointing out their being outnumbered and unprepared for such a situation—-and the obvious threats to LAPD officers in the context of the Rodney King verdict and hence being justified in staying in—may be coded 25 neutral. Pointing out that the LAPD going out to quell the riots would bave made things een worse and henoe staying in was the right thing to do may be coded as positiveof the LAPD. ‘When cading an iter valency, 2 cern amount of codex subjectivity comes into Affect. Therefore dealed guidlines about how to code such items must be provided to coder, and some coder taining and practice rans curried oxt, before the coding roper begs. CMAPTER@: CONTENT ANALYSIS = Instructions to coders for the content analysis of the los Angeles fots coverage (1s at tan eng maa prete'n Eamgs 8) 1 Dumber of anise Assign number ranging rom 0001 t0 1000 to every unit of analysis coded, following the order in which they were content analysed. Newspaper 1 Los Angeles Times 2 New York Tones 3 Washington Post Selfexplanatory 3: Date of sue from 30/4/1982 (coded 45 304) to 5/5/1992 (055), Origin of Story 4 Secon + Enter the section ofthe newspaper in which the article originates a A,B, C 2c (asthey are dane with the Los Anges Tones), (Sire Astin nensp my snr eaves such Bases re Onto od fog oh "yee sb ab em a 5. Page number + Enter the page number in which the article originates within the section ‘entered above Use cwo digs as 01,02 OB ex 6 Length of story + Measure the unit of analysis (nenspsper aici) inchiding headline, accompanying photogrphs, maps, cha, ph or ehing ee 7 tt photogragh appeas with stony 1 Ys 2 No + Seltexplanatory 8 Story ype 1 Hard news—ttems of newe that are ime-bound and ae stories reported eal. Spot news ete. 2 Commertaryenalysis—steres that focus ona particular aspect and provide background information ot ews fom panicle eepectives, Ieisa more reflev coverage ofthe sews as they sometimes douse the consequences orimpleatons ofan evenssu under scaion, 23 Hamm eres tens dealing ‘wth oles news top rte thet, smenottimebound Such ope deal ‘wh an ive fom thebuman ape. They profile am event aachas ore cverbsas of is velbocd, with ls personal hisory of md work snd perseverance. Tis type ote spocighs te individu and is ioe postive inate [aes piss, 9 ote ‘Ay tem chat does nce fl under che shove tre exterior ean, ‘elton and eters dh edt. ‘The three main topics emphasised (ems 11) 9 The most emphasied topic + Read the ene news sry and eternin the most dominant topic or theme addressed Vorexampie, the Rodney King verdict) ar find the category fl under fom the tof ‘egies provided. User digte 2,03 et) up 1099 fr txher 10 The second mas empasted 7 + Same ter 9 but see: the second ‘os: dominant topic or dae adéresed, 11 The hind most emphasise tpt + Same aster 9 bet sel the id snes emphassed topic. Note tha nly ‘wo topics fom aot of21 ae lsted below) 1 Rodney King tial + Any deals about he being. i, verti details ebout de jos, he accused police aces. 7156 9.3 Journalist beed in LA nd Calilornsa and working for media organistions in LA snd California, 2 Looting and related voience + nlade faites, njries, and amtaks on journalists and media ongansatonsin addon seul 13 Nationa or international juris peng aire eee All other journalists who do not fall bhi ae usder tem 12 ton"—* (Gers are eed as new ones emerge) Z ; 99 Ober husaemnetanitdaneseeret ‘Any sources that do not fall under Items 1 Loa joumaite sare L¥s 2 No (te et oy tone 18. 186 Coding sheets A coding sheet isa shoner version ofthe coding mansal to be wed by ‘ach coder when coding te ents of anaes in he supe Each unt of nays can use cone seta wl code the relevant categories uncer each tm. This set can be woed hen ener the ct SPSS (Stati Package forthe Soil Scenes or Eee om, ‘Mirosof Ofc) ies oral dts analysis ee Chapter 15). The number of spaces (— —indentes the mamber of digs essgned to the coding category under antes Coding sheet for the content analysis of the Los Angeles riots coverage Name of ode Date of coding. “Tide headline) of aiele/sabjectopic: 1. Arle ID Number lor eample, 0001 to 1000) Newspaper (2,2, 3ete) a 3, Dae of issue (304, 015,025,035, 045 ete) at ‘ORIGIN OF STORY (TEMS 4-8) zi 4 Section ea 5 Page nanber (© Lengih ofsiory (nears: column ex) 7. kphotogzph appeas with sory Yes 2No = 8 Story ype 7 ‘THE THREE NAIN TOPICS EMPHASISED (TEMS 9-11) 9 Mosc emphasised topic 10 Second soe emphasied topic 114 Third mox emphasised topic SOURCES CTED IN NEWS STORY (TEMS 12-30) 49 Local joumals = (ems may be added as new ones emerge) 99 Other = LEVELS OF MEASUREMENT OF ITEMS AND THEIR CODING CATEGORIES ‘The coding categories ised under an item n'a coding manual belongsto one ofthe four ‘evel of messurement: nominal, ordinal, interval or ratio (see Chapter). For example, tn the coding manual for the Los Angles its coveag itera mummber2 (Newspaper) ‘$4 norninal measurement, as it refers to che name of the newspapee being content snalysed. In item 6, che Leng ofthe story measured tothe neaes cok tt is 2 rato measurement. ‘Wen examining 2 photograph of women in an advenizement, he ype of clothing wom by 2 model ca be measured on an interval sale measurement of} to 5 with | being modest and 5 betng very revealing Very modest 1 5 Very revealing ‘An oxtinal measurement can be used when coding the same advenisement and the clothing worn by he model as: eee eee 4 Some 5 Ly ping Coder subjectivity Ordinal and interval measurements involve coler subjeciviy, which negatively allets the validity and fntencoderrehabiity of the content analyse Therefore, dele nsruconscocodersand clea operational definitions ze wed when] 2 content analyse involves these two types of measurement CWimmet &© Dewinic, 2006), TRAINING CODERS AND CONDUCTING A PILOT STUDY As conten analyzes need validity end reliability is very important fr all coders to Samliasedhemselves woh tbe coding manual and instrocions to codes belore the setaal coding begins. The researcher or the primary research asista’ should spend some tie ualnig the coders and conduct a pilot content analysis wich them, using 2 sumer of units of alysis with cverse characteristics to help them understand host to identify the coding categories comet}: Forexample, nthe Loe Angles ots study it wes weft selec ew ates tat were ard news, commentary, fesures, human ietest and edtorals to show te coders row they difred fom each other. Thereafter, afew uns of aalyis wee chown and the coders asked to code them individually and compare eachother’ coding sheet to chock the levels of agreement berween them, A.discssion on why ‘ndviduals coded them aezeny se int on ways to eliminate ambigues in the struionsta Codes and ending categories. One coder or many? One might think that having ast one coder weuld then be the eal, as tebminsesitercoder reliability tues, But efferent coders provide diferent Perpectves and operational defiitions on subjective measures sich s lees of vilence znd sexual content. Views and interpretations ofthese dient coders can be used to fine-tune o eis the coding mana ater the ple or the tril run. A sale coder, on the other and, wl cay his or her personal subjectivity inc the erie cong without sryone realising tha taken place. ‘Choosing coders from the target audience Using coders who belong to the target sudience ofthe content under analysis in the ilo study will make the proces of designing and revising the coding manual more ellcient (Wimmer & Dominick 2006) 137 an enon asPART 2: RESEARCH APPRGACHES: QUANTITATIVE “This 8 analogous to giving a drat curvey questionnaire to afew people from the target popuiaton of the surey as pilot run, before finalising and administering it ‘CODING THE CONTENT AND CONDUCTING RELIABILITY CHECKS ambiguity ot lack of arity during the coding, Reliability checks Once the coding has been complete, 10% of units of analysis coded by cach coder should be recoded by anoer coder and their agreement clelated “his scaled the inte-code relbliy. The agresmen: berween coders should be at leas 0%. IFonly one coder was wed in the content analy, hls coder must recode a randomly selected 10% ofthe unis of analysis and recode them atalnter time ad aive atanagiemet of at east 80%. This scaled itr-cover rei ANALYSING DATA “The coding shes carry the merc values forthe relevant cxegores of entent under cachitem coded ssigned to each unt of analysis Gee Example 93). These values can be ected int a data ein SPSS oc Excel sofware Each row in the data le dadated to each uit of analysand a colin et up foreach tem coded Gee Chapter 15— ‘Datanalysis)Statisical tess can then be rum to calle the frequencies, percentages, smear, median, mode and rang for desing the varus ers code (Se Chaper 8— Measurement). ‘Crosetabulations se used t examine the breakdown of media concent categories For oample, in the Los Angeles nots coverage stud a breakdown berween the days of the coverage and the most emphasised topic indicated how the topics changed rom one ay to another Using computer software in content analysis Compateraided content analyses ‘an fe med out using Text by SPSS, which automaticaly analyses keywords and groups tes into categories. I sorts words into frequency and alphabetical lists, ‘and produces gaphic elements such as bar chans. Computer soface canbe wed even for ttercoder eel checks (Stasi, 2002), However, Conway (2006) warns that computer-aided content analysis snot sutable fr ell contexts and dae—expecially hoe ivotsing cade jvdamerse ‘However, compute: sofbvae simply males an analysis fst and more ecient, The tuning behind che analysand che development of caegoris of ters sl needs to be dane by te researcher, especialy ifthe coding involves Judgments suchas rype of story among bard news, human fuzrest ex. fn other words, using computer software ‘in research data coding nd analysis instead of doing it manual is analogous to wing st compaterto wea bestselling novel instead of wating it by hand, Te iene and creativity sill need vo come fom the author? INTERPRETING RESULTS, MAKING CONCLUSIONS AND REPORTING THE FINDINGS (Content analyses are mainly about providing descriptive data For example, in the Los Anges ios coverage study, the researchers exanilued if newpaper arcs were cing ‘ore offical rather than unofficial sources. The indings indicated that they did so at the beginning of the rots, but changed to using more unofical soures asthe rat progressed ‘The suady also calulaed the percentages of sores i the coverage that were on specific topie such asthe Rocney King vial (17%) and the total coluran cms devoted to the rots coverage forthe period analysed (total of 27,000 emi. These Sncings were AMusurted with tables when reporting the reel, ‘Testing hypotheses If 2 content mays is cared out to test hypotheses the data id digs that Walt eter suppor or not support ter, allowing tit rear conclusions and generalise the findings tothe ‘universe co ‘Comparison with earlier studies A researcher can pon the findings based on how ‘Wey aie cons WH Cee Gale findings of anaes of sialon contre; (br Seanipe, CBS Coveiage of Violence in the media In the Les Angeles rlos sud. Su was concluded thatthe coverage often addressed antecedent conditions (historical factors behind the rots) and, therefose, che Los Angles Times had avoided the falar ctitcism made against media of not doings in the coverage of ces, Practical uses of content analyses © Content analysis suse in media monitonng either by an orgsation tole tack of medis reports about it and its staf, and co check f the coverage about them was negative, postve or neural for publi relations purposes. The leading organisations carrying out media monizoving in Australis are Media Monitors (wwrwmediamonitorscomau) and the Ausralian Asociated Pres (AAP: dnp tacoma). Neiver/NetRatings (wirwnielsen-netratings com) monitors eaten, product place- ment and the most popular coatent of a chenct website, under its SiteCensus and ‘Market Incligence Analysis functions. + HiRWise (wwwhitwisecom) 5 an intemet monitor whose Online Inceltigence Analyst exaatnes the keywords mos: used by sere of ISP Gnteme service provides) networks. Their findings help website designers to use keywors inorder tooptimise Ui access by users © Scholar researchers ave hired by vaious advecacy groups in society (for example, women’ groups and pay righusorpaniaion®) ro keep track of media content 08 ‘how the groups they represent or sdvoate for are portrayed; harm coment such 3 violence; fale or offensive advertising: and sexual content on TY unsuitable for chien, © The negative media representations of various groups ae also content analysed by scholarly researchers tacng the cultural tudes and enical theory perspectives to track peters in 4 stereotyping—using specific and often negative characterises as generalisble (SaspeaRe gour— a aot 2 ‘margmalisation—porraying various groups in socery sch as tories in powerless pestons, such as only being employed in ment cbs 3 ghettoisation—asieng women oF minoriies to comment on of be represented 4 shuatons and roles that are specifically relevant to them, such asthe glass 159 |160 PART 2: RESEARCH! APPROACHES: QUANTITATIVE celing or racism respectively and noc issues eleven to the wider socket ke the cconomy or polis 4 twhexism—osing minority mercbers o women. n media ponrayas asthe only rember ofthetr group ina gen stsation and genealy wits ls or power, in oder to say they were included 3 exclesion—compleely excinding certain groups fom media representations 4s (they do not exist, leading to their ivisblty;refeved to as symbolic annilation. ‘With feret-based content such as electronic archives, obsining content for analysis has become faster and more convenient with search engines suchas Yahoo and ‘Google or databases sucha Leis-Nexs or Facva (for newspaper aries). They cam be sccased and coded eleewonially wihout having save or pent them. Limitations of content analysis A content analysis as te following dsavantges: 2 tis imeconsuming nd expensive to conduct. «ean ery describe the content rather than preict or explcn eft >is shaped by the coding instrument designed by the researcher, which could be subjective due to the specific coding xtegores, operational definitions and levels of measurement wed, Therefore, comparing diferent content analyses ofthe sane content Snot aways possible if they have been analysed diferent. Content fom clder sources for eraple, past sues of newspapers and old lms ‘oF TV prgrame—amay nt be avalable or accessible for analyss unless they have ‘been archived (old newspapers as mcrofien and microfiche). If required inltge ‘volumes they wl be too expensive co chain by ar unfunded researcher. «© Gxemeztaved content i ficult sample isa sjteretic manner if the srple frame sot avaible asa dcetory of websts ona given ope > Webate conten i not permanent as changes without notice or completely dGsappeas, hindering later checking ofthe content fr intercoder or intr-coder velablty This means the conten under analysis rst be saved electronically o© prne-cus made APPLICATIONS OF CONTENT ANALYSIS IN JOURNALISM, MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION, AND PUBLIC RELATIONS Content nate apie in wariourdssiplines, both formadia mestages and messages ‘created during communication ats or Fuman interactions. These disipines include: social work here they monitor evens and interventions involving interpersonal ‘commutieation between social worers and their liens to evaluate and isprove his prazices smedicine—where conene analysis is used to examine doctor-patient interactions oF the image of medical professionals on TV luo, 2006). ‘2 organisadonal communication here constants cary oUt content analyses of recorded messages such as emall and memos in communication audits that ace the flow of communication within an organisation (Nevendor., 2002), (However, his leads to ethical issues related to privacy and informed consent of those whose communications are audited.) Joumalisin Journalism often uses content analysis to monitor ise! on sues such as «edit o asruracy (Male, 2005). Te Journal ad Mast Conmartcatan Quatry Gorey journcsm Quote) routinely publihes research based on sontent analyses ‘oftmeia coverage on speci isues such as planic surgery (Cho, 2007) or gender sues ‘n plea eampaign coverage (Fico ea, 2006) Many schol resarch in journalism is based on analy of mca coverae of vasious natural issters such as earthquakes and hurricanes (Homie, 1991; cries such as school shootings (Muschen & Caz, 2006); high profi crimes (Carpenter et 11,2006); the matary invasions of Granada by the US (Cater el, 1987) and Alghanstan by the Soviet Union (Kestiansen eal, 1962; the Persian Gl md Iq ‘Ware (King & Lester, 2005); social protests (Boyle tl, 2005; Jb, 2007 and poll controversies (Sefer, 2006). With new medi tchnologies wed in news production (Reich 2005) and the emergence of bogs as news (Tatamel & Keshelasili, 2005), content rls appears poised to become even more commonplsce inthe field of journals lated esearch ‘As the mainsteam media soften accsed of neglecting to address anus related to nines, a newspaper may request journaian schoar to carr oat ante analyse examining their coverage of mony telted events toate if the acmaions se vad and, ifs, how the stuaon may be rected. Mateting professonals working for & newspaper may cay ou content analysis ofits coverage of awe and compare with that flea TV news stations—who ae is competion forthe same audience—t0 gin insights (Neverdor, 2002) Media and communication Violence on TVie probably the moet well-anowm researc, in meeia and communication tha uses content analysis (Signo, 2005) In the st researchers examined the type of violet acs portayed, their ecu, why the ‘violence wes commited or personal ai, in ager o reaiaton) and how perpetrators and viims ae porzayed. Wits new media such ae videogames and te ‘ntact, this sea of research has widened even fore. ‘Gener ois for males ae females in media messages sex ezeayring (aces, 2006} aay images of women ae also areas of ecach using content emacs, ois depiction of minorities (Lee & Jo, 2005) ot elise which exends to sversing (Knobloch-Weserwick & Costes, 2006), In pli communication, content analyss examines negative campaign adverisements, and the ase of webtes and thr iemet sich athe YouTube or MySpace by paiatcandirer or pares, News coverage of politica umes the media content analysed to exarine theo of agenda seing (McCombs & Shaw, 1972) and media consonance (Noele-Neurnans & ‘Mathes, 1987; Newendor, 2002) out and Riddle 2007) have content araysed the mei elects nena insbeen scholar journals published berween 1993 and 2005, examining the specific mediums texted, type of content analysed, use of theory methods and type of ee stucied Public relations Content anslyss & an impornt research method with wsefal applications for public relations due tote prefesson elance on mee monitoring. ‘Az orgaison wil commission an independert media monitor to keyp track ofthe exposure the ogmibation receives inthe media about what ot whom the coverage relates to, nd whether its nec, postive or negative. For example 2 universes 161162 Pan 2: RESeanen APPROLCHES: QUANTITATIVE media oie wil sue anews or medi release abouts stall esearch activities. This may ‘bepicked upby media ourles and journals to report upon t and may lea to in-depth iterviews or eauzes with relevant sf, giving adéitional publicity 1 che university Media monitoring wil indicate how elective ths news or media release was in terms of the wolume and valency (postive, neutral or negative) ofthe coverage. Share of voice Media monkoring ais uses content analysis to calculate the ‘share of volee’'—the proportion of media exposure given tO your organisation in comparison ‘with others. [also ‘racks issues’ cr examines ifthe messages disseminated bythe media alot the orpnsaton were wat the organistioninended or desired, Case Study 9.13 ADVERTISING VALUE EQUIVALENCE OR THE RATE CARD. ‘Aconmoversal use ofmedia monitorngis _-—dboughtasadversing. Here the coverage ‘advertising value qunalence’, which refers not examined as postive or negative forthe tothe fees aime or (prin space gained corgiistion, ss arent of media ress and relted “The Public Relations Inst of Ausra ‘exposure by an oanisaion (mentioned 2s (PRIA) and many media ogmisations sha of voice), and is cll using the isepprove ofthis practice, cling ie an ‘rte card (he numberof viewers eners _‘unconvoled medium of jounalsic etoral correaders ofthe messag).Inather wo%’s, content. On the other had, paid advertising is It estimates how inge anaudience would “controlled mediz asthe organisation decides have been exposed to tese media messages _the content fis mesage. (See wav pra. com. ‘bout the organisation Gased on ratings auvresoures/id/262/parenuOtesouroes for the ‘or circulation figures) ae ow much ic ‘satement by the President of PRIA, Rob Masters, would have cost the orginisetion had itbeen in 2005) Summary This chaoter examined the everyday applications of content analyses: its functions as 2 research method; manifest and latent content of messages; conducting a content analysis; practca. uses and Uiitations of the method; archives of media contet; and applications ofthe content analysis method in journalism, media and communtcation and public relations. Te mest chapter examines the qualitative esearch method of depth interviews. Ty this. 4 Design aeseach que or lypotbests elated the sed you would ike cocaine ange crenata ind on ccm, cover fae Ceo Sse inndbepaper, TV new bulls or your vou TV ees or welt) fr depleson of acl gop ose . ‘SFAPTER 6 coneNTANALTSIS © 363 ‘What is your rationale for eerying out this study? What is your ‘universe (Saripting fee) and Sample, and what sampling method wall you vse? What wil be your unt of analysis? > Wha are your operational defiritions? © Prepare a compiehensve coding manu instructions for coders and a coding sheet to analyse its content, using the examples and guidelines orovided in Chapter. Hint Take one sse of the newspaper (or TV news bullet, episode of your vente ‘TV program or webpage) and create a coding minal to analyse ts conte. Once the basic or @ prin! coding tes and their cxagoies have been developed, the other emergent tems and their etegories canbe added blookng st other units of analyst | fine-tune it Be sure to include 2 mix of measurements (lr example, nomial, ordinal, lnuerval or ratio) forte tems and thelr eategores in your coding mars, Further reading Cantor M 199. ThoAnrcn fy on Fes Maly Goer eB Csby Joana of oingeaie Fly Sus. 220), Samet. Fel, 205, Dscovrng tats usng SSS fr Windom, 2 edn. ape, Toward Oss, OL Fife, Digi $8 Fc, 62005. Andsig mec mesages ing qari conan ern seach, 2nd en, LanreeeEabau Azote, Mahwah 0. Additional resources List of archives for moda content ‘Austratan TY news and cent affss—RAIT Unhrsty/s inflonit Mea for access atine ot Request for DVDs (we 21). Intemational nnspaper ails —tan-Necsdatabste (wen esses com/nera). {ncemationl terete and references (fee)—ProectGatenbe (wwe. itenber. 09). {nernatioral TV ews fepors—C1N Word Report T achive, Teas Tech Davey (oor thay One deport) 1S Fin, TV programs and TY comerciks—UCLA Fin and TV.Achive (manera) 1S politcal campaign T and ratio ads—hian P Kamer Poti Commercial Archive. Unvesty of ‘kishore (woud pecete)- 1S TV news—ardetit University TV News Archive (p/w vandrit de) Consult your univ Ubras elaczonic esoures fr detabases such as Factiva Ut allow for searching and accessing newspaper aries. ‘Leading media monitaring organiations in Austria ‘estan Associated Press (AAF)—Rational news agency (wm agp.com au/medamortring 5). itiise—Ontine neligance anal service (winehitis.com). eda Moitos—Anabes mewspazer. popular trade and other magazines, adi, TV nd he ‘internet (awmnediamitrs.com.a). Nilen/Netatings—Ratings or websites (wan netatings con).Attachment C: Essay topics With reference to the guide to quality essay writing in Attachment D, choose one of the following questions for the major essay: OR OR LL 2. 3. 4 Ss. h Examine the rise of state-sponsored cable news channels from non- democratic countries. What are the implications of this phenomena? Does new media reinforce, undermine, or something else the centralising power towards parties in Australian politics. Consider, with reference to the discussion and material in week 5, Zizek's concept of “ideological cynicism”. Compare Kevin Rudd’s argument that government advertising Is a “cancer on democracy” to the Industry advertising campaign of again the mining super-profits tax. Is there are public interest in having a PR state? Apply Herman and Chomsky’s Propaganda model to the new media sector. Does the model apply to this sector? If so, to what effect? If not, why not (is it a problem of the model or a different economic sector)? |. Write a defence of censorship by the state that does not include arguments regarding national security. Consider the theoretical and practical justifications, Examples may be useful. Consider Blairs’s argument that the media hunt in packs. Is there evidence of media conformism? How significant is it / aka is ita problem? itis inevitable, or variable over time? Undertake a case study of a significant media event, issue, or cause where the medla is particularly significant (important in the process or outcome, or where it was seen to be significant, but It is not). Remember to first examine, with care, what a case study Is! before undertaking this task. A case is a way of understanding a social Phenomena, not simply a narrative. 1n consultation with your tutor (no later than week 7 please) write your own essay question on a topic that interests you, but that is tractable to the literature presented in the course. * Case studies "consist of detalled inquiry into @ bounded ently or unit (or enties In which the researcher ether examines a relevant issue or reveals phenomena through the process of examining the ently within is socal and cultural context." (Encyclopedia of Research Design, 2010:118) 1BAttachment D: Major Essay Assessment Guide ‘Task requirement (unit outline): From the list provided in attachment C, complete the essay task with gusto. Assessment criter standard essay assessment criteria will be applied. Solid research, structure and articulation, analysis, communication, evidence of engagement with the subject matter, creativity. ‘Alternative topics can be selected, following approval from your tutor, Marking grid ‘This is provided as an indicative guide to the marking process of tators. Tutors will be looking for these general elements - in addition to topie-specific points ~ in assessing the final essay. Biement Description ‘Absent [Poor [Adequate Good a ‘Appropriate selection and demonstrated ‘ean ncus | hrscnng tanner concepts Revearay | Understanding of cae [tape background is appropriate level of supictent to task | secondary research sultable to task. Hsray hasaclarly articulated argument thatis developed with supporting Argument | B*ience (Secondary andar theoreti) and is persuasive, Important counter- points are treated seriously and addressed. Referencing ana | ACEUFAC, relevance andsuficency oF ‘appropriate citation references. Including choice of academic over popular / online sources as appropriate Technical | presented (including introductions, writing sits | conclusions) use of appropriate Structure clearly developed and language and grammar General recommendations for good results 1. Begin early 2. Read the task description and ensure you are working to its requlrements a. ifn doubt, clarify with your tutor 3. Consider a few topics, do some light reading before you choose If you select your own topic, think it through carefully and write It out before “pitching” Itto your tutor 4, Read around the topic generally first 5. Plan (a written plan) a. Your research strategy - what do you need 'b. Your writing strategy and essay plan (use post-it notes or some other technique to creatively develop your structure; google: “associative diagram") 6. Write steady over time, not in one big session ‘a, Ask: who Is the reader of this? (think about thelr expectations and needs) 7. Find a peer to swap essays with for feedback a. Pay attention to the feedback you receive 8, Double check your output matches the task and assessmenteriteria “Top ten” near misses of potentially great essays that, sadly, got poor results Actually there's only 7: 1. "Didn't answer the question / wandered off task (planning) Unstructured / frst draft submission (planning, starting ato} Normative, not argumentative, ignored problems in argument (argument planning) Too litle theory, too limitedly applied (background reading) Too much description, too litle analysis (editing) Key concepts not defined (essay planning) Falled to make references to material provided in reader, textbook and lectures (attendance) 4