Assignment 8: News (20 points)

Due: April 2

Directions: For this assignment, record and watch two half-hour national (not local) newscasts from
different TV networks (CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox News) on the same day (preferably a weekday) as close as
possible to the same time – e.g., watch CBS and NBC News at 5:30 pm. Do not do two broadcasts from
vastly different times or places. Do not do one local and one national newscast. Do not do a feature
news documentary. If you do not have easy access to a TV or access to the shows on your computer, you
may compare two comparable news web sites for the same day (e.g., BBC, Fox News, msnbc).

1. List the network and day/time of the newscasts. Make a list of the news stories covered in order and
include these lists with your assignment. Be specific – e.g., don’t just say “Afghanistan.) (2 points)
Then answer the following questions:

2. What similarities and what differences in coverage did you see across the two cases? Consider
whether stories are included or not on each network and also the prominence given to those stories
which are included. (4 points)

3. Comment on agenda-setting by either or both networks. What are they telling us is important? Be as
specific as you can. Suggest possible reasons for these agendas if you can. (3 points)

4. Do you see examples of biases (political, ideological, economic, social, etc.) in either or both sources?
If so, what are they and how were they revealed? Are these biases appropriate or not and why? (3
points)

5. Do you see any tendency to tell hard news stories as “soft news?” If so, give examples. Do you see
the narrative (story) form in these news stories? How is the news made very entertaining? Does this
distort the news or make it clearer? (3 points)

6. How do the pictures complement the verbal part of the story? Are there any cases where the
photography significantly enhanced, detracted from, or confused the story? Was the visual part
misleading in any way? (3 points)

7. What would you like to see changed about the coverage on either or both networks? What, if
anything, bothered you about these presentations of the news? What particularly impressed you as
positive? (2 points)

Note: This assignment will not work as well if your news day happens to be a day of a major breaking
news story that captures a majority of the broadcast. Try to avoid such a day. Also, a weekday is
preferable to a weekend, since there is more hard news on weekdays.

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