Title: The United States: News in a Free-Market Society
Abstract: News is a construct. It is not, as some journalists like to say, a mirror held up to reality (Mickelson 1972). News is the product of conventions – a set of informal and subjective rules that guide the decisions of those who gather, produce, and transmit the news (Lippmann 1922; Davis 1995). In the United States, these conventions have developed in the context of a press that is decidedly commercial and adversarial in its orientation. This orientation has intensified in recent decades, accentuating what was already a distinctive construction of the news. The values at stake in political conflict and society's underlying problems, for example, are not conspicuously aired in the news. On the other hand, political failings and disputes are prominently displayed, as are the strategic actions of top officials.
Publication Year: 2000
Publication Date: 2000-07-31
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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Cited By Count: 100
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