Get the News on Physical Activity Research: A Content Analysis of Physical Activity Research in the Canadian Print Media

Abstract

Background:News media may play a critical role in disseminating research about physical activity and health. This study examined how much physical activity research gets reported in the media and its prominence and credibility.Methods:A content analysis was conducted of the reporting of physical activity research in Canadian national and local newspapers from November 2004 to April 2005.Results:Physical activity research was given some prominence and treated as news through the use of several devices to infer credibility. However, newspapers appeared to invest little in the production of physical activity research as news and information about research methodology was infrequent.Conclusions:While stories reporting physical activity research were given some prominence and credibility, the lack of significant investment and the limited reporting on research methodology suggests that important aspects of research related to physical activity may not be well represented in newspaper coverage.

Fit to Print: A Natural History of Obesity Research in the Canadian News Media

“…This story was identified during the course of our larger research project examining media reports about physical activity and obesity in the Canadian news media from November 2004 to April 2005. For the larger project, stories classified as reports about Canadian physical activity or obesity research were selected for further analysis including a content analysis (Faulkner, Roy, & Finlay, 2007) and research with sources (n=19) and journalists (n=14) to investigate the processes of production (Finlay, Roy, & Faulkner, 2006). The content analysis also led to the identification of health organizations that were prominent in the news media in order to initiate further research into the natural histories of their news reports.…”

“…The news reports also gave the research credibility through a number of devices that subtly suggest to audiences the validity of the study (Faulkner et al, 2007). This validity can be established through the impetus for the story and the way in which it is reported.…”

“…Also, in light of other public health crises receiving media attention such as SARS, avian flu, and mad cow disease (Harrabin, Coote, & Allen, 2003), we were interested in the representations of a much less sensational health story. We were also interested in the story's central focus on physical activity as it remains underreported as an important health practice (Caburnay, Kreuter, Luke, Logan, Jacobsen, Reddy, Vempaty, & Zayed, 2003;Faulkner, Finlay, & Roy, 2007).…”

“…Both completed and returned our questionnaire and reported they were very satisfied with the media coverage. This research received one of the highest amounts of coverage during the six month period of our larger media tracking (Faulkner, et al, 2007), and the sources indicated in the questionnaire that they were aware of the extent of the attention they received from the Canadian media. The sources reported that they were also pleased with the accuracy of the coverage and were likely to cooperate with the media in the future.…”

“…Prominence can be measured through such indicators as the origin of the story (news wire service, specialist reporter, general reporter, columnist, or reprint/rebroadcast), headline size, word count/story running time, the presence of a visual and the location within the newspaper (section and whether it appears above the fold in a broadsheet), or newscast (lead story or last story). For example, stories with visuals and a longer length, appearing on the front page of a section, above the fold, are more prominent and more likely to be read (Caburnay et al, 2003;Faulkner et al, 2007).…”