Toward a Fuller Understanding of the Echoing Press: Presidential Addresses and theNew York Times, 1933-2013

Abstract

This study seeks to extend and clarify Domke's () theory of the “echoing press.” Developing a conceptual argument about the interrelationships among several key theories of the U.S. president–press relationship, we analyze news coverage of major presidential addresses in the New York Times from 1933 to 2013. Our analysis clarifies the consistent but modest echoing effect that has occurred over the past 8 decades, and broadens the theory to encompass not only wartime communications but all foreign policy contexts. We also rule out several alternative explanations for the echoing effect, and show that echoing has an inverse relationship with the inclusion of perspectives that run counter to the president's views.

Democratic Disarray: Organizational Messaging Coherence and the Local Echoing Press During the 2020 Iowa Democratic Caucus

“…By examining a political party organization, that is viewed simultaneously as a democratic institution (Lammers & Barbour, 2006), and how it operated in relation to local news entities during a crisis, this research contributes to literatures in organizational and political communication. Additionally, identifying some of the organizational and crisis dynamics that may make message echoing more or less likely to occur builds on previous work that interrogates the issue and political conditions where national media echo political elites (Coe & Bradshaw, 2014;Domke, 2004). The dynamics that led to a lack of echoing in the local press are a consideration future scholarship should continue to assess.…”

“…An echoing press perspective examines how news entities adopt the semantic structure-including words and phrasing-of political actors covered (Domke, 2004;Wiemer & Scacco, 2018). Direct quotation of political elites as sources is a prominent means by which echoing is accomplished and studied by researchers (e.g., Coe & Bradshaw, 2014). Lack of cohesion in a source's messaging or absence of visible messaging decreases the ability for the press to effectively echo that source's messaging which in turn will compromise an organization's ability to manage how people perceive the reality of the situation.…”

In the Name of the President

“…Presidents routinely make public remarks, which range from major addresses to the nation such as the State of the Union Address or a speech to the nation in various locations, to news conferences, and occasional remarks at the White House or on tour. The speeches presidents give are widely covered by the news and receive significant public attention as well as scholarly interest (Barrett, 2007; Coe & Bradshaw, 2014; Cohen, 2008, 2009; Edwards & Wood, 1999; Eshbaugh-Soha, 2013; Miles, 2014; Peake & Eshbaugh-Soha, 2008). Scholars from various fields study these speeches in an effort to assess the decision when to speak and to what forum (Brace & Hinckley, 1993; Cohen, 2008; Eshbaugh-Soha, 2010, 2013; Hager & Sullivan, 1994; Powell, 1999), what presidents say (Coe et al, 2017; Jacobs et al, 2003; Kuehl, 2012), and where they say it (Heith, 2013; O’Brien, 2019); as well as the effect of these speeches on public support for policies they mention (Cavari, 2017; Cohen, 1995; Edwards, 2003; Hill, 1998; Kernell, 2007; Rottinghaus, 2010; Villalobos & Sirin, 2012), on their own approval (Cohen, 2010; Cohen & Powell, 2005; Druckman & Holmes, 2004; Kelleher & Wolak, 2006; Ragsdale, 1984; Trager & Vavreck, 2011), and on policy (Canes-Wrone, 2006; Dimaggio, 2015; Eshbaugh-Soha, 2006; Hawdon, 2001; Whitford & Yates, 2009).…”