Trend: Sensationalism versus public affairs content of local TV news: Pennsylvania revisited

Slattery, Karen; Hakanen, Ernest A.

doi:10.1080/08838159409364257

Cited by 54 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…If a story is of 25 "urgent, collective" concern (Turow, 1983, p.111) that helps a citizen "understand and respond to the world of public affairs" (Patterson, 2000), it is considered a socially responsible topic. If, on the other hand, the story is evergreen (Dominick et al, 1975;Patterson, 2000), examines an interesting person or story in place of a specific news event (Davie & Lee, 1995;Dominick et al, 1975) or focuses on the emotional and the dramatic aspects of the story (McManus, 1994;Slattery & Hakanen, 1994 ), then it is infotainment content. These definitions apply regardless of specific story topic.…”

Section: Content Category Disagreementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…When newsrooms play up the drama and mayhem angle of an event, instead of the community impact or policy angle, the story also becomes one of infotainment (McManus, 1994;Slattery & Hakanen, 1994). This is even ifthe occurrence would otherwise fit Turow's (1983) Perhaps the most easily recognizable of infotainment stories include those focused on entertainment, celebrity happenings, their scandals and trials, and general show business news (Bennett, 2003;PEJ, 1998 …”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is by this latter definition that other researchers (for example, Carroll & Tuggle, 1997;Slattery & Hakanen, 1994) code these topics as sensational, human interest, or infotainment. As with crime, the angle the story takes determines its categorization as hard news or infotainment.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These stories cover public policy, elections and campaign maneuvering, and news about government and other political organizations (Slattery & Hakanen, 1994). The state of business and the economy are also on the socially responsible hard news list (Patterson, 2000;PEJ, 2004).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The state of business and the economy are also on the socially responsible hard news list (Patterson, 2000;PEJ, 2004). "Social issue" (PEJ, 2004) or "domestic affairs" stories (Patterson, 2000), including education (Patterson, 2000) and civic group concerns (Slattery & Hakanen, 1994), are also considered hard news. Foreign affairs, war and peace (PEJ, 1998) and defense (PEJ, 2004) also are generally classified as hard news.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Does the "news" come first? Social responsibility, infotainment, and local television newscasts in Portland, Oregon : a content analysis

Higgins¹

2000

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The goal of a socially responsible newscast is an informed audience able to make decisions about the world around them. Oftentimes, this includes content focused on policy, government, the economy, and other relevant "hard" news. The information is provided in a manner conducive to viewer learning.In contrast, the goal of infotainment is to grab and hold the attention of the audience. These stories are of"softer" content, focused on celebrities, features, and dramatic incidents. The information is often provided in a "flashy" fashion, with the aim of catching the audience's eye more than enlightening the viewers.2 This study examines the qualities of social responsibility and infotainment in three different areas: news story content, story presentation style, and whether the time period was before, during, or after the ad-rate setting "ratings" period. This last variable examines any potential changes to a newscast during the times when newscasts are at their most competitive for viewers.The results indicate a need for Portland's late night local broadcast . newsrooms to reevaluate what is aired as news, and to look deeper into how that information is presented. Infotainment content and presentation styles play a major role in the majority of analyzed newscasts. The role of this content becomes even more pronounced during ratings periods.

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