What’s News Got to Do with It?: Examining the Contribution of Toronto’s Press in Maintaining an Environmentally-Detrimental Social Paradigm, 2003-2006

Abstract

This content analysis examines print media coverage of Toronto's waterfront development to determine whether story frames perpetuate the dominant social paradigm. Articles from 8 newspapers are analysed in two content dimensions, the sub-issues which surround waterfront development and the ways of understanding the environment presented as relevant to Toronto's waterfront development. Findings show presence of conflict, use of a non-routine information channel and broad source mix do not result in more diverse content. Likewise, characteristics such as a news organization's conventionality (i.e., alternative or mainstream), size and ownership (i.e., independent or group-owned) exert limited influence over story content. Organized around the competitive city concept described by Kipfer and Keil's (2002), this research examines whether media coverage aligns with the capitalist urbanization process, concluding story frames in news discourse de-emphasize the environment as an issue and rely on the least-progressive environment paradigms when reporting on Toronto's waterfront development.