viii, 234 p. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries under the call number: KNIGHT PN4897.O74 E78 1995 / Studies have shown that women's ideas, especially those that challenge the status quo, have historically received little attention from the press. This thesis discusses how women were described in three of Oregon's frontier newspapers from 1846 to 1859, and also explores their contributions to the newspapers as writers, poets, editors, and businesswomen. Information from established American media clipped for the frontier papers described popular, mainstream ideas of womanhood, as well as provided news on the emerging women's rights struggle. Information generated locally on women encompassed a variety of themes, including marriage, education, and temperance. This study shows that even though content about women and women's roles as contributors were constrained by contemporary ideas of propriety and women's place in society, women were valued as readers and contributors to the three Oregon newspapers. / Committee in charge: Dr. Lauren Kessler, Chair; Dr. Timothy Gleason, Dr. Leslie Steeves

In my research I use qualitative content analysis to determine if and how the hegemony of the capitalist class in the United States influences the content of news texts on poverty. I analyze messages from two contrasting historical eras, the War on Poverty era and the post-Reagan era.