The purpose of this study is to inquire if there are dispositions of any type. of newscast carried by ABC News about Nigeria and if these newscasts are positively or negatively inclined. The analysis quantified and verified that while the broadcast content of ABC News presentations on Nigeria have been objectively covered, the newscasts have taken stereotypical patterns. This, thereby establishes the need for ABC News, being an example of American network news, to diversify and cover stories of social and human interest in Nigeria and other Third World countries. The study concludes that a true maxim of news coverage is needed as a guide to unbiased, unslanted or cliched news presentations.

This thesis is a series of four articles examining the interface of public relations and journalism and how this affects the information the public receives as news. The central research question it aims to answer is: 'How can the public guard against manipulation of opinion?' The articles are accompanied by an exegesis which explains the research process and the role of important sources in the project. The research draws on relevant literature as well as interviews with people involved in public relations, journalism and academia.The first article Public Relations & Democratic Society looks at the various definitions of public relations and examines the debate over whether PR operates in the public interest. Article two, The Production of News, discusses the interface of public relations and journalism and also deals with the economic considerations affecting mass media outlets. PR Under the Spotlight in New Zealand, the third article, is a case study of a public relations campaign mounted by state-owned logging company Timberlands West Coast Ltd. The final article Navigating the Information Environment examines the current state of the interface between PR and journalism in New Zealand and sets out suggestions for how members of the public can avoid being manipulated.The research found that in order to prevent manipulation it is up to members of the public to actively seek truth and not uncritically accept information received through the media. Due to the work of the public relations industry and the media there are many ways in which information can be filtered and massaged and it is knowledge of these processes that puts the public in the best position to see reality.

While the cannon of objectivity has recently been called into question as the means for evaluating news merit, objectivity continues to harbor public expectation of the news media, especially during times of conflict. Results of past and current objectivity studies of conflict reporting, however, were shown to produce inconsistent and conflicting interpretations of whether the news media is presenting objective coverage of conflicts.To determine objectivity of news coverage, this content analysis examined objectivity differences between three newspapers--the Chicago Tribune, the Indianapolis Star, and the Anderson Herald Bulletin--and how they collectively presented front-page conflict and mainstream straight news stories.The study evaluated the newspapers' collective presentation of the September 11 h terrorist attack for a two-week period from September 12 through September 26, 2001. Presentation of the conflict was compared to a proportionate sample of mainstream straight news stories randomly selected from the months of January through December of 2001.Because the literature review indicated researchers most commonly evaluate news objectivity according to the presence of balance, attribution, or gatekeeping bias, the study assessed differences in objectivity level between conflict and straight news based upon the integration of all three objectivity variables The study's findings suggested that reporting of mainstream straight news was more objective than reporting of the September 11 terrorist attack conflict in the combined three newspapers. Reporting of the terrorist attack was found to be less balanced than reporting of straight news stories, as evidenced by a disproportionate amount of quotations afforded in support of United States war efforts. In addition, conflict stories were found to contain a significantly higher use of negative attributes-non-essential adjectives, inferences, collateral language and non-speech quotes--than straight news stories. Differences between page placement and revelation of theme were found to have no effect on objectivity differences. / Department of Journalism

The central contention of this thesis is that an increase in image-focused or pseudo-event-focused hyperlinked-headlines is occurring on online news sites. This central contention contains at least three implications. First, holding that the newspaper is the epitome of traditional journalism, a crisis in the news industry is underway. The crisis began as a result of newspapers’ financial challenges posed by electronic media, but the growth of online news sites has accelerated and worsened conditions. Second, as a result of this dire financial situation, news outlets, collectively, are shifting focus from traditional journalism’s concept of news to a 1830s-era Penny Press sensationalism style, marked by human-interest pieces, entertainment fluff and celebrity gossip. Third, news is shifting away from the ironic reporting method and theory of detached observer to a more personally connected style of narrative storytelling, which, together with the aforementioned implications, signifies a cyclical cycle and consequential return to the colonial roots of the American press and its definition of news. / The evolving crisis in the American news system -- Literature review of related topics -- Methodology -- Results : the news shift from event to image-based -- Discussion, limitations and recommendations for further study. / Department of Telecommunications

There is no abstract available for this thesis. / Department of Journalism

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