scholarly journals “Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire”: A Content Analysis of Print and Web-Based News Media Reporting of the Philip Morris–Funded Foundation for a Smoke-Free World

10.2196/14067 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. e14067
Author(s):  
Christina Watts ◽  
Becky Freeman
2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Watts ◽  
Becky Freeman

BACKGROUND In September 2017, the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World (FSFW), a not-for-profit organization with a core purpose “to accelerate global efforts to reduce deaths and harm from smoking” was launched. However, the legitimacy of the FSFW’s vision has been questioned by experts in tobacco control because of the organization’s only funding partner, Philip Morris International (PMI). OBJECTIVE This study aimed to examine the response to the FSFW in Web-based and print news media to understand how the FSFW and its funding partner, PMI, were framed. METHODS News articles published within a 6-month period after the FSFW was announced were downloaded via Google News and Factiva and coded for topic, framing argument, slant, mention of tobacco control policies, and direct quotes or position statements. RESULTS A total of 124 news articles were analyzed. The news coverage of the FSFW was framed by 6 key arguments. Over half of the news articles presented a framing argument in opposition to the FSFW (64/124, 51.6%). A further 20.2% (25/124) of articles framed the FSFW positively and 28.2% of articles (35/124) presented a neutral debate with no primary slant. The FSFW was presented as not credible because of the funding link to PMI in 29.0% (36/124) of articles and as a tactic to mislead and undermine effective tobacco control measures in 11.3% of articles (14/124). However, 12.9% of articles (16/124) argued that the FSFW or PMI is part of the solution to reducing the impact of tobacco use. Evidence-based tobacco control policies were mentioned positively in 66.9% (83/124) of news articles and 9.6% (12/124) of articles presented tobacco control policies negatively. CONCLUSIONS The Web-based and print news media reporting of the formation of the FSFW and its mission and vision has primarily been framed by doubt, skepticism, and disapproval.


2022 ◽  
pp. 002190962110696
Author(s):  
Shabir Hussain ◽  
Farrukh Shahzad ◽  
Shirin Ahmad

In this study, we present a contextual model for analyzing the escalatory and de-escalatory trends in media reporting of seven conflicts in Pakistan. For this purpose, we combined findings from both survey and content analysis. While the survey helped to examine the journalists’ perceptions about the security threats of conflicts and the factors that influence the reportage, the content analysis was utilized to analyze the escalatory and de-escalatory characteristics in the coverage. The findings show that high security conflicts lead to a patriotic reporting scenario that results in high escalatory coverage. There is a significant decrease in the escalatory coverage as the assumed threat level of a conflict decreases. Similarly, we found that a conflict in which journalists exercised more relative freedom from pressure groups was reported in de-escalatory fashion. These findings can be useful for strategizing for the implementation of peace journalism in Pakistan in particular and elsewhere in general.


2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 305-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan Miczo

Abstract This essay explores the news media’s portrayal of humor during the early phase of COVID-19-related lockdowns. Examining a collection of online news articles reveals the media tended to frame the issue as an ethical one (e.g., “is it okay to laugh at the coronavirus?”). After reviewing work on humor ethics, a qualitative content analysis of 20 news media articles is presented. Three issues from the news stories are identified, allowing comparison of the media’s claims against the ethical principles articulated. The essay concludes with a consideration of how news media’s coverage of humor fits within a broader pandemic narrative.


2012 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 68 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Lidberg

When the Australian Independent Media Inquiry (IMI) published its report most mainstream media reporting focused on the suggested statutory-based News Media Council and largely ignored any discussion of the underlying issues—public trust in journalism and news media and accountability for its practices. The aim of this study was to capture the attitudes held by the media industry toward these issues. Based on a content analysis of 33 submissions to the IMI and the Convergence Review it can be concluded that only 15 percent of the submissions addressed trust or media accountability issues. Furthermore, the submissions illustrate a disconnect between the attitudes held by some media proprietors and the trust deficit reality displayed in multiple studies of the public’s attitudes to journalism and news media.


Author(s):  
Michael Mackay ◽  
Roxanne Henwood ◽  
Tracy Nelson ◽  
Harvey C. Perkins ◽  
Jude Wilson

2021 ◽  
pp. 107769902199864
Author(s):  
Iskander De Bruycker ◽  
Matthijs Rooduijn

This article conceives of populist communication as a contextually dependent political strategy. We bridge actor- and communication-centered approaches by arguing that the context of issues conditions the extent to which parties employ populist communication. We draw from a content analysis of 2,085 news stories in eight news media outlets and Eurobarometer data connected to 41 EU policy issues and analyze statements from 85 political parties. Our findings show that populist parties are more prone to express populism on salient and polarized issues. Issues important to civil society groups, in contrast, make non-populist parties more inclined to express such communication.


2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 1231-1247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohsin Abdur Rehman ◽  
Muhammad Kashif ◽  
Michela Mingione

The purpose of this study is to explore the extent to which MBA programmes offered by top European and Asian B-schools have a corporate social responsibility and sustainability (CSRS) orientation as per their websites. The websites of top-200 (based on the QS Global Business and Management University Rankings 2015) European and Asian B-schools were explored and content analysed to reach meaningful conclusions. The findings reveal European B-schools have much stronger CSRS orientation once compared with the Asian B-schools. Furthermore, only few B-schools promote CSRS centres on their websites which has some useful practical implications. This is the first study to explore the CSRS orientation among top-200 European and Asian B-schools based on an analysis of their respective websites. Additionally, a cross-continental comparison between European and Asian MBA programmes is unique to this study. The results have implications for global managers, in general, and business school policymakers, in specific, to embark the CSR initiatives to gain competitive advantage.


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