Authorities Replaced Others
This chapter examines the shift in the roles persons play in the news. Studies of newspapers and newscasts show that by the mid-twentieth century, the number of individuals who take action in a news event, or become the victims of those actions in the press, dropped to less than three in the average crime, accident, or job story. Others took their places. A century ago, an official would appear in only one of four stories. However, the number of officials involved in or having direct responsibility over activities in the news has increased steadily until at least one official appeared in almost every news story. Studies of Internet editions for the same newspapers found that the number of officials continued to be large through 2010. Ordinary citizens and unaffiliated individuals continued to appear in stories, but as news grew longer, it replaced more of them. Political stories from the newspapers and their Internet editions are the most pronounced example: officials and others have come to outnumber individual actors.