Evolving Responsibility or Revolving Bias? The Role of the Media in the Anti-Sugar Debate in the UK Press

Martina Topić,Ralph Tench

doi:10.3390/socsci7100181

Abstract

This paper analyzed the coverage on the anti-sugar debate and the supermarket industry in the British press, in a period between 2014 and 2015. Using social responsibility of the press theory and a qualitative two-tier content analysis, we first conducted a documentary analysis of public relations materials (press releases and surveys published by Action on Sugar as a main anti-sugar advocate in the UK), and then we traced these public relations materials in the press coverage. We also analyzed whether some sources are preferred more than others by focusing on the nature of quoted sources and whether the media give a voice to everyone, both the anti-sugar activists and the relevant industry figures who claim that sugar is not the only reason for the current obesity problem in the UK. The results show that the media have not given a representative voice to the industry but only to the anti-sugar NGOs, thus opening a question of journalism standards and the extent the press could be considered as socially responsible in this particular case.

Highlights

The sugar debate has been prominent in the British press since 2014, when Action on Sugar was first founded
Of only two surveys in 2014 the supermarket industry was the main subject of the survey in one of them, while in 2015 of six surveys published the supermarket industry was not the main subject of the study in any of them
Three surveys had the supermarket industry included in the analysis along with analysis of products from other companies, and the other three surveys did not include the supermarket industry at all (Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

The sugar debate has been prominent in the British press since 2014, when Action on Sugar was first founded. The debate on sugar expanded from initial NGO advocacy, and in 2016 the British Government announced a sugar tax to decrease sugar consumption in the UK, and tackle rising levels of obesity This intervention was proposed because there is a concern that the UK, like other countries around the world, is heading for an obesity epidemic (Cattell and Capehorn 2011; Health Survey for England 2011; PHE 2016). Following this and due to visibly increased media coverage of the anti-sugar debate, we looked at the role of the media in the anti-sugar debate The reason for this interest lies in the fact that in early reporting on weight issues and obesity the media were blaming individuals for their lifestyle and nutrition choices, and they have shifted the blame to the food industry (Lawrence 2003). Individuals were blamed for obesity, while parents were blamed for childhood obesity, along with schools and society in general (Saguy and Almeling 2008)

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