Local Coverage of the 2000 Election in North Carolina

Abstract

This article analyzes television broadcasts to determine whether an intent to engage in projects designed to increase issue coverage and citizen involvement leads to a difference in coverage. The findings show that differences in coverage between two CBS affiliates in central North Carolina (WRAL, Raleigh, and WFMY, Greensboro) can be attributed less to WRAL’s participation in the civic journalism project Your Voice Your Vote than to the acceptance of the 5/30 standard to allocate 5 minutes per day to candidate-centered discourse for 30 days before the election. This case study of CBS affiliates in neighboring markets highlights many of the issues that are central to understanding the debate about improving local television election coverage.