The Function of Mass Media Agenda Setting

Abstract

This study, a statewide follow-up to the original 1968 Chapel Hill, N.C., agenda-setting study published in 1972 in Public Opinion Quarterly, used poll and content analysis data to compare media use and agenda agreement for different types of reference groups: men vs. women, non-whites vs. whites, young vs. old, higher- vs. lower-formally educated and rich vs. poor. When individuals increase their newspaper reading, then agreement on important public issues within the gender, racial and age groups to which they belong increases to a point of near consensus. Those of higher vs. lower education also come close to sharing issues, although the sharing is less dramatic between rich and poor. Increased television news viewing also results in higher reference group consensus on key public issues. The study concludes: one major function of mass media is to enhance group consensus within the larger social system by providing issue agenda options more attractive than just those historically learned and expressed as an aspect of one's gender, race, age, level of education, or — to a lesser extent — level of wealth. Media public issue agendas compete with unique historical agendas of readers/viewers and often win, to the benefit of the social system if the system can agree on workable solutions to the important problems.