Media Bias Research Articles

Framing the space of performance enhancing drug use in sport: Nationalism bias in the Australian Media

ABSTRACT Sports media regularly frames the issue of performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) through the ideals of morality, nationalism and expected behaviours. This has provided an emergent focus for research studies and extensive and enlightening coverage. This study aims to identify how the Australian media frames PEDs across a diverse range of media sources through the selection of five print and online media publications. Using nationalism bias and media framing, the study researched the prevailing positions, language and framing each publication used to report on individuals associated with, linked to or found to be using, PEDs. The prevalent, ‘nationalism-based’ reporting emerged, glorifying anti-doping procedures in relation to international athletes and sporting programmes. In comparison, the guilt and severity of punishments given to Australian athletes was questioned. Thus, the reporting presents both a political and biased narrative that is explored further within this manuscript.

Discerning media bias within a network of political allies and opponents: Disruption by partisans

An individual’s opinions about media bias derive from their own independent assessment of media outputs combined with peer pressure from networked political allies and opponents. Here we generalize previous idealized, probabilistic models of the perception formation process, based on a network of Bayesian learners inferring the bias of a coin, by introducing obdurate agents (partisans), whose opinions stay fixed. It is found that even one partisan destabilizes an allies-only network, stopping it from achieving asymptotic learning and forcing persuadable agents to vacillate indefinitely (turbulent nonconvergence) between the true coin bias θ0 and the partisan’s belief θp. The dwell time td at the partisan’s belief increases, as the partisan fraction f increases, and decreases, when multiple partisans disagree amongst themselves. In opponents-only networks, asymptotic learning occurs, whether or not partisans are present. However, the counterintuitive tendency to reach wrong conclusions first, identified in previous work with zero partisans, does not persist in general for θ0≠θp in complete networks; it is a property of sparsely connected systems (e.g. Barabási–Albert networks with attachment parameter ≲10). In mixed networks containing allies and opponents, partisans drive counterintuitive outcomes, which depend sensitively, on where they reside. A strongly balanced triad exhibits intermittency with a partisan (sudden transitions between long intervals of static beliefs and turbulent nonconvergence) and asymptotic learning without a partisan. Counterintuitively, in an unbalanced triad, one of the persuadable agents achieves asymptotic learning at θ0, when the partisan is located favorably, but is driven away from θ0, when there is no partisan. The above results are interpreted briefly in terms of the social science theory of structural balance.

Images, Emotions, and Credibility: Effect of Emotional Facial Expressions on Perceptions of News Content Bias and Source Credibility in Social Media

Images are an indispensable part of the news we consume. Highly emotional images from mainstream and misinformation sources can greatly influence our trust in the news. We present two studies on the effects of emotional facial images on users' perception of bias in news content and the credibility of sources. In study 1, we investigate the impact of repeated exposure to content with images containing positive or negative facial expressions on users’ judgements of source credibility and bias. In study 2, we focus on sources' systematic emotional portrayal of specific politicians. Our results show the presence of negative (angry) facial emotions can lead to perceptions of higher bias in content. We also find that systematic portrayal negative portrayal of different politicians leads to lower perceptions of source credibility. These results highlight how implicit visual propositions manifested by emotions in facial expressions might have a substantial effect on our trust in news.

The I Ching as a medium: An adjectival glossary

After presenting the I Ching as a medium, this piece goes on to reveal the characteristics of the ancient Chinese sacred book from diverse perspectives. To maintain a fast tempo, and to stay within the bounds of what counts as a probe, the entries have been explained in a suggestive rather than exhaustive manner. Put otherwise, the piece seeks to say more with less, much like how the I Ching itself communicates. Although arranged alphabetically, the entries can be read in any order. As a matter of fact, the reader may experience the shock of recognition when leaping from entry to entry aleatorily. To pay homage to McLuhan, the piece ends with a tetrad on the I Ching. The reader is encouraged to read the piece in dialogue with ‘McLuhan and the I Ching: An interological inquiry’, ‘Flusser and the I Ching’ and ‘Focal knowledge, medium bias, and metamedium’.

Israeli media coverage of international male and female politicians: Gender and ethnopolitical aspects

AbstractIn 2015, the Israeli newspaperYedioth Ahronothbegan a campaign against Sweden’s Foreign Minister, Margot Wallström, who is considered a prominent critic of Israeli policy in Palestine. The campaign included various aspects of media bias on both the gender and the ethnopolitical levels and thus raised the question of a possible relationship between these two types of biases. Studies in relation to political communication and gender have traditionally focused on the media coverage of domestic male and female politicians. The present study attempts to examine the gender media coverage of prominent international political actors. It performs a mixed content analysis of 529 news items from three Israeli online newspapers, reports, and articles, which cover world-renowned public figures (among them, Wallström). Each news item is coded into three gender-coverage frames. Additionally, a critical reading of the journalistic texts is conducted. The findings reveal that the combination of the two types of biases, the gender and the political, escalates the media sensation and stereotyping.

The Influence of News Consumption Habits and Dispositional Traits on Trust in Medical Scientists.

Public trust in medical institutions is essential for ensuring compliance with medical directives. However, the politicization of public health issues and the polarized nature of major news outlets suggest that partisanship and news consumption habits can influence medical trust. This study employed a survey with 858 participants and used regression analysis to assesses how news consumption habits and information assessment traits (IATs) influence trust in medical scientists. IATs included were conscientiousness, openness, need for cognitive closure (NFCC), and cognitive reflective thinking (CRT). News sources were classified on the basis of factuality and political bias. Initially, readership of liberally biased news was positively associated with medical trust (p < 0.05). However, this association disappeared when controlling for the news source's factuality (p = 0.28), while CRT (p < 0.05) was positively associated with medical trust. When controlling for conservatively biased news sources, factuality of the news source (p < 0.05) and NFCC (p < 0.05) were positively associated with medical trust. While partisan media bias may influence medical trust, these results suggest that those who have higher abilities to assess information and who prefer more credible news sources have a greater trust in medical scientists.

Partisan Bias in Flu News and Its Impacts on Flu Vaccination Uptake in the U.S.

ABSTRACT Partisan gaps exist over flu vaccination. Guided by partisan media bias and motivated reasoning theories, this study examined partisan presentation bias in flu news and its impacts on flu vaccination uptake by analyzing 4150 news articles published in 48 U.S. newspapers from 2011 to 2018. Results revealed that partisan media did not utilize each news frame differently. Left-leaning media used flu news frames significantly differently and preferred to use the frames of risk population, flu prevention tips, and influenza caused deaths or illnesses stories. Neither least biased media nor right-leaning media used flu news frames significantly differently. Left-leaning media increased flu vaccine uptake among children and adults before adjusting for any confounders. After controlling for confounders, left-leaning media were no longer a significant predictor. Least biased media nor right-leaning media did not impact flu vaccine uptake among children and adults. Flu news articles published in all partisan media displayed seasonality.

Framing biases and language choices: how the Japanese media broadcast foreign aid policy for Africa

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate how the Japanese media conveyed the country’s foreign aid policy and analyse how framing biases in the news differ depending on which language (either Japanese or English) was used in the broadcasts.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses a qualitative single case-study design and conducts a content analysis. The study uses news videos about the fifth Tokyo International Conference on African Development aired on YouTube by the Japanese media using Japanese and English.FindingsThe findings reveal subtle but notable differences in the patterns of the framing biases in the Japanese media’s news aired in Japanese intended for the domestic audience, and in the news on the same topic broadcast in English to the international audience.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of the study is the rather small data set used for the single case study of one event.Social implicationsFraming biases could lead the general public in a monolingual society to a more skewed view of their government’s policy and its activities abroad. This could be an obstacle to developing a common ground for global issues and cross-border policy agendas.Originality/valueThe study explores an under-researched function of language in international affairs. It highlights how the mass media in a non-English-speaking country uses a dual approach to framing news while addressing different audiences. To the best of the author’s knowledge, the context that this paper deals with is novel because there are limited studies on the nexus between the influence of language choices and media logic in the field of international business.

Animal-Related Injuries and Fatalities in the AgInjurynews Collection

ABSTRACT Objectives This research had three objectives. The first was to characterize reports of animal-related injuries found in the AgInjuryNews Dataset. The second objective was to compare the results of the AgInjuryNews reports to that of the Regional Rural Injury study. The third objective was to qualitatively and quantitatively assess the utility of using the AgInjuryNews database. Methods A total of 104 reports on animal-related incidents representing 112 victims were sourced from AgInjuryNews. Chi square tests were performed comparing fatal and non-fatal injuries across age, gender, role in incident, animal, and activity. Additional chi square tests were performed to compare AgInjuryNews data with the results of Regional Rural Injury Study II across age, gender, animal, and activity. Utility of the dataset was assessed by examining the distribution of reports across states, the availability of articles, and qualitative observations. Results Chi square results comparing fatal and nonfatal injuries were significant for victim gender. Results of the comparison of the two studies were significant for age and activity. A mismatch between the states with the highest populations of large animals and the states with the most reports in the AgInjryNews.org database was detected. Approximately 42% of reports the original articles were not accessible. Media bias plays a role in which cases are reported, but the size and accessibility of the dataset increases its utility. Conclusion Despite the limitations inherent to the dataset, the amount of freely accessible information and the level of insight provided make AgInjuryNews a valuable resource for agricultural injury research.

Deficits and biases in the leading German press coverage of the Greek sovereign debt crisis

Abstract In times of crisis and social turbulence, the mass media play a crucial role. This becomes particularly evident in economic crises within the European Union. The (biased) way the crisis is reported shapes people’s understanding of the crisis and the parties involved. In this study, the coverage of the Greek sovereign debt crisis in the German newspapers BILD, Die Welt, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Süddeutsche Zeitung, tageszeitung and Der Spiegel (online) is examined for the quality criteria relevance, neutrality, balance, and analytical quality. The results show that the reporting is appropriate to the relevance of the topic, but shows deficits in the criteria of balance, neutrality, and analytical quality. During the study period, coverage focuses on a small number of topics, journalists include their value judgments in news and reports. Overall, there is an obvious media bias against the Greek government’s position.

Toward Parsimony in Bias Research: A Proposed Common Framework of Belief-Consistent Information Processing for a Set of Biases

One of the essential insights from psychological research is that people’s information processing is often biased. By now, a number of different biases have been identified and empirically demonstrated. Unfortunately, however, these biases have often been examined in separate lines of research, thereby precluding the recognition of shared principles. Here we argue that several—so far mostly unrelated—biases (e.g., bias blind spot, hostile media bias, egocentric/ethnocentric bias, outcome bias) can be traced back to the combination of a fundamental prior belief and humans’ tendency toward belief-consistent information processing. What varies between different biases is essentially the specific belief that guides information processing. More importantly, we propose that different biases even share the same underlying belief and differ only in the specific outcome of information processing that is assessed (i.e., the dependent variable), thus tapping into different manifestations of the same latent information processing. In other words, we propose for discussion a model that suffices to explain several different biases. We thereby suggest a more parsimonious approach compared with current theoretical explanations of these biases. We also generate novel hypotheses that follow directly from the integrative nature of our perspective.

How Framing Affects Roe’s News

There have been some theoretical arguments regarding framing among researchers despite differences over various forms. However, there hasn't been much empirical research done on the actual implementation of these theories. By contrasting important phrases and statements from coverage of Roe v. Wade’s abortion rights case by two major news organizations—the liberal New York Times and the conservative Fox News, this study examines how a conversation that is framed affects people's political media bias. Findings show that news framing plays an important role in influencing the reader’s interpretation of the event. This study is helpful for readers to understand clearly the real-world applications of framing to win others’ support.

Addressing racial misinformation at school: a psycho-social intervention aimed at reducing ethnic moral disengagement in adolescents

The present study aims to examine whether by promoting the socio-analytic thinking it is possible to intervene in the reliance on ethnic moral disengagement as a negative consequence of racial misleading news, that can seriously contribute to the diffusion of ethnic prejudice. We focus on the neglected phenomenon of racial hoaxes, which can be defined as misleading news stories dealing with health or safety threats, in which the protagonist is described in terms of ethnicity or nationality. The intervention procedure has been created starting from the well-established literature focused on media biases’ reflection, integrated with the recent studies on ‘mediated intergroup contact’ where the observation of the person belonging to the outgroup is crucial for prejudice reduction. The intervention involved 83 adolescents (Mage = 13.9; SDage = 0.9) and it was composed of two different parts, one focused on the analytical racial hoax reading, and the other focused on racial hoax rewriting after the ‘mediated contact’, represented by an alternative story given by the African protagonist. The results show that in dealing with misleading news, the promotion of this social-analytic processing reduces ethnic biases of moral disengagement. In particular, it was found that analytical processes are supported by the participants’ level of propensity for analytical reasoning and that these processes directly hinder distorted ethnic beliefs. Overall, these results suggest that improving social-analytic processes related to reflexivity could be an effective intervention to counter those distorted beliefs, such as ethnic disengagement beliefs, associated with discrimination and racial prejudice.

Decoding Mass Media Bias: An In-depth Examination of Content Actor Representation and Partisanship in Indian Newspapers

Decoding Mass Media Bias: An In-depth Examination of Content Actor Representation and Partisanship in Indian Newspapers

Science communication in the media and human mobility during the COVID-19 pandemic: a time series and content analysis

ObjectivesThe relationship between human mobility and nature of science (NOS) salience in the UK news media was examined. Study designThis is a mixed-method study. MethodsA time series NOS salience data set was established from the content analysis of 1520 news articles related to non-pharmaceutical interventions of COVID-19. Data were taken from articles published between November 2021 and February 2022, which correlates with period of the change from pandemic to endemic status. Vector autoregressive model fitting with human mobility took place. ResultsThe findings suggest that it was not the number of COVID-19 news articles nor the actual number of cases/deaths, but the specific NOS content that was associated with mobility change during the pandemic. Data indicate a Granger causal negative direction (P < 0.1) for the effect of the NOS salience represented in the news media on mobility in parks, as well as the effect of scientific practice, scientific knowledge and professional activities communicated in news media on recreational activities and grocery shopping. NOS salience was not associated with the mobility for transit, work or residential locations (P > 0.1). ConclusionsThe findings of the study suggest that the ways in which the news media discuss epidemics can influence changes in human mobility. It is therefore essential that public health communicators emphasise the basis of scientific evidence to eliminate potential media bias in health and science communication for the promotion of public health policy. The present study approach, which combines time series and content analysis and uses an interdisciplinary lens from science communication, could also be adopted to other interdisciplinary health-related topics.

Communicating Climate Change: The Impact of Animated Data Visualizations on Perceptions of Journalistic Motive and Media Bias

ABSTRACT Focusing on maps, a common technique for conveying climate change information, this study uses an experiment (N = 423) to test how the type (static vs. animated) and repeated exposure (one vs. two) of visualizations impact biased perceptions. Presented with a pro-climate change regulations news article, participants who read the version with animated visualizations perceived the story to be more biased than those who were presented with static images. Further, a perceived advocacy motive mediated the triggering of an animated visualization to arouse more biased perceptions in favor of climate regulations. The implications for democratic ideals are discussed.

The Impact of Gender Bias in Social Media on Women's Job Development

With the development of the Internet, social media has gradually become the main way for people to find jobs. However, such a job search method is not absolutely fair. On the contrary, women suffer from gender bias in every way. This article aims to specifically discuss similar gender biases and their distress and potential risks to women from three aspects.

All’s Fair in Pandemic and War? A Gendered Analysis of Australian Coverage of Covid-19

The Covid-19 pandemic has repeatedly been framed by politicians and the media alike as this generation’s “Great War.” Metaphors are often used in political reportage as effective discursive tools to influence and persuade readers. War metaphors especially are frequently used in election campaigns, leadership spills, and during times of political unrest to portray politics as a brutal and competitive (masculine) arena. As such, the use of militaristic language and war metaphors to describe the shared challenges during a global pandemic is unsurprising. Framing the pandemic as a war can rally citizens by appealing to their sense of national and civic duty at a moment of crisis. Yet such framing is problematic as it draws on stereotyping cultural myths and values associated with war, reinforcing patriarchal understandings of bravery and service that glorify hegemonic masculinity while excluding women from the public sphere. Using a feminist critical discourse analysis, this article will examine Australian print media coverage of the first six months of the Covid-19 pandemic, focusing on two case studies—the prime minister and “frontline” workers—to further understand the gender bias of mainstream media. We argue that, by drawing on war metaphors in Covid-19 coverage which emphasizes protective masculinity, the media reproduce and re-enforce political and societal gender stereotypes and imbalances.

Two models for illustrating the economics of media bias in a policy-oriented course

Media bias is an important and underexplored feature of the economics of information. In this article, the author outlines two models that can be used to illustrate media bias in a policy-oriented undergraduate economics or public policy course. The models rely on relatively simple and intuitive underlying assumptions and draw on related empirical research. They do not require extensive mathematical derivations, although the models can easily be extended for more mathematically-inclined students. The models are useful in linking economic theory and empirical research in a context that undergraduate students can relate to and in which they often have direct experience. The models also can be used to motivate a range of discussions on media and competition policy.

How COVID-19 News Affect Older Adults' Mental Health-Evidence of a Positivity Bias.

Media affects the trajectory of many individuals' mental health-with media news, individuals experience negative bias more than positive bias. However, there is also evidence of an age-related positivity effect, with negativity bias generally fading with age. With the rise of COVID-19 cases, older adults (aged 55 years and older) who consume media frequently are at a high risk for declining mental health. To date, there has been no research on the positivity vs. negativity bias of media news on older adults. Here, we investigated whether positivity or negativity bias plays a larger role in affecting how older adults react to COVID-19 news. Sixty-nine older adults (aged 55-95) answered questions about their weekly media consumption and how closely they followed news relating to COVID-19. They also completed a general health questionnaire. They were then randomly assigned to read either positive or negative COVID-19 news (n = 35 and 34, respectively). The adults were asked if the news made them feel happy or fearful, and if they wanted to read more about the news or ignore the news. An analysis revealed that the more often older adults consumed media and the more closely they followed COVID-19 news, the more they felt unhappy and depressed. Importantly, older adults who read positive news reported stronger responses than those who read negative news. Older adults appeared to have a strong positivity bias for COVID-19 news, reporting feeling happy and wanting to read about positive news. In contrast, negative COVID-19 news did not evoke similar levels of response from the older adults. Media consumption of COVID-19 news does negatively impact the mental well-being of older adults, but older adults appear to have a strong positivity bias and a lack of negativity bias for COVID-19 news. These findings suggest that older adults can remain hopeful and positive during periods of public health crises and intense stress, which is essential to sustaining their mental well-being during difficult times.