mediacrit.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A study by Christopher R. Martin, Ph.D. and Peter Dreier, Ph.D.
Using the controversy over ACORN as a case study, this report illustrates the way the media help set the agenda for public debate, and frame the way that debate is shaped. It describes how “opinion entrepreneurs” (primarily business and conservative groups and individuals) [...]

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It happened again. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier had a special “green” tabloid section in their Sunday, April 20 newspaper, with big full-page ad by LS Power. After doing the same thing last year, it appears that Courier is operating in an irony-free zone where “green” and “coal-fired power plant” can mean the same thing.

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Back around November 5, when the Writers Guild of America first called a strike against the major entertainment studios, there were almost hysterical reports in the news media — what are we going to do without new episodes of our favorite TV programs? Like, Omigosh! The January 25 Entertainment Weekly even had a special “Strike Survival Guide” issue with cover of a bearded Conan O’Brien (who, along with David Letterman, used the time off the screen to watch his facial hair grow) that boasted “67 tips to beat the entertainment dry spell.”

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At one point, in live, late night coverage, CNN’s Anderson Cooper reminded viewers that this Appalachian region mines a lot of coal, which is used to fuel many of the power plants supplying electricity to viewers around the country. (In fact, more than half of the electricity used in the U.S. comes from coal.)

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