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Tell Newscasters to Focus on Issues
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Progressive Portal
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Jul 24, 2004 14:05 PDT
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CHANGE THE CULTURE -- BE A *VISIBLE* PROGRESSIVE!
Throughout the country, thousands are displaying
peace and justice flags, posters, bumper stickers,
lapel pins, and other images, showing that we *are*
here and active. Join them:
http://www.progressiveportal.org/merchandise/
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ACTIVISTS WILL ASK LOCAL STATIONS TO SIGN PLEDGE
TO GO BEYOND "HORSERACE" COVERAGE, FOCUS ON ISSUES
[From Media for Democracy <http://www.mediafordemocracy.us>]
The Public Interest, Public Airwaves Coalition - a new alliance that
brings together more than 20 community, policy, and media-reform groups,
endorsed by two FCC Commissioners - has launched a nationwide grassroots
campaign to demand better election coverage on television. The coalition
is urging community members to organize meetings with the managers of
their local TV stations and urge them to go beyond the "sound bites" and
"horserace" analysis that currently dominate most stations' election
coverage.
Specifically, the campaign suggests asking station managers to sign a
pledge to air a minimum of two hours per week of candidate- or
issue-centered discourse during prime viewing hours in the six weeks
prior to the November 2 elections. The pledge campaign will be followed
with citizen monitoring of election coverage to ensure that stations
better serve the public interest in an election year.
Studies show that 42 percent of Americans go to local TV news for their
campaign coverage, but substantive election coverage is dwindling. A
2002 study by the University of Southern California's Annenberg School
for Communication found that more than half of all top-rated local news
broadcasts aired no campaign coverage whatsoever in the seven weeks
leading up to Election Day 2002. (See <>.) A study of election coverage
on three stations in Grand Rapids, MI, in the 30 days leading up to the
2000 primary election there found that of the combined 45 minutes and 29
seconds of air time devoted to the primary, only 2 minutes and 21
seconds had candidates speaking, and 56 seconds of that total was about
issues. For every election story reported by the three stations, there
were 8.3 crime stories.
Sign up today to be part of a nationwide effort to improve election and
political coverage, one station at a time.
Take Action
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Join the campaign and download resources for it at:
http://www.mediafordemocracy.us/mfd/local
Send a message to your local TV news station(s) - find contact
information at:
http://www.congress.org/congressorg/dbq/media/
More Information
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http://www.ourairwaves.org/press/release.php?ReleaseID=57
http://www.bettercampaigns.org/
http://www.stanford.edu/group/gradethenews/pages2/kerry.htm
Grand Rapids 2000 study:
http://www.griid.org/r_pelection_2000.shtml
Annenberg 2002 study:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2002/11/01/politics1458EST0686.DTL
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