Suggests that while endorsements seem to sway a few voters, the effect is so small that such endorsements are unlikely to influence the outcome of an election. (FL)

Factor analysis of 50 editors' responses to a questionnaire eliciting information about objectivity found general agreement on the subject but clear differences of emphasis on various aspects of it. (FL)

Discusses how the use of unregulated mass media to convey the health risks of smoking is severely limited by the tobacco industry's power, via advertising dollars, to minimize the coverage of the negative health aspects of smoking in the editorial content of these media. (JD)

Reports that editorial page editors and cartoonists agree on most aspects of the cartoonist's role, but differ on the amount of freedom allowed the cartoonist. (FL)

Results of a survey of 359 editors of nondaily newspapers indicates that most nondaily editors see their editorials and editorial pages as important segments of their newspapers and believe they can use them to help influence readers, particularly on local issues. (Author/GT)

Contradicts chain spokesmen who insist that their endorsement policies during elections are independent of chain direction. (RB)

Concludes that where mayoral campaigns are competing for attention with other election contents at the state and local level, the local newspapers' editorial endorsements have a substantial impact. (RB)

Findings from a 1971-72 North Carolina statewide survey focusing on the newspaper nonreader were compared with results from a similar statewide survey taken in 1961-62 in Wisconsin. Although there were limits to how precisely the two sets of data could be compared, the findings demonstrated that the type of person who chose not to read a newspaper…

A study of newspapers in three Louisiana cities suggests that whether a city's newspapers are owned jointly or by separate owners, little duplication occurs in newspaper appearance or content. (GW)

Traces the evolution of libel law involving the clergy as plaintiff and the news media as defendant. Concludes that the clergy's position in libel suits is not as favorable as it once was but that it is still more favorable than that of most other types of plaintiffs. (FL)

Concludes that most newspapers will reject letters to the editor that they consider to be libelous, but that many make efforts to rehabilitate those letters. (FL)

An analysis of the editorials in ten leading newspapers during the 1976 presidential election shows that considerably more space was devoted to economic issues than to any other specific issue. (GT)

An analysis of the election stories about presidential candidates that appeared in three major news magazines during the 1976 presidential campaign reveals that coverage of Eugene McCarthy's candidacy was unbiased but meager. (GT)