A study examined coverage of Alger Hiss's trial for spying for the Soviet Union in the conservative Los Angeles "Times" and Chicago "Tribune," and the liberal Washington "Post" and New York "Times." It was hypothesized that (1) the liberal newspapers would favor Hiss, especially in their editorials; (2) the…

A content analysis of selected Soviet newspapers and magazines was conducted to examine what cultural events from the United States were featured in the Soviet press, whether the event or artist was presented favorably or unfavorably, and whether the stories were used to make an ideological statement. Nine publications were examined over a…

Analysis of the coverage given by 35 newspapers to United States-Soviet Union relations during 1934-41 reveals that newspapers with the most interest in foreign affairs expressed the opinion that Stalin had abandoned the idea of world revolution, while those with less interest viewed him as an imperialist. (FL)

The concept of "objectivity" suggests that facts are selected and constructed according to formal rules by professional journalists. A comparison of American and Soviet concepts of news leads to the observation that both share similar claims to objectivity. The similarity defies whether objectivity assumes the form of facts detached from…

A study examined the ideological rift reflected in two communist-oriented and one Western-oriented Nicaraguan newspapers. It was hypothesized that items in "La Prensa" would refer to the United States more favorably and more frequently than they would refer to the Soviet bloc, while items in "Barricada" and "Diario"…

A study investigated three United States and three foreign newspapers to determine the direction or bias of coverage of the 1983 Korean Airline (KAL) incident and any differences in coverage. It was hypothesized (1) that the amount of space allotted to the story in U. S. newspapers would be greater than that in foreign newspapers; (2) that there…

The shooting down of KAL Flight 007, a South Korean airliner, by a Soviet jet fighter, and the resulting deaths of the 269 people on board, has brought into focus the Reagan's administration's equivocal relationship with the Soviet Union, provided insights into the channels of power in the Soviet military hierarchy, and led other nations to…

Evaluates how well the media guided readers and viewers through the Chernobyl disaster. Concludes that the press and television did not provide enough radiation and risk information in their coverage of the Chernobyl accident, but what was provided was appropriate, even-handed, and conservative. (NKA)

Investigates and compares events following two nuclear accidents in the United States and the Soviet Union. Considers that the accompanying flow of information shows that the optimistic bulletins of official sources provided too few facts and weakened credibility with both journalists and the public. (NKA)

A Study investigated the informal methods of governmental information control used in four countries--the United States, Great Britain, West Germany, and the Soviet Union--to determine how the governments discretely and quietly limited unfavorable publicity. The examination revealed seven possible control methods: (1) preemptive leaks, (2)…

A study analyzed the content of "Pravda," the major newspaper of the Soviet Communist Party and "Vremya," the main evening news program of Soviet television for changes that could be attributed to Soviet General Secretary Gorbachev's policy of "glasnost" (openness). The "Pravda" sample consisted of 18…

A study examined the influence of nation states' self-interests on their media's coverage of a major news event, in this instance, the Soviet shooting down of a Korean airliner. It was hypothesized (1) that there would be discrepancies between different accounts of the KAL 007 incident, a complex news event with international political…

Debates and policies in the late 1950s and early 1960s regarding the United States-Soviet space race are described in this paper, and an analysis is presented of press coverage of President John F. Kennedy's public statements regarding space technology and exploration. The first sections of the paper present a selected space chronology from 1957…

Examines press coverage of the Holocaust to analyze the response of the United States and the world to the Jewish extermination. Compares this coverage to earlier press responses to the Armenian genocide and Ukraine famines. Argues the press was unwilling to face the Holocaust's magnitude. Urges teachers to teach about the Holocaust and similar…

Explains that the news media commit fundamental errors of attribution in covering risk situations by (1) treating them as novelties, (2) failing to analyze the entire system, and (3) using insufficiently analytical language. (NKA)