Through a case study of Minnesota daily newspaper editorials, this paper examines the extent to which one state's newspapers championed the freedoms of speech and press during the national crisis of World War I. The historical relationship of the press and First Amendment defense is briefly reviewed. Guided by the question "How did the…

In 1960 a teenage boy, Bill Murray, refused to participate in Bible reading, and the result was a series of court cases that culminated in the 1963 United States Supreme Court decision banning compulsory prayer in public schools. To gain insight into the dynamics of journalism practiced during controversy, a case study attempts to examine the…

A four-month investigation was conducted of media coverage of two controversies involving government officials in Detroit, Michigan. Data were gathered from three sources: journalists involved in covering the stories, people involved in the stories, and the printed stories. Using public documents, the history of one of the controversies was…

To investigate the role of newspaper executives in influencing reporters' political perceptions and coverage of political news, a study examined whether reporters and their executives tend to hold similar views on major domestic and foreign policy issues. Two instruments were developed: a 45-card Q-deck containing liberal, conservative, and…