Indicates mixed support for the hypothesis that editorial sections publish a positive ratio of favorable to unfavorable commentary about endorsed candidates and a negative ratio of favorable to unfavorable commentary about unendorsed candidates. Suggests that editorial sections in some newspapers may be more internally balanced in their political…

Reports that (1) the length and number of news items about aging and the aged in 10 metropolitan newspapers were disproportionate to the proportion of aged persons in the population, and (2) the tone of such newspaper stories was positive or neutral. (GT)

A content analysis of newspapers in 11 Texas cities between 1975 and 1977 suggests that only editorial page coverage favored mayoral candidates endorsed by the newspapers and that all serious candidates had an equal chance of receiving fair campaign coverage in their respective city newspapers. (GT)

The scope, methods, data, conclusions, and recommendations of a study examining press coverage of libraries and their services in Iran are presented, as are the views of librarians concerning such coverage or the lack of it. Tables provide totals of library-oriented items printed in Iranian dailies, weeklies, and monthlies. (FM)

A return to excellence and ethics can end the bashing of the press and earn it respect. H. L. Mencken was an outstanding press-basher. One problem he identified is that journalists see themselves as professionals, when they are no more than "hired hands" unable to control admission to the craft. A solution Mencken offered was to improve…

While the founders of the penny press did not set out to establish a truer form of journalism, they did popularize both low prices for newspapers and newspaper economics based on sales instead of political party backing. The history of "The Sun,""The Herald," and "The Tribune" disprove the idea (advanced by journalism…

The liberal bias of the "St. Louis Post-Dispatch" has been well-documented, but memoranda between editor-publisher Joseph Pulitzer II and two of his key editors, Julius Klyman and Irving Dilliard, reveal a tug-of-war over the newspaper's liberal treatment of communism from 1940 to 1955. Klyman, editor of the "Pictures"…

A content analysis of selected print media examined press coverage of the shuttle Challenger explosion. Press sources identifying and explaining technological causes were tabulated for two major newspapers, three popular newsmagazines, and one trade magazine, during the 30 days following the event. Results revealed (1) a failure to provide timely…

The following 11 papers, on a variety of topics, were given at the 1990 meeting of the American Journalism Historians' Association: (1) "They Hang Editors Don't They?: Free Speech and Free Press Issues in the Haymarket Case, 1886" (Nathaniel Hong); (2) "G. K. Chesterton and the British Press, 1911-1933" (Dean Rapp); (3)…

A case study examined a 1920 controversy between two newspapers. One of the last vestiges of the era of "yellow journalism" was the editorial "war" between the Kansas City "Star" and the Kansas City "Post" which culminated in a 1921 showdown. The "Star," a champion of main street interests and…

To measure the editorial advocacy of influential newspapers concerning the membership of the Supreme Court, a study analyzed editorials from such newspapers concerning the last five Supreme Court nominees of President Ronald Reagan (William Rehnquist, Antonin Scalia, Robert Bork, Douglas Ginsburg, and Anthony Kennedy). A telephone survey of 100…

A study examined the coverage of the 1984 Jesse Jackson presidential campaign in the "New York Times,""Washington Post,""Chicago Tribune," and "Los Angeles Times," noting (1) the number of stories that mention Jackson; (2) the total column inches devoted to the stories mentioning Jackson; (3) subject matter…