Newspaper coverage of genetically modified foods in the United States : a community structure approach

Abstract

Empleando la teoría de la “estructura comunitaria”, un muestreo de diarios principales en 20 ciudades grandes en los EEUU examine la cobertura del tema “alimentos transgénicos”. Seleccionando todos los artículos de 400+ palabras publicados a través de cinco años (entre 01/01/2000 y 12/31/2004) se compararon sistemáticamente características comunitarias y el “Vector Mediático” de Pollock (combinando en un valor dos medidas de contenido: la “prominencia” de un artículo en un periódico con la orientación o tono). Cobertura “favorable” a alimentos transgénicos fué vinculado con medidas de “vulnerabilidad”: porcentaje de pobres (r de Pearson = .624, p = .002); acceso sanitario (porcentaje del presupuesto municipal orientada a asistencia sanitaria, r = .562, p = .005). Sin embargo, cobertura “desfavorable” a alimentos transgénicos fué vinculado también con medidas de alto nivel socioeconómico (educación universitaria o empleo profesional), apoyando una hipótesis de “estabilidad quebrada”. El análisis de factores y su regresión revelaron dos factores significativos asociados con alimentos transgénicos: vulnerabilidad (nivel de desempleo), 40% de la varianca, y con numeros de estancias, 50%.

A geographic cross-section national sample of 20 major US newspapers investigated variations in coverage of Genetically Modified (GM) Foods using a community structure approach. Selecting all 400+ word articles on the topic between 01/2000 and 12/2004 (331 articles) city characteristics were compared systematically with a composite measure of coverage, combining article “prominence” and “direction”, to calculate Pollock’s “Media Vector” for each newspaper. Favorable coverage of GM Foods was strongly connected to measures of “vulnerability”: percent below poverty level (Pearson’s r=.624; p=.002) and access to healthcare (percent municipal budget devoted to healthcare, r=.562; p=.005). Yet coverage of GM foods was also negatively linked to measures of “privilege” (percent college educated, r = -.426, p = .031; percent professionals, r = -.379, p = .05), supporting a “violated buffer” hypothesis: Higher proportions of privileged groups in communities are connected with unfavorable coverage of biological threats or threats to a cherished way of life. Factor analysis of city characteristics and factor regression yielded two significant factors regarding GM Food coverage. Vulnerability (unemployment level) accounted for 40+ percent of the variance; adding number of farms in a community yielded 50 percent.