Issues and Democratic Primaries 2004

What Influences the News Coverage that Candidates Receive on Issues?
A Look at National Security Coverage in the 2004 Presidential Election

Conclusions

The more coverage a candidate receives in the media means the more exposure the candidate gets to the voters, which often translates into more votes on Election Day. But, what can influence the amount of news coverage that candidates receive on issues?

The existing literature proposes some reasons why some candidates receive more general coverage than others. But, it does not clearly distinguish between the amount of coverage that a candidate receives and the amount of coverage that a candidate’s issue receives. This study goes beyond the existing literature and looks at what influences the amount of coverage that a candidate’s issue receives.

This study looked at what influenced the amount of print news coverage Presidential candidates received on national security. The results showed that several variables did have an effect on the amount of coverage candidates received. Candidates can use this information when running for office to maximize the amount of exposure they receive in the media.

First of all, the candidates have to make it easy for reporters to write their story. This study showed that candidates could do this through press conferences and speeches. Since these events are done primarily for the reporter’s benefit, the reporter will be more likely to attend and give the candidate’s issue coverage.

Secondly, candidates need to be aware that certain days in the campaign process provide more coverage than other days. This study showed that the days that were closer to March 3, 2004, and therefore closer to the National Party Convention and the Presidential Election, received more coverage. Also, the days in the middle of the week provided more coverage for national security because most hard news stories are reported on in the middle of the week.

In addition, when certain events happen that bring elections or particular issues to the public attention, candidates receive more coverage. This study showed that Primaries and Caucuses were some events that were important to election news coverage. The State of the Union address and the day that the terror alert level rose to high were also important events that brought national security to the public attention.

And finally, the fewer the candidates there are in a race, the more coverage each candidate will receive. This is in part due to the momentum that the candidates receive. When the candidates are doing well in the polls they tend to receive more coverage. With the increased coverage that each candidate receives, the candidate will often fare even better in the polls because of the exposure in the media.

This study showed what factors influence the amount of coverage candidates received on a particular issue. Areas of further study could build on these finding to look into whether the coverage that the candidates received was positive or negative. Are there any influences that give candidates more positive coverage than others?

Another area of further study could be done in an election year when there is not an incumbent President in the race. It would be interesting to see if Republican candidates and Democratic candidates have the same influences on exposure of a particular issue in the media. This study could be done on two types of issues: issues where one party can claim ‘ownership’ and issues that neither party can claim because they are neutral.

The public gains most of their information about politics from the news media. Therefore, the public should be aware of what influences the coverage that reporters give to certain politicians and also how politicians can manipulate the media. This helps the public to be better informed, critical readers of the news.

By Carrie Rafer

© Davidson College, 2004, Department of Political Science, Davidson College, Davidson, NC 28035
Send comments, questions, and suggestions to Patrick Sellers
Created: 4/27/2004. Last updated: 5/2/2004.