Main Idea
What is the main institution this article studies?
Congress
What research method did the authors use?
Content analysis
What type of congressional coverage appeared the most: editorials, straight news, or cartoons?
Straight news
Did newspapers usually focus more on individual members or institutional actions?
Institutional actions
what are the three valence categories the authors used?
Positive, negative, and neutral/balanced
according to the article, what major source shapes what many Americans know about congress?
Newspapers
How many newspapers did the authors study?
10
Which paper had the most congressional coverage in the study?
The Washington Post
Which chamber was often seen by journalists as having more “action”?
The Senate
Which kind of tone most often appeared?
Neutral/balanced
What is the authors’ main argument about newspaper coverage of Congress?
It gives readers an incomplete picture and often contributes to negative views of Congress
About how many newspaper items did the authors analyze?
About 2,300
Which paper relied most heavily on wire service copy?
The Philadelphia Inquirer
What famous paradox do the authors mention about public opinion toward Congress?
People dislike Congress as an institution but often like their own representative
which part of newspapers tended to be most nagative toward congress?
Editorials
What do the authors say newspaper coverage can influence besides people’s knowledge?
Their evaluations, opinions, and perceptions of Congress
What year was the newspaper sample taken from?
1978
According to the article, wire service stories usually lacked what compared to staff-written stories?
Depth, detail, explanation of process, and insider perspective
What did the authors find about coverage of local members of Congress?
It was often not strongly negative and sometimes showed parochialism/protection of local incumbents
Did the authors find that all congressional coverage was mostly negative?
No
Why do the authors believe media coverage matters so much for democracy?
Because many citizens rely on media to understand Congress, so coverage shapes public trust and understanding of government
Name two things the authors coded in each article.
Any two of these: type, source, focus, names mentioned, form/activity, setting, policy area, valence
What was one major difference between the Washington Post story and the AP story on the Turkey arms embargo vote?
The Post included much more detail, such as leadership maneuvering, party breakdowns, and the drama behind the vote
How could newspaper coverage help explain why people trust their own representative more than Congress as a whole?
Papers often avoid strongly negative local coverage while broader institutional coverage can be more critical, making Congress look worse than individual members
Why do you think even "neutral" coverage can still hurt congress's image?
because it emphasizes conflict, scandals, and surface level events without fully explaining how congress works.