Media coverage is attention that a person, business, or event receives from different sources, such as newspapers, television, radio, and online. It’s important for communicators to understand how news coverage is shaped and influenced as it can have an impact on public perception and societal discourse.
Media can be a powerful tool for holding governments accountable and reaching the masses with critical information. However, it can also shape how the public interprets international events like war and conflict. In a recent study on Israeli and Palestinian media coverage, SIS professor Elise Labott examined how the selection, framing, and emphasis placed on specific stories can significantly influence the way the public perceives a given situation.
Labott found that American media coverage of the conflict tends to lean towards the Israeli and American government’s narrative, while ignoring Palestinian perspectives. The result is a lack of balanced coverage which can lead to misinformation and a distorted understanding of the conflict.
In addition, she found that negative media coverage can have a lasting psychological effect on the public. In one example, she cited the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, where people who consumed a lot of negative media coverage were more likely to experience post-traumatic stress symptoms.
Labott believes that journalists and consumers alike must focus on returning to a unbiased reporting model while being mindful of the way the news is presented. Future media consumers must be vigilant fact-checkers and deeply conscious of how the news they consume affects them emotionally.
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