Media Bias in Presidential Press Questions

• In Event: Covering Politics: New Political Journalism Research

Abstract

This paper proposes a novel mechanism through which media bias can influence public opinion. Although a rich literature shows that members of the media can selectively report and frame the stories that they write, researchers typically assume that journalists do not affect the underlying process through which newsworthy content is actually generated. In contrast, we analyze situations in which members of the press directly influence the stories they report. This is particularly acute in the context of interviews with prominent politicians, where minor changes in question tone and content can dramatically alter public perception of the interview subject. Using an original dataset of more than 250,000 questions posed to American presidents, White House press secretaries, and other administration officials, we find evidence that reporters systematically change the tone of their questions based on the party affiliation and personal characteristics of the respondent.

Authors

• Brandon Merrell, U of California, San Diego

• Kevin J. Calderwood, U of Washington