Trust Me, I'm a Doctor: Media Claims of Deficiencies in Skill and Knowledge on the Part of Physicians

• In Event: Representing Health in Print and Broadcast Media: Four Content Analyses

Abstract

Newspaper articles on health issues often point to deficiencies in the healthcare system as reasons for poor public health. Some such stories specifically identify deficits in practicing physicians’ expertise as likely to put patients at risk. Media-claims that doctors are not knowledgeable can highlight the need for improvement in medical practice, but may also undermine trust in doctor-patient relationships. This paper is a content analysis of recent articles describing physician-deficiencies in U.S. and international newspapers.

Author

• Joshua Albert Braun, Cornell University