Award Date

1-1-2005

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Journalism and Media Studies

First Committee Member

Paul Traudt

Number of Pages

68

Abstract

Sensationalism in journalism has been a topic of debate for centuries. Many critics charge that, in general, sensationalism dominates television news over public affairs reporting. However, a gap remains in the literature regarding whether there is an increase in sensationalism during ratings periods over non-ratings periods. This study examined the amounts of sensationalism/human interest stories and local public affairs reporting during those two periods. This study examined the four major local television news stations in Las Vegas: KVBC, KVVU, KLAS, and KTNV. Eight hypotheses were tested. The hypotheses posited that when comparing ratings periods to non-ratings periods, there would be more news time devoted to sensationalism and human interest stories, there would be more embedded sensationalism, and that sensational stories would appear earlier in newscasts.

Keywords

Analysis; Comparing; Content; Local; News; Periods; Ratings; Sensationalism

Controlled Subject

Journalism; Mass media

File Format

pdf

File Size

1187.84 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

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