Joining the World of Journals

Welcome to the nation’s first and, to our knowledge, only undergraduate research journal in communi-
cations.
We discovered this fact while perusing the Web site of the Council on Undergraduate Research,
which lists and links to the 60 or so undergraduate research journals nationwide (http://www.cur.org/ugjournal.
html).
Some of these journals focus on a discipline (e.g., Journal of Undergraduate Research in Physics),
some are university-based and multidisciplinary (e.g., MIT Undergraduate Research Journal), and some are
university-based and disciplinary (e.g., Furman University Electronic Journal in Undergraduate Mathematics).
The Elon Journal is the first to focus on undergraduate research in journalism, media and communi-
cations.
The School of Communications at Elon University is the creator and publisher of the online journal.
The second issue was published in Fall 2010 under the editorship of Dr. Byung Lee, associate professor in
the School of Communications.
The three purposes of the journal are:
• To publish the best undergraduate research in Elon’s School of Communications each term,
• To serve as a repository for quality work to benefit future students seeking models for how to do
undergraduate research well, and
• To advance the university’s priority to emphasize undergraduate student research.
The Elon Journal is published twice a year, with spring and fall issues.
Articles and other materials in the journal may be freely downloaded, reproduced and redistributed
without permission as long as the author and source are properly cited. Student authors retain copyright own-
ership of their works.

Celebrating Student Research

This journal reflects what we enjoy seeing in our students -- intellectual maturing.
As 18 year olds, some students enter college wanting to earn a degree, but unsure if they want an
education. They may question whether communication theory has anything to do with real life. Ready to start
their media careers, many would rather focus on workplace skills than analyze issues and concepts.
In Elon’s School of Communications, we strive for a balance among concepts, writing and production.
All are important.
Student media and organizations are terrific venues for the practice of journalism, broadcasting, pub-
lic relations, advertising and cinema.
In turn, this journal celebrates the life of the intellect through undergraduate research. It represents
the intellectual maturing that occurs by the senior year.
These published articles make us aware of the solitary hours that students spend in research and the
untold hours in which student and teacher-mentor work together to revise a paper for public consumption. It’s
exciting to see students conducting research in such arenas as social media and press freedom.
By focusing attention on undergraduate research, this journal helps reinforce all that we think a uni-
versity should be.

Dr. Paul Parsons, Dean

School of Communications
Editor’s Note

For the Fall 2010 issue, 10 papers were selected for publication out of 25 submitted. Among many
topics, new media issues were dominant. Social media was covered by two papers; instant blogging, podcast,
and digital music were covered by one paper each. Other topics, such as health communications, were cov-
ered by two papers, and traditional areas, such as analysis of newspaper coverage, TV coverage and public
relations, were also covered by one student each.
Writing a research paper was quite a learning process to them, which was well summarized by one
author, Michell Newman. She said, “Not only did I learn a lot about my topic, but writing this article taught me
a lot about the research process. I discovered the importance of planning a systematic method and following
that method accordingly. The most important lesson, I think, was accepting that every research project does
not have to be successful to be important. Just because my hypotheses were not correct or I couldn’t find
significant relationships does not mean my project was pointless. We are still able to learn from ‘failed’ experi-
ments.”
Having the first issue under their belt, people seemed to feel more confident. Student authors ex-
pressed that the articles in the first issue helped them identify tone, length, format, and style of papers that
can qualify for the journal. They also felt encouraged after learning that a good paper could be written within a
semester. The production process was much smoother: scheduling was much easier because we know who
should be responsible for what and how much of time will be needed for each task. I could take advantage
of my InDesign skill that I sharpened in the production of the first issue. I believe other colleagues would feel
more certain this time, even though it still must have been a daunting task, especially considering that all the
work should be done at the last minute of the Spring semester.
Among others, I appreciate the effort of the Spring 2010 senior capstone professors -- Dr. Naeemah
Clark, Dr. David Copeland, Dr. Anthony Hatcher and Dr. George Padgett -- who guided student research
and selected submissions on time, even on a tight deadline. The online issue also reflects the work of Jason
McMerty, who filmed and edited videos of the students, and Colin Donohue, who posted this journal online.
I hope the articles in this issue will inspire students in the next semester to be more serious about
research and submit their papers to this journal.

Dr. Byung Lee

Journal Editor

Editorial Board

Seventeen faculty members in Elon’s School of Communications served as the Editorial Board that
selected the 10 undergraduate research papers appearing in the Fall 2010 issue.
From more than 100 research papers written in advanced School of Communications classes, 25
were submitted to the journal by Elon communications students through the encouragement and mentoring of
capstone teachers and other professors in the school. Under the direction of journal editor Byung Lee, each
paper was evaluated in a multiple blind-review process to identify the best student work.
Professors who served as the Editorial Board were Brooke Barnett, Connie Book, Naeemah Clark,
David Copeland, Vic Costello, Michelle Ferrier, Amanda Gallagher, Anthony Hatcher, Dan Haygood, Richard
Landesberg, Harlen Makemson, Barbara Miller, Tom Nelson, George Padgett, Paul Parsons, Glenn Scott and
Frances Ward-Johnson.
 The Elon Journal of
Undergraduate Research in Communications

Volume 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage:

How Mock News Covers the Political Communications System
Michelle C. Newman 5

Bound: Print Journalism’s Framing of Female Candidates

in the 2008 Presidential Race According to the ‘Double Bind’ Theory
Caroline Fox 17

Developing Health Communication with Displaced Populations:

An Exploration of Cultural Barriers to Health Care Experienced
by Southeast Asian refugees
Margeaux Rose Corby 44

A Brief Look at Effective Health Communication: Strategies in Ghana

Megan A. Prilutski 51

Social Media: No ‘Friend’ of Personal Privacy

Christopher F. Spinelli 59

The Effect of Personality Styles (Level of Introversion- Extroversion)

on Social Media Use
Erin Ryan Harbaugh 70

No Updates from the Bench, Stands or… Press Box?:

The Legality of Live Blogging from Sports Events
Dannika Lewis 87

The Unexplored New Medium: Recent Trends in Podcast Advertising

Molly K. McGowan 97

Music in the Digital Age:

The Emergence of Digital Music and Its Repercussions on the Music Industry
Sadie A. Stafford 112

Merging Through Media:

Analyzing Public Relations Framing and Ethics
through the 2010 Ticketmaster-Live Nation Merger
Anna Davis 121
 The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage by Michelle Newman — 5

The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage:

How Mock News Covers the Political Communications System

Michelle C. Newman*

Strategic Communications
Elon University

Abstract
This study examines the relationship between mock news coverage and Presidential approval.
Specifically, it focuses on whether approval affects the volume and framing of mock news meta-coverage, or
coverage of the political communications system. In contrast to other studies, which address either entertain-
ment news programs or meta-coverage, this study combines the comedy of mock news and the democratic
importance of meta-communications. Using a content analysis of The Daily Show episodes during the first
term of former President George W. Bush and the current term of President Barack Obama, the research
does not support a significant relationship between approval ratings and mock news meta-coverage. The
research does identify key trends in meta-coverage themes and framing strategies.

I. Introduction
When the Pew Research Center released information on America’s most admired news figures
in 2007, it probably surprised few to see Katie Couric, Dan Rather, and Tom Brokaw toward the top of the
list. However, many were shocked to see one person’s name. Americans ranked comedian Jon Stewart
among the top five most admired journalists. Stewart’s mock news program, The Daily Show, has become
very popular since it premiered in 1996. The show is regarded as a fake news program, but it is structured
much like a traditional news broadcast with an anchor, Stewart, giving news updates and interviewing guests.
There are also news packages produced by fake correspondents on real or fake locations. Stewart satirizes
political and pop culture issues as well as the media in a fashion that has garnered much attention from both
viewers and critics. The show averages about 1.2 million viewers, who some believe are paying too much
attention to the program (Pew, 2008). Critics say it is not appropriate for people to rely on The Daily Show for
accurate information on current events (Pew, 2008). Others see the program as the true watchdog in society
that exposes a manipulative government and media (Baym, 2005; Brewer, 2003). Regardless of which side
of the argument is right, it is important to understand the messages that are being sent to so many people.
This research addresses The Daily Show’s role in revealing the manipulation of the political com-
munication system among the Presidential Administration. The program does this through the coverage of
media coverage, also known as meta-coverage. In traditional news meta-coverage can be defined as “the
news media’s self-referential reflections on the nature of the interplay between political public relations and
political journalism” (Esser, 2001). In mock news programming meta-coverage is not exactly self-referential,
but is critical of the relationship. This research analyzes The Daily Show episodes during the presidential
terms of George W. Bush and Barack Obama to determine if public approval affects the volume and type of

*Keywords: The Daily Show, mock news, meta-coverage, presidential media, media framing
Email: [email protected]
6 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

meta-coverage. The Administration is constantly under public scrutiny and its actions become controversial
topics of debate; the type of stories that fuels Stewart’s wit. The President’s office and the media also have
a crucial relationship. Political officials have communications strategies that are extremely sensitive to public
acceptance. Meta-coverage threatens this acceptance and helps the democratic process by exposing the
manipulation. This study explores the conditions under which presidential approval affects mock news meta-
coverage.

II. Literature Review

The increasing popularity of The Daily Show has caught the eye of political communications re-
searchers. The scholarly literature has focused on a number of issues related to political processes and
programs like The Daily Show. Much of the research on this topic can be divided between two groups: 1)
research on entertainment media, including mock news and 2) research on meta-coverage (Baym, 2005;
Brewer, 2003; Esser, 2001,2003; Fengler, 2003; Johnson, 1996). The first of these topics can be further
divided into two categories: 1) content (Baum, 2003; Baym, 2005; Brewer, 2007; Niven, 2003), and 2) effects
(Baum, 2003; Baumgartner, 2006; Feldman, 2008; Young, 2006). These studies have established a need to
take a closer look at the significant implications of mock news programs.

Soft News and Entertainment Media

The Content: The Daily Show and other satirical entertainment programs focus on a wide range of
topics. They are reflective of what is popular in society, but also bring attention to what may not be widely
known. This watchdog nature is similar to the role of a traditional journalist, with a twist. Much research has
focused on analyzing the content of these programs (Baum, 2003; Baym, 2005; Brewer, 2007; Niven, 2003).
Soft news programs are an important source of information on foreign crises and what Baum describes as
“water cooler” events (2003, 5). These are events the media can elevate from traditional political discourse to
topics discussed across the population, such as the Monica Lewinsky scandal or the war in Afghanistan.
Specifically analyzing Stewart’s typical dialogue with sound bites from political events has led Baym
(2005) to conclude that Stewart often juxtaposes what is happening in the real world with his idea of common
sense, creating an undermining humor that has become very popular. Scholars have discovered the majority
of news stories featured on The Daily Show are about politics (Brewer, 2007, 259). According to Brewer and
Marquardt’s content analysis, the top subject for ridicule was the President in 2004, but the press also be-
came a primary target (Brewer, 2007, 259).
Previous research has also found that guest appearances and interviews have a significant role in
informing the public on political issues (Brewer, 2007; Niven, 2003). Brewer and Marquardt (2007, 263) found
that over half of guest interviews on The Daily Show discuss politically relevant issues and claim this increas-
es the show’s potential to influence public opinion.
The Effects: To further establish whether or not satirical entertainment programs, like The Daily
Show, can provide the public with political information, researchers have also looked into the effects of the
programs on political efficacy (Baum, 2003; Baumgartner, 2006; Feldman, 2008; Young, 2006; Young, 2008).
Some researchers have categorized The Daily Show within a group of late-night comedy television programs
that also include political satire (Young, 2006; Baum, 2003; Feldman, 2008). Other scholars have considered
The Daily Show as a separate phenomenon, because unlike the other late-night programs, it takes on the
personality of a news program and often includes more political information (Young, 2006). The 2004 Nation-
al Annenberg Election Survey and the 2000 Pew Research Center for the People and the Press report sug-
gested that younger audiences are avoiding traditional news programs and getting all of their information from
more entertaining sources. Both Feldman and Young (2008) and Young and Tisinger (2006) used data from
the reports to determine the relationship between late-night viewing and traditional news consumption. Both
concluded that an effect of late-night content is an increased level of attention to traditional news for political
information. Baum (2003) refers to a similar group of programming as soft news. According to Baum, more
people consume soft news for its entertainment purposes rather than for political information. He identifies
soft news as a gateway to traditional news. Feldman and Young (2008) supported this gateway theory by find-
ing a positive relationship between late-night viewing and higher levels of attention to traditional news sources
during the 2004 presidential primaries. Other research may not necessarily deny the legitimacy of entertain-
ment media as a source of political information, but it recognizes news media as the better source (Kim,
 The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage by Michelle Newman — 7

2008). Kim and Vishak (2008) claim that traditional news viewers remember information more accurately than
entertainment media audiences. Their research also suggests that entertainment media does not promote
information acquisition.
Other research has found more direct effects on political knowledge. Baumgartner and Morris (2006)
conducted a study to test young viewer’s evaluations of political candidates after seeing clips of The Daily
Show and CBS Evening News. Seeing the negative portrayal of the candidates on The Daily Show led to
increased cynicism and lowered support (Baumgartner, 2006, 352). They found that it negatively affects
external efficacy by lowering trust in both the media and entire electoral process. They claim viewers are
less likely to vote if they see flaws in the electoral process or have increased cynicism towards the candi-
dates. However, Baumgartner and Morris found the opposite for internal efficacy. Viewers of The Daily Show
thought they had a better understanding of the political process because the content appeared to simplify the
complexities of the political system (Baumgartner, 2006, 353).
Baum (2003) has researched the effect of soft news programming outside of the election process. He
also analyzed attitudes of soft news viewers, but with an emphasis on foreign policy. He found a strong cor-
relation between soft news consumption and opposition to a proactive or interventionist foreign policy (Baum,
2003, 230-258). The research also revealed that soft news viewers are also more likely to view the content
as the most pressing issues facing the nation.

Meta-Coverage
Most scholars would agree that meta-coverage involves both sides of the political communications
process (Baym, 2005; Brewer, 2003; Esser, 2001, 2003; Fengler, 2003; Johnson, 1996). Fengler (2003) first
looked at media self-criticism through interviews with journalists and critics. She identified several attitudes
towards media criticism including a reluctance to attack fellow journalists and recognition of the potential of
criticism as a method for self-regulation (Fengler, 2003). Academics have further looked at meta-coverage by
studying the content of traditional news programs (Johnson, 1996; Esser, 2001, 2003). Research has identi-
fied four prominent themes in meta-coverage: media performance/impact, policy/campaign issues, candidate
media strategy/ performance, and general media stories (Johnson, 1996). Johnson and Bourdeau (1996,
662) discovered most meta-coverage stories fell in the general media category, which would include features
on media figures or about the technology used to cover political campaigns, and that few stories focus on me-
dia performance (Johnson, 1996, 662). Research has revealed differences between American, German and
British meta-coverage content (Esser, 2001). In studying the coverage of political public relations, academics
found the United States used “spin doctors” more often as legitimate sources than as people using the media
for manipulation (Esser, 2001, 32).
Other scholars have similarly focused on the content of meta-coverage, but with an emphasis on con-
tent frames. Esser and D’Angelo (2003) analyzed meta-communications content frames of news programs
during the 2000 election. They divided meta-coverage into two different groups: press and publicity propo-
sitions. They identified frames from three categories, finding that strategy frames were the most common
(Esser, 2003, 632). Conduit frames were the second most popular, while accountability frames accounted for
very few stories (Esser, 2003, 632). Academics have also examined the tones of meta-coverage in traditional
news (Johnson, 1996; Esser, 2001, 2003). An earlier analysis found most meta-coverage stories to have
neutral tones (Johnson, 1996, 662). Compared to other countries, American programs more often portray
political officials as competent, useful professionals (Esser, 2001, 38).
Other scholars have researched meta-coverage specifically in The Daily Show (Baym, 2005; Brewer,
2003). Some academics suggest that Jon Stewart uses humor to confront the entire political communica-
tions system (Baym, 2005). The mock news format illuminates government manipulation of the media and
the media’s compliance. According to Baym, The Daily Show has a type of diagnostic function, pointing out
what is wrong with the government media strategy. His study claims The Daily Show can actually inform the
public on politics and policy issues, while also encouraging them to be skeptical of the news media. A content
analysis of The Daily Show episodes discovered that fifteen percent of the stories cover the media, including
clips of news programs or general criticism of media behavior (Brewer, 2007).
It is clear that The Daily Show and satirical entertainment programs have a strong influence on public
opinion, especially with meta-coverage of the political communications system. However, there has been little
research identifying similar content specifically to the President’s office that could have the same impact on
political discourse. As the leader of the United States, the President is one of the most scrutinized positions
in government. Research has yet to address the role of The Daily Show and late-night comedy specific to the
8 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

President’s office and whether the same principles from previous studies are applicable. The following re-
search will provide further detail on the conditions that influence content on The Daily Show during the terms
of former President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama.

III. Methodology

Hypotheses
This analysis is exploratory because no previous research has systematically looked at meta-cov-
erage of the President’s office on mock news programming. Previous research has discovered The Daily
Show is very cynical, so one could expect the news stories to be more critical of the political communications
system than the traditional news broadcast (Baumgartner, 2006). Content analyses have also revealed that
most of the stories mock elected officials, with the President being the top subject (Brewer, 2007). Based on
this research, while Johnson (1996) identified a neutral tone in traditional news meta-coverage, this is not
necessarily true for mock news. The Daily Show has anything but neutral undertones. Therefore, rather than
meta-coverage focused on general media stories, it is logical to predict there will be more stories about media
performance and political media strategy. (Hypothesis 1)
When presidential approval is low, the public is more critical of the government’s strategies. Given
the critical nature of The Daily Show meta-coverage, it is reasonable to believe that as approval decreases,
meta-coverage will increase (Hypothesis 2).
Scholars have suggested that accountability frames are the most desirable for democratic theory
because they hold both politicians and the media to a set of democratic standards. As approval decreases,
The Daily Show is more likely to hold officials and the media accountable for their responsibilities, resulting in
more accountability frames than conduit and strategy (Hypothesis 3).

Measurements
This research utilizes a content analysis of The Daily Show episodes to identify the volume of meta-
coverage and to code four meta-coverage categories and three framing categories. For this research, meta-
coverage is defined as “the news media’s self-referential reflections on the nature of the interplay between
political public relations and political journalism” (Esser, 2001). As a mock news program, The Daily Show
acts in place of the news media to reflect on and criticize this relationship. The definition suggests two types
of meta-coverage: press and publicity. Press meta-coverage was coded based on media key words (e.g.
journalists, press, news media, broadcast, camera crew) and images (e.g. video cameras, news footage).
Publicity meta-coverage was identified using political public relations key words (e.g. press conference, public
affairs, press secretary, appearances, aides, statements) and images (e.g. press conference, microphones).
Only meta-coverage of the President’s administration was coded for the quantitative analysis, but other
instances and topics were recorded. The volume of presidential meta-coverage was measured as a percent-
age of general meta-stories.
The four themes analyzed were adapted from Johnson and Boudreau (1996): 1) media performance/
strategy; 2) politician performance/strategy; 3) general media; 4) policy issues. All political meta-coverage
stories, regardless of mentioning the Administration, were coded for analysis according to these themes.
Those centered on the media’s performance in reporting political issues or on an administrator’s performance
in communicating his or her message, were coded just as such. Stories not performance or strategy related
were coded with the general media or general policy themes.
The three coded script frames were adapted from Esser and D’Angelo (2003): 1) strategy frames; 2)
accountability frames; and 3) conduit frames. The foundation of their frames remained the same, but the defi-
nitions were adjusted to fit the comedic nature of The Daily Show. In strategy frames, the media is viewed as
a political tool caught in the game of politics. They emphasize a politician’s desire to manipulate and control
information and the media’s inability to stop it. In The Daily Show, strategy frames would criticize the rhetoric
and tactics used to manipulate the public. A story about the press secretary’s use of a certain word would be
considered to have a strategy frame.
Accountability frames focus more on the role of the media in democracy. They examine the news
media’s watchdog role and the government’s attempts to fool the media. The Daily Show coverage would
 The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage by Michelle Newman — 9

concentrate on exposing flaws or mistakes in a public affairs strategy or the media’s negligence to cover
important issues. For example, The Daily Show may expose the President’s mistake in saying he will do one
thing at a press conference, then actually doing something else.
Conduit frames show the media as simply the transmitter of information and the government as a ba-
sic user of the media. In traditional news these stories are not as critical, but in mock news the stories would
frame the media and government’s mutual compliance in a negative way. A story about the media publishing
a prepackaged news report from the government would be coded as a conduit frame. To be coded for framing
analysis the story had to mention 1) the President or President’s office and 2) any keywords that constitute
meta-coverage. The stories were not coded based on their length and could include more than one frame
depending on the content.
This research examined The Daily Show episodes during the first term of former President George W.
Bush and the current term of President Barack Obama (Appendix A). Gallup Poll data on the percentage of
Americans who approve of the way each handled his job as President was used to determine presidential ap-
proval levels (Appendix B). Ten episodes were examined from three months corresponding to the months of
highest, lowest, and closest to average approval. These months were selected by first identifying the weeks
of highest, lowest, and average career approval. The average approval ratings for the proximate months
determined which month would be analyzed. This was done so the episodes were more reflective of the high
or low approval ratings. Episodes were chosen with a random number generator to total the ten episodes
per month. If an episode did not air on the random date generated, the very next episode was chosen for
analysis. Sixty total episodes were analyzed. These episodes were found on The Daily Show website, which
keeps an archive of segments aired on a particular date.

IV. Findings
With approximately 192 episodes per year, or 768 per four-year term, there are many opportunities
for The Daily Show to criticize the political communications system. In this same time frame, the public has
many opportunities to judge the Administration’s performance. Former President George W. Bush’s approval
ratings shifted throughout his first term in office. On the other hand, President Barack Obama’s approval
ratings have steadily declined since he took office in 2009. October 2001 marked Bush’s highest month of
approval, just after the September 11 attacks and his lowest first-term approval ratings in August 2001. His
first term average was 62.2% with just over a majority of Americans agreeing with how he handled the job.
As previously mentioned, Obama’s ratings have steadily declined since he took office in late January with his
highest approval in February 2009. Currently his average rating is at 56%, slightly lower than his predeces-
sor’s.
The content analysis included 327 story segments, of which 103 constituted meta-coverage (31.5%).
Fifty-three of these were coded as meta-coverage of the Administration. A majority of the meta-coverage
focused on the publicity side of communications, with only 33 of the 103 total meta-stories about the media.
Of the 53 Presidential meta-stories, there were only 15 instances of press meta-coverage. An example of one
of the press-centered stories aired in August 2009. The segment discredited cable news polling by exposing
biased and inaccurate research methods (The Daily Show, August 17, 2009).
Finding 1: The data showed the dominant theme in mock news meta-coverage is politician perfor-
mance/strategy followed by media performance/strategy (Table 1).
Table 1. Meta-coverage by theme
Meta-coverage Theme Number of Meta-Stories Number of Administration Stories
Media Performance/Strategy 33 15
Political Performance/Strategy 58 39
Policy Issues 2 0
General Media 2 2
Not Coded 8 0
10 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Finding 2: The analysis did not support a strong relationship between low Presidential approval and
a high volume of meta-coverage (Table 2). In the lowest approval month of analysis, there were 6 meta-
stories about the Bush Administration, representing 17% of his meta-coverage. For Obama, only 16 meta-
stories or 23% of the meta-coverage occurred in the lowest month of approval. The highest counts for both
Presidential Administrations were in the months corresponding to the term’s average approval rating. How-
ever, when comparing volume between the two Administrations, the data showed a significantly larger volume
in Obama’s current term. Compared to Bush, President Obama had the lower first-term average (56%) and
the lowest approval rating (45%).

Table 2. Relationship between approval rating and media coverage volume

Month (Approval %) Number of Number of

Meta-Stories* Administration Stories**
August 2001 (56%) 6 4

October 2001 (88%) 11 4

June 2003 (62%) 18 11

February 2009 (64%) 20 13

August 2009 (53%) 32 17

April 2010 (45%) 16 4

Totals: 103 Meta-Stories; 53 Administration Stories

*Calculated as the amount of stories constituting meta-coverage
**Calculated as the amount of meta-stories coded as Presidential Administration stories

Finding 3: Furthermore, the data did not indicate a relationship between Presidential approval and
the way each segment, or story, was framed (Table 3 on the next page). In months of low approval there
were more strategy frames than accountability, representing more than 60% of the meta-coverage. Strategy
frames also constituted the majority of meta-coverage in the months of high approval ratings. Overall, there
were just as many accountability frames as strategy frames, each making up 48% of presidential meta-cover-
age. During the Bush Administration, there were more strategy frames than accountability. The opposite was
true for the Obama Administration. Conduit frames were nearly nonexistent with only two total segments of
presidential meta-coverage.
Strategy stories were often critical of the rhetoric and tactics used in a political actor’s strategic mes-
saging. In a June 2003 episode, Stewart claimed all Bush Administration functions were “carefully choreo-
graphed.” As he narrated a press conference accordingly, Stewart said Bush rolled up his sleeves to “give
the people the idea [he’s] a regular dude” and addressed weapons of mass destruction using “deliberately
vague wording” (The Daily Show, June 5, 2003). This kind of commentary left audiences under the impres-
sion that political talking points are strategically planned to carry out manipulative political agendas.
Most accountability stories focused on criticizing the media’s inability to perform their role as the na-
tion’s “watchdog.” During one August 2009 segment, Stewart said they had to talk about “the disgrace that
calls itself the mainstream media…and its incessant desire, nay need, to give one Barack Obama a great big,
fat pass.” He illustrated the media’s avoidance of the pressing issues by showing a press conference clip of
a journalist asking about the President’s birthday plans. Stewart jokingly said, “you’d think the [mainstream
media] would be coming at the White House hard and fast” (The Daily Show, August 4, 2009) Meta-stories
like these enlighten audience members on their watchdog’s shortcomings.
Conduit frames are the most basic and least critical form of meta-coverage. Given the nature of
mock news programming, it is expected that only a few instances of conduit frames occur. The two stories
 The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage by Michelle Newman — 11

were brief mentions of Obama’s use of the media to get his message to the public. They did not carry overly-
critical undertones.

Table 3. Relationship between approval rating and framing

Month (Approval) Accountability Strategy Conduit

August 2001 (56%)
Press 0 0 0
Publicity 1 3 0
October 2001 (88%)
Press 1 0 0
Publicity 1 2 0
June 2003 (62%)
Press 2 0 0
Publicity 4 5 0
February 2009 (64%)
Press 4 0 0
Publicity 2 10 0
August 2009 (53%)
Press 7 0 0
Publicity 6 3 1
April 2010 (45%)
Press 1 0 0
Publicity 0 2 1

V. Discussion
The Daily Show format in itself addresses the flaws in the United States’ political communications
system. By mocking a traditional news program with an anchor, interviews, news packages, and correspon-
dents, Stewart comically exposes the absurdities of mainstream media. This analysis supports previous
research in showing that The Daily Show fulfills this role beyond its program format to challenge both the me-
dia and political actors’ strategies for communication political messages in its program content. With nearly
one-third of The Daily Show content being meta-coverage, much of the show directly calls into question the
political communications system. While other categories of content were not coded, analyzing the episodes
did provide some evidence that no other content category made up such a significant portion of the program.
This further suggests that one of The Daily Show’s main roles, whether intentional or not, is to confront the
flaws in the system.
Discussion 1: As supported by this analysis, the most common way The Daily Show identifies these
flaws is by evaluating a political actor’s media performance and strategy. Every word that comes from the
President or his staff is subject to Stewart’s merciless scrutiny. The show’s assessment extends deeper than
calling out the President’s last stumble in his speech or laughing at the press secretary’s inability to answer
a question. Stewart analyzes the subject matter closely to reveal what the common eye might not see. He
sheds light on the public relations tactics and manipulative rhetoric commonly used by political actors to fool
the public and the media.
The media does not escape Stewart’s watchful eye either. As the second most popular theme found
in this analysis of meta-coverage, mock news evaluation of media performance and strategy is crucial to con-
fronting the political communications system. The media are widely known as America’s watchdog, but who
is making sure they are doing their job for the benefit of society? The data show that much of the mock news
content does just that. Stewart often points out media compliance in political publicity. Their willingness to
accept government-generated information, he suggests in various sound bites, runs counter to their journal-
istic values. The Daily Show also brings the media’s infotainment fascination to the forefront of its criticism.
12 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Stewart attacks traditional news organizations for following politically irrelevant stories when there are more
newsworthy events taking place.
Discussion 2: It was hypothesized that there would be some correlation between presidential ap-
proval ratings and the volume of meta-coverage. The analysis did not reveal such a relationship, suggesting
The Daily Show content is not dependent on public opinion. In other words, the results suggest Stewart does
not focus all of his resources on the topic simply because people do not like the President at the time. Meta-
coverage appears to be more reflective of current events and the activities of the President’s Administration.
In months of low activity, there is less media coverage and correspondingly less meta-coverage. For exam-
ple, in August 2001 Bush took a month-long vacation in Texas. There were very few meta-stories most likely
because there was nothing going on, not because of his approval rating. The traditional media had little to
report and the President was not holding press conferences on vacation, giving The Daily Show little material
to work with. Inactivity may be an indicator of low approval ratings, and thus indirectly related to low meta-
coverage. Conversely, controversial activity may lead to low approval ratings, yet yield significant amounts of
meta-coverage. There are many factors not studied in this analysis affecting approval ratings that could influ-
ence mock news meta-coverage volume. For example, significant differences between the Bush and Obama
administrations suggest yet another factor that could affect the volume of meta-coverage.
Discussion 3: The analysis also did not provide strong evidence for the hypothesized relationship
between approval ratings and meta-coverage framing strategies. Accountability frames were most common
in the months representing average approval ratings. Again, The Daily Show content appears to be more
reflective of current events than public opinion. For publicity meta-coverage, accountability frames are de-
pendent on inconsistencies in messaging strategies. Because The Daily Show is not a team of experienced
investigative journalists, the mistake must be obvious or it must have already been exposed. In a February
2009 episode, Stewart discussed President Obama’s press conference in which he was asked about his eco-
nomic stimulus plan. Obama avoided answering by saying his Secretary of the Treasury will provide details
the next day. Stewart then played footage from Secretary Geithner’s press conference in which no details
were mentioned (The Daily Show, February 11, 2009). In doing so, Stewart reported an inconsistency in the
White House’s message. However, he did not discover this falsity on his own; the press conference provided
the evidence. Had the conference not happened, The Daily Show probably would not have covered the mis-
take. This dependency would limit opportunities for accountability-framed publicity meta-coverage more than
approval ratings.
Furthermore, all press meta-coverage had an accountability frame. While the data does not indicate
that approval ratings affect the volume, the analysis shows that The Daily Show holds media organizations
accountable for their responsibilities as journalists. Rather than portraying the media as incapable of pre-
venting government manipulation or basic users of government information, as is the case for strategy and
conduit frames, The Daily Show insists the media can and should fulfill their obligations to the public.
Similar to accountability, strategy frames were popular regardless of approval ratings. However, the
strategy-framed meta-stories were not as critical of the political communications process. Instead, Stewart’s
mockery often appraised the political actor’s rhetorical strategy. This type of criticism is not as dependent on
inconsistencies as accountability frames. For example, identifying the President’s use of a particular word to
appease the public is easier than investigating the truth in his statement. Just as timeliness is key to tradition-
al news, it is also important for The Daily Show. This could explain why strategy frames are popular despite
high or low approval ratings. In an effort to both inform and entertain audiences in the mock news format,
The Daily Show must report and criticize the most recent events. Strategy frames are simple criticisms, easy
to write into Stewart’s dialogue.

VI. Conclusion
While this research does not suggest strong relationships between the variables, it is still important to
recognize several findings. This research does identify two prominent themes in mock news meta-coverage:
media performance and political strategy. The analysis also revealed the popularity of publicity strategy and
press accountability frames in presidential coverage. Approval does not seem to have an impact on the types
of framing strategies used in The Daily Show scripts. This suggests that there may not be any overarch-
ing strategy that goes into writing Stewart’s sound bites. Researchers may be looking too hard to explain a
 The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage by Michelle Newman — 13

media based solely on events that are happening no matter what the accompanying frame may be. There
may not be any particular reasoning for including some types of stories more than others, besides the need to
attract and entertain viewers.
Future research may address some of the weaknesses in these findings, including the limited
sample. Three months per term may not be representative enough to support a strong relationship between
the variables. This research also measures volume based on quantity. Examining the actual length of each
story segment may provide different results if meta-coverage stories took up more time in each program than
non-meta stories. Further analysis could also compare the script frames of Presidential coverage to non-
Presidential coverage to determine if strategy and accountability frames still make up the majority. Also, this
research does not address the direction of the relationship between approval ratings and mock news cover-
age. Examining the effects of The Daily Show meta-coverage could find if mock news has an influence on
public opinion. This kind of research is necessary to determine the implications of mock news coverage.
As previous research suggests, the cynicism in The Daily Show leads to an increased cynicism
towards the subjects of Stewart’s ridicule (Baumgartner, 2006). If viewers regard The Daily Show as a source
of news, then it could have the potential to set the public agenda like traditional news programs. Agenda
setting theory suggests the media may not be able to tell people exactly what to think, but they can tell them
what to think about (McCombs, 1972). By exposing the press-politician relationship, The Daily Show may
be able to bring political manipulation and media compliance to the forefront of public discourse. With the in-
creasing dependence on mock news for political information, it is important to understand its impact on public
opinion and even its potential for future government manipulation.

Acknowledgments
This author is thankful to Dr. Padgett at Elon University for his supervision and advice, without which
the article could not be published. The author also appreciates numerous reviewers who have helped revise
this article.

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 The Daily Show and Meta-Coverage by Michelle Newman — 15

Appendix A: List of Episode Dates*

August 2, 2001 February 2, 2009
August 6, 2001 February 3, 2009
August 7, 2001 February 6, 2009
August 9, 2001 February 9, 2009
August 13, 2001 February 11, 2009
August 15, 2001 February 12, 2009
August 20, 2001 February 23, 2009
August 21, 2001 February 24, 2009
August 22, 2001 February 25, 2009
August 23, 2001 February 26, 2009
October 1, 2001 August 3, 2009
October 2, 2001 August 4, 2009
October 10, 2001 August 5, 2009
October 15, 2001 August 6, 2009
October 16, 2001 August 12, 2009
October 17, 2001 August 13, 2009
October 18, 2001 August 17, 2009
October 22, 2001 August 18, 2009
October 23, 2001 August 19, 2009
October 30, 2001 August 20, 2009
June 2, 2003 April 1, 2010
June 3, 2003 April 5, 2010
June 4, 2003 April 6, 2010
June 5, 2003 April 7, 2010
June 9, 2003 April 8, 2010
June 10, 2003 April 12, 2010
June 12, 2003 April 13, 2010
June 16, 2003 April 14, 2010
June 17, 2003 April 15, 2010
June 18, 2003 **March 31, 2010
*All episodes retrieved
from www.thedailyshow.
com
**March 31 used to make
ten episodes of analysis
for the month of April 2010
16 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Appendix B: Gallup Poll Approval Ratings

Month Average Approval*
Bush:
August 2001 56%
October 2001 88%
June 2003 62%
Obama:
February 2009 64%
August 2009 53%
April 2010 45%
* Calculated as the average percentage of respondents who believe the President his
handling his job well.
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 17

Bound: Print Journalism’s Framing of Female Candidates

in the 2008 Presidential Race
According to the ‘Double Bind’ Theory

Caroline Fox*

Strategic Communications
Elon University

Abstract
This research looked at the portrayal and framing of two women politicians—Sarah Palin and Hillary
Clinton—and their media framing. It attempted to identify if these women were framed in the “double bind
theory,” which theorizes that “women are expected to act like men, and are then criticized for just that” (Myers,
2008). When women in leadership positions conform to traditional female roles, they are seen as “too soft to
be effective,” but when they defy society’s norms, “they are seen as ‘too tough’” (Myers, 2008). To understand
how these women were framed, articles from three major newspapers—the Washington Post, the New York
Times, and USA Today— were analyzed. These articles showed patterns in phraseology, article placement,
valance, article subject, and positive and negative descriptors. This research showed that while the coverage
of female candidates has improved, the three newspapers are still applying different standards than their male
counterparts. They were usually represented as extreme figures, falling in the category of “too hard” or “too
soft.” Also, women’s families were included in a large percent of their media coverage.

I. Introduction
With the recent push for equal rights for women in politics and the election of more female public of-
ficials, the image of women in politics has garnered greater attention and changed drastically. In the 1970s,
female candidates were often told that they should be “shown as assertive rather than aggressive, attractive
without being a sexpot, self-confident but not domineering” (Williams, 1998). The image that developed was
a passive and cookie-cutter politician who did not make waves or cause trouble and was still attractive and
fashionable enough to be a trophy wife. Today, women are often encouraged to “craft a message and a public
persona that persuades party, pundits, and public that she can be as clear and independent a decision maker
as any man, but more caring and trustworthy” (Williams, 1998). This current view of a female politician’s im-
age is still not a radical one. Overall, the ideal image is one of a balance between masculine and feminine
traits—the best of both worlds. This image has proved hard to achieve, however, as many women in politics
fall to one extreme or the other.
This research focuses on the framing of Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sarah Palin in print journalism.
These women have been heavily followed by the media, and represent different political images and media
frames. In communications, framing is best described by Robert M. Entman of George Washington University
as “select[ing] some aspects of a perceived reality and mak[ing] them more salient in a communicating text, in
* Keywords: Women, politics, 2008 election, framing, double bind theory
Email: [email protected]
18 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/or treat-
ment recommendation” (Entman, 1993). Simply put, framing is what a politician’s public relations staff wants
the candidate’s image to be. Framing is also considered an “essential part” of news reporting (Heldman,
2000). However, studies have shown that newspapers tend to stereotype female candidates by “emphasizing
‘feminine traits’ and ‘feminine issues’” (Bystrom, Robertson, & Banwart, 2001).
Journalists often use gender stereotypes to evaluate the capacity of certain candidates to handle
certain issues: men are usually associated with economics, crime, and defense issues, while women usually
are paired with healthcare or education. Journalists’ coverage also tends to emphasize the “feminine” traits
that mark a female candidate: personal lives, personalities, appearances, children, and marital status (Major
& Coleman, 2008). Previous literature suggests that women receive less coverage about electoral issues
and more coverage about issues of appearance, family, or personal life, but recent studies have found the
opposite. Journalists appear to be diverging from the “stereotypical coverage of hair, clothing, and physical
features” and have altered their style to attempt to represent female candidates in the same way as male
candidates. They have achieved some progress when it comes to coverage of female candidates, but still
stereotype by the type of story they write or the issues covered. The problem arises when this stereotyping
comes off as negative, even when the report is positive (Major & Coleman, 2008).
Many studies show the differences in media coverage of male and female politicians in electronic and
print media. One study in 2000 showed that newspaper reporters “devoted much more attention to the per-
sonal lives, personalities, and appearances of women as compared with men” and that journalists “often ask
women politicians questions that they don’t ask men” (Bystrom, Robertson, & Banwart, 2001). In a quantita-
tive analysis of newspaper coverage, female candidates received more coverage about children and marital
status than men.
Journalists try (or claim to try) to present news coverage in a fair and balanced way without bias.
Studies have shown that despite this effort, they cannot break away from certain psychological processes
that are inherent in human nature (Major & Coleman, 2008). Many studies have shown that there are certain
stereotypes present in media coverage of women (Major & Coleman, 2008). These stereotypes are often
unconsciously included in coverage, and based off of attitudes, values, or beliefs. Stereotypes can occur
unintentionally, and are so embedded in a person’s thought process that they may be impossible to abandon.
On the other hand, conscious slanted coverage is sometimes encouraged by outside sources such as ad-
vertisers, businesses, government, news room policies, the political elite, or economics (Major & Coleman,
2008). Journalists may feel that propagating these stereotypes keeps their jobs secure. Even still, some-
times journalists are just conveying the image constructed and provided by the candidate herself (Major &
Coleman, 2008).
While the media may not act as the only deciding factor in elections, it has been shown that they do
play an “ever increasing role” in determining election outcome (Niedermeier, 2009). National political cam-
paigns rely on various channels to contact constituents, and in 99% of cases this contact is made through the
mass media. Therefore, the candidate’s presentation and looks have become increasingly important. Nieder-
meier notes that “not very attractive candidates are often left on the side in the internal party selection. How
a candidate can show himself to the media is … important” (Niedermeier, 2009). The media, Niedermeier
claims, can “build a politician as well as dismantle him/her.”
In a study that examines Hillary Clinton’s time as first lady and her campaign as senator, Karrin Vasby
Anderson claims that gender is still a “significant but complicated variable in U.S. politics” (Anderson, 2002).
The office of the United States president is a gendered post, she claims, and in 2000 the office was “just as
gendered as it has always been” (Anderson, 2002). Anderson argues that women in politics are constantly
battling a “double bind,” a conflict of role expectations that “trap women … curtail their opinions and circum-
scribe their power” (Anderson, 2002). This double bind tends to affect different candidates in varying capaci-
ties. For Clinton, she went from her frame as a “woman” in the role of first lady who was evaluated by the
ways in which she positively or negatively influenced femininity, to being viewed and critiqued primarily as a
candidate at the national level—but rarely both at the same time (Anderson, 2002).
Another non-empirical look at the “double bind” theory comes from former White House Press Secre-
tary Dee Dee Myers. Myers, the first female White House Press Secretary, served in the Clinton administra-
tion. She authored the book Why Women Should Rule The World as a critical look at the challenges women
face in a male-dominated political arena, and the benefits of having women in leadership roles. She writes
that due to the “double bind” theory, “women are expected to act like men, and are then criticized for just that”
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 19

(Myers, 2008). She explains that when women in leadership positions conform to traditional female roles,
they are seen as “too soft to be effective,” but when they defy society’s norms, “they are seen as ‘too tough’”
(Myers, 2008). Recently, however, there has been an increase in the number of women in leadership posi-
tions that refer to their experiences in motherhood as a “training ground for leadership” and a “metaphor for
leadership behavior” (Myers, 2008). This study, done by Wellesley College’s Center for Women, shows that
women are now more comfortable speaking about their struggles with balancing motherhood and professional
life, and are aware of the value of motherhood as a leadership role. Myers also writes about the fact that
women are evaluated differently than men in the campaigning process. According to Myers:
Voters focus on a female candidate’s performance under pressure, knowledge of issues, and
personal presentation. Voters are more judgmental about a female candidate’s performance
and less forgiving of her mistakes than they are of her male counterpart’s. ... In other words,
voters assume men are tough enough. But women have to prove it. (Myers, 2008)
In a study by the research company Catalyst, the double bind theory is broken down into three
problem categories women face. The first is an “extreme perception” where women are “never just right” for
a role. They are seen as too far on the end of the spectrum to satisfy the goals of a job. Another issue is that
women are faced with higher standards and lower rewards than their male counterparts. Women are often
expected to work doubly hard as men to “prove” their leadership abilities. When women accomplish these
leadership goals, they are not rewarded with the same promotions or financial incentives as their male coun-
terparts. Finally, the Catalyst said that females who “exhibit traditionally valued leadership behaviors such
as assertiveness, are perceived to be competent but not personable or well liked” (Double bind dilemmas for
women, 2007).
The different ways in which women are judged, combined with the double bind theory, make it es-
sentially impossible for a female candidate to fulfill the role of an acceptable candidate. Even though compa-
nies and governments with women in leadership roles are more successful, women are still less considered
“minorities” in these areas (Myers, 2008).

Research Questions
The purpose of this research is to examine the double bind theory in the context of the 2008 election
by analyzing the campaigns of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and Governor Sarah Palin. The questions this
research aims to answer include:
RQ1: Were the candidates of the 2008 election framed in the double bind?
RQ2: If so, how were the women depicted?
By exploring the ways in which the candidate’s image was portrayed in the light of the double bind, this re-
search attempted to identify the possible repercussions of this representation.

II. Methods
To explore and compare the portrayals of women in politics, this research looks at two different politi-
cally active women: Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton. Both of these women have recently staged campaigns
at a national level, and have received heavy coverage by the media. With the advent of 24-hour journalism
due to the Internet, portable cellular devices, and 24-hour news stations, coverage of these women pervaded
media outlets for the span of their campaigns.
This research uses print articles from three elite newspapers to examine the context in which these
women were framed. The newspapers included the New York Times, USA Today, and the Washington Post.
Each newspaper article was found using a LexisNexis search. The articles that were published sometime in
2008 and contained the woman’s name in the headline or lead were selected. Only news and features ar-
ticles were used, with editorials and opinion pieces left out because of the biased nature of their content. Ar-
ticles that only covered an entertainer’s portrayal of the woman, such as Tina Fey’s portrayal of Sarah Palin,
were also excluded because they did not offer the merit of election coverage and the promise of “balanced”
journalism.
Each woman was viewed in different time frames because they both ran for political office at different
periods within the last two years:
20 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Hillary Clinton
News articles were analyzed from the announcement of Clinton’s presidential campaign on Jan. 20,
2007, until Obama was nominated for the Democratic ticket at the Democratic National Convention on Aug.
27, 2008. The starting date of Jan. 20 was chosen because of her switch from a local senator to a national
campaigner for the presidency of the United States. Her public relations team had to change its entire plan of
action to campaign on a national scale instead of campaigning for her senate seat in New York. The ending
date for Clinton’s materials— Aug. 27— was chosen because it was the end of her campaign to the American
public for the presidential office.

Sarah Palin
News articles of Sarah Palin were analyzed beginning on the night of her acceptance speech, Sept.
3, 2008. On this date, she went from Alaskan governor to a figure of national prominence as the first woman
Republican vice presidential candidate. The analysis of articles concluded on Nov. 4, 2008, when McCain of-
ficially ended his campaign for president.

Coding
Each article was coded using a coding sheet. Categories were created for article placement, gender
of the writer, professional sources, interviews, words used to describe the candidate, pertinent quotes, refer-
ences to family life, references to marriage or spouse, references to sexual allure/body or clothes, and overall
valence of the article as a whole. Categories also included headlines, leads, and persuasive features such as
sources quoted and experts referenced. Additionally, phraseology was reviewed.

III. Findings
Sarah Palin
After coding of the articles concerning Sarah Palin, the two most salient findings were:
• The article topics focused more on personal traits and characteristics than they did on election issues
such as foreign policy, taxes and spending, social ideals, or campaign finance issues.
• References to Sarah Palin’s family life, notably her children and husband, were more frequent than
references to her looks, clothes, body, or sexual allure.
Most of the articles written about Palin focused on the personal aspects of her life. Out of the three
publications reviewed, 36 percent of the articles featured stories about Palin’s personal life, with topics includ-
ing personal qualities, morality and corruption issues, trustworthiness, and character issues. These articles
often focused on her role as a mother, her children, her connection with the Down’s syndrome community,
her membership in the church, and the “Troopergate” scandal. In all three of the newspapers, the number of
stories coded as “personal” exceeded any other type of story.
Some of the stories about Palin’s personal life were veiled under a larger issue, like campaign fi-
nance or social issues, but careful coding revealed the overall theme of the article concerned Palin’s personal
life. For example, in one article in USA Today on Sept. 12, 2008, began as if it were investigating the readi-
ness of Palin to be the President. An article titled, “Palin wired to be VP, President if need be,” interviewed
three expert sources about Palin’s history in the foreign policy field. After the initial first few paragraphs,
however, the story turned to pinpoint Palin’s strong Christian beliefs, quoting her as saying, “Our national
leaders are sending U.S. soldiers on a task that is from God,” and as repeatedly referring to the war in Iraq
as a “mission.” The word “mission” brings about religious connotations that further the reputation of heavily
conservative Palin as a fanatic Christian. This image is bolstered when, in another article published by USA
Today on the same day, Joseph Pika of the University of Delaware’s political science program says of Palin,
“She’s a gun-toting, pro-life, and a religious conservative … She’s scary to some people and a kind of figure
to be respected to others.”
Other stories blatantly focus on Palin’s personal life. One Washington Post article published on Sept.
11, 2008, features quotes from mothers who identify with Palin’s struggle to raise a family, work, and maintain
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 21

a relationship with her husband. These women see Palin as “just as flawed as we are,” and the writer classi-
fies Palin as “a symbol” for working mothers. Stories overtly focusing on Palin’s personal life often use words
such as “flawed” and “just like us” while interviewing mostly working females with children. The New York
Times uses a similar approach in an article published on Sept. 7, 2008, titled “Soccer moms welcome their
hockey-loving sisters to political arena.” This article uses the familiar persona of the “soccer mom,” such vital
voters for candidates in previous elections, to help frame the persona of a traditional “hockey mom,” as Palin
describes herself. Interviewees, all soccer mothers, recognize that Palin’s time as a mother of athletes cre-
ates a “difference [in] how I connect with her” and says, “I’m like you.”
A different article, published by the New York Times on Oct. 19, 2008, discusses Palin’s appeal to
men, noting the sexual undertones of some of her campaigning and the reactions of voters. It contained
very little mention of Palin’s political stances or major political issues. This article, which interviewed mostly
men, contains quotes such as “She’s so beautiful. … I came here to look at her” and “Marry Me, Sarah!” This
article, while as a whole positive in connotation, uses words such as “unserious,” “uncurious” and “unusual
nature” to describe Palin’s candidacy. When describing Palin herself, the author used words like “a can-
do-caretaker” and “striking,” and made note of her quote describing her husband as “a guy who knows how
to work with his hands.” When considered together, these descriptors paint a picture of a sexually charged
candidate who rallies male attention by using a mix of physical allure and housewife-charm. This image is
perpetuated in an article by the New York Times on Sept. 12, 2008, titled “Back off, GI Joe,” that interviews
the creator of “Sarah Palin action figures.” In this short article, the author mentions that the figures based on
Palin are “muscular” and that different versions are outfitted as a businesswoman, a superhero, and a school-
girl. These images of Palin were obviously created to be sexual.
Another finding that ties in with the emphasis placed on Sarah Palin’s personal life was the number
of articles that referenced her children or her husband. Out of the three papers combined, 40 percent of all
articles featured references to Palin’s children, with some articles focusing on them entirely. This aspect of
Sarah Palin was stressed much more than stories about her looks or clothes. Only 8 percent of stories men-
tioned Palin’s looks, another 8 percent mentioned sexual allure, 8 percent also mentioned her clothes, and
only one article commented outright on Palin’s body. Journalists clearly consciously or unconsciously chose
details and stories that emphasized the role of Palin in a family setting. One such article appeared in the
New York Times on Sept. 12, 2008. Titled “A way of life for Alaskans on skates,” this article focused almost
completely on Palin’s oldest son, Track, and chronicled his life in the hockey rink. Palin, while mentioned as
a satellite figure, did not play a large role in this story. Sources interviewed included family friends, Track’s
hockey coach, and relatives of teammates. In another article, published on Sept. 7, 2008, the Washington
Post explores how Palin’s children have fit into her political views and busy schedule. Titled, “Palin’s fam-
ily has always held a place in her politics,” this article uses interviews to explain how a “working mother” and
“maverick with a very large family in tow” can also be a “perfectly coifed professional woman” who runs the
state of Alaska. Also in regards to the way a family fits in with the title of governor, a Washington Post article
published on the front page on Sept. 9, 2008, discusses how Sarah Palin billed the state of Alaska for her
family’s travel to government functions, not an uncommon practice. The headline, “Palin billed state for nights
spent at home; Taxpayers also funded family’s travel,” implies that excessive amounts of state tax dollars
were spent on Palin’s large family, but the article looks at the issue critically and neutrally, and gives Palin
credit for trying to cut costs. The author even goes as far as to quote Kim Garnero, Alaska’s state finance
director, saying how “She flies coach and encourages her cabinet to fly coach as well.” It can be inferred that
the negative connotation of the headline was used as a way to get readers to examine an otherwise unimport-
ant issue to the campaign.
Other times, Palin’s children are simply mentioned in stories focusing on other topics. For example,
one article published in USA Today on Sept. 4, 2008, titled “Sarah makes landfall in St. Paul; VP Pick focuses
on energy—and jabs at Obama,” focuses on Palin’s vice presidential debate with Obama. Palin talks about
her children and says:
I’m just your average hockey mom who signed up for the PTA because I wanted to make my
kids public education better.
Another article, published on Sept. 3, 2008 and titled “McCain strategist blasts media; top aide says
news orgs are ‘on a mission to destroy’ Palin,” looks at the media exposure of Palin in the first days of her
campaign. The author notes that in media coverage, “the media is asking more questions about Palin’s
pregnant daughter than about Obama’s real estate deal with Tony Rezko, who was recently convicted on cor-
22 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

ruption charges,” and that there is a constant debate about “whether a mother with a pregnant daughter and
four other children can effectively function as vice president.” An article on the front page of the Washington
Post on Sept. 22, 2008, titled “First Dude Todd Palin illustrates Alaska’s blend of private and public,” asks that
same question by using a quote from a voter named Tom Whitstine, saying:
If Sarah’s running around the state and Todd’s off conducting state business, who’s looking
after the children?
The mentioning of Palin’s children in these articles does not add to the story, and in most cases is
used as a descriptor of Palin herself. For example, many articles use descriptors such as “hockey mom,”
“44-year-old mother of five” and “mother” when introducing Palin, a framing technique that points out her femi-
ninity and separates her from her masculine counterparts.
Palin’s husband was mentioned less than her children, but was still recorded in 20 percent of the ar-
ticles. One article was even specifically written about Todd Palin. The story “A day at the races” published by
the New York Times focuses completely on Todd Palin’s local fame in Alaska for being a snowmobile racer for
Arctic Cat, a company specializing in snow equipment. Other times, he is mentioned as Alaska’s “first dude”
or as Sarah Palin’s escort. Articles mentioning Todd include the all of the stories about “Troopergate,” and
how he did not honor the request of a court to appear and testify about his involvement. Articles in all three
papers focus on the “Troopergate” scandal, involving Sarah Palin’s sister and ex-brother-in-law named Mike
Wooten. These articles explore the ethics inquiry into Palin’s accused harassment and dismissal of Alaskan
State police commissioner Walter Monnegan, and only mention the familial connection with Wooten briefly.
Overall, the two largest findings in the Palin news articles had to do with examining Palin’s personal
life and framing her as a member of a family. By giving more news space to stories about Palin’s personal
life, the writers created a heightened interest in Palin’s life rather than her stances on political issues.

Hillary Clinton
After coding the news articles concerning Hillary Clinton, the two most salient findings were:
• The image that was portrayed of Clinton was conflicted, with some articles presenting her as an ac-
commodating candidate who can relate to her constituents and others showed her as a confrontational
candidate who is impersonal and clashes with other candidates.
• Bill Clinton was omnipresent in Hillary Clinton’s campaign coverage. He was part of her campaign
and frequently quoted. Sometimes, Hillary was even compared to Bill in her decisions and stances on
certain topics.
The first major observation from this research was that the image portrayed of Clinton represented
two conflicting representations: the image of an accommodating friendly woman, presented in the “Hillary I
Know” campaign, and the image of a confrontational and decisive political figure with traits commonly at-
tributed to masculine candidates. Sullivan and Turner (1996) observed this conflicted representation during
Clinton’s time as First Lady, and labeled it the “discourse of confrontation and accommodation.”
Clinton is shown as accommodating by her efforts to reach out to minority constituents and by her
attempt to appear “softer.” On Feb. 5, 2008, a USA Today article highlighted how Clinton was working on her
“warmth” to attract voters to her ticket. Clinton was said to be “chatting” to “a roundtable of working moms”
that she “had coffee with.” The author speaks of Clinton’s attempt to “appeal” to these women because she
“wants to seem caring, approachable, and in touch” with voters. Another previously published article in the
USA Today from July 23, 2007, interviewed women who called Clinton a “champion for women” who was a
“supportive” and “understand[ing] advocate.” The Washington Post humanized Hillary Clinton after her ap-
pearance in a Sopranos video spoof on June 6, 2007, as it recounted how she had a “sense of humor” and
was “adept” in using the mediums familiar to her audiences to accommodate their needs from a candidate.
Dan Manatt of PoliticsTV.com is quoted saying that “Hillary Rodham Clinton is very adeptly using the internet
to humanize herself.” In an article from The New York Times titled “Clinton seeks blend of policy and perso-
na,” the author points out Clinton’s conflicting projections, calling out the “teary-eyed Hillary” and the “I-feel-
your-pain Hillary that were her “newest public face.” This article published on Jan. 17 2008, described how
she “nodded,” “listened,” and “expressed sympathy” to the audience’s questions in an effort to “play the part”
of a concerned and warm candidate.
A contrasting image was presented in another article published by the New York Times. In this arti-
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 23

cle, the women of Wellesley College recall Clinton before she was a politician and compare it with the Clinton
that has changed as a result of a harsh media and political system. Her peers and classmates said that while
she is a “fiery” and “passionate and outspoken” woman, she is also a “guarded and cool politician” who can
be “cold” and “calculating.” This article, published on April 14, 2007, says that now she is “savvier” and “more
cynical” than she used to be. An article titled “Poll Electability becoming more important to Dems” published
by USA Today also reinforced the idea that Clinton comes across as confrontational when the author discuss-
es the “controversy over her tone” that concerns Democratic strategists.
Clinton is again shown to be a confrontational figure when another USA Today article, published on
Sept. 27, 2007, pointed out how she was “criticized” for “closing the door to allies” and “hasn’t learned from
mistakes” she made in the past. It also included a quote that referenced her previous discrepancies with Bill
Clinton, when she responded “Well, he isn’t standing here right now” in front of a crowd of people. Finally, an
article published in the New York Times on Nov. 14, 2007, includes a headline calling Clinton a “Democratic
Antagonist.” This story discusses how Clinton is a universal scapegoat for the GOP, and includes a quote
from Greg Strimple, a GOP pollster, and saying, “The use of Hillary Clinton allows every candidate to over-
come the imperfections of their own candidacies.” Pegging her as the antagonist to every Republican candi-
date, and even to Democratic candidates, frames her as a confrontational candidate that could be the “worst
thing for the party.”
The second major finding from the Clinton articles was that Bill Clinton received almost as much
coverage as Hillary. Out of the articles analyzed, 46 percent mentioned former President Bill Clinton in some
form. When reading the articles as a whole, it seems as if the campaign is about Bill and Hillary, not just Hill-
ary Clinton. Bill Clinton is noted as speaking at Hillary Clinton’s rallies or advocating for her in public speech-
es along the campaign trail. This occurs in an article titled, “Clinton stumps with burgers and Bill” in an article
published by the Washington Post on Sept. 24, 2007. The writer describes the partnership of Hillary and Bill
Clinton along the campaign trail, and how through “role reversal,” Bill Clinton is now acting as a supportive
spouse rather than as a campaigning candidate.
A July 14, 2007, article titled “Comeback kid of 92, now half of combo, returns to NH” explores the
idea that many of Hillary Clinton’s supporters are just there to get a glimpse at Bill Clinton. One woman is
quoted as confessing “that she has probably come more to hear Mr. Clinton that Mrs. Clinton,” while another
says “I do believe that with Hillary, you get two for one.” Several months later, another article published by the
New York Times on May 5, 2008, says that “the Clinton campaign has dispatched…President Clinton to small
towns all over the state” in order to make the “final push” for voters in Indiana, a key state for both Hillary Clin-
ton and Barak Obama. This statement makes Bill Clinton seem like a secret weapon, holed away and waiting
to rescue his wife when the time is right.
Sometimes, the entire article is about Bill Clinton and his contributions to Hillary’s campaign, while
only mentioning the senator briefly. An example of this occurred in the Washington Post on July 3, 2007. The
article, titled, “In Iowa, Clinton relies heavily on husband’s star power” discusses how Bill Clinton has been
drawing crowds to Hillary Clinton’s rallies, and how she has been using his celebrity to boost the number
of voters in her campaign. This article was interesting because it actually mentioned what Bill was wear-
ing before Hillary’s attire was discussed. The author wrote that Bill had on, “a bright yellow shirt” and that
she was wearing “a pastel jacket,” painting the picture of a happy, matching couple. The image was pushed
further when the writer said that Hillary “followed her husband to the microphone” and “shared the stage with
her husband,” and halfway through her speech she “reach[ed] out to her husband” before saying “she would
‘have good help along the way’” when she made it to the White House. The picture painted here is one of a
tightly woven marriage where the woman relies on the man, which the general public knows not to be true
after the Clinton’s first run in the White House, the Monica Lewinsky scandal, and the further accusations of
Bill Clinton’s infidelity.
Hillary Clinton is often compared to Bill Clinton in some of the articles, specifically about her views
and opinions of the NAFTA treaty and personal traits. In a USA Today article published on Oct. 9, 2007, an
article titled “Clinton seeks to reevaluate NAFTA; divides with husband on key issues” talks about how Hillary
Clinton “split from husband” and “distanced [herself] from husband’s achievements” while president. Another
article published by the New York Times on Dec. 9, 2007, compared the couple’s personality traits. The
article, titled “Clinton proudly talks of scars while keeping her guard up,” describes Hillary as someone who
“picked fights and alienated friends” and was “joyless, humorless, and lacking heart and soul,” and the article
quotes people associated with Hillary Clinton. One person is quotes as saying, “Bill genuinely likes being
24 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

with people, Hillary does not.” The article also ends with a picture of Hillary and Bill sitting side by side at the
funeral of Mrs. Clinton’s best friend. Bill Clinton is shown tearing up while Hillary is holding strong and clench-
ing her jaw against the tears. The author wrote that “when [Bill] spoke of Mrs. Blair, Mr. Clinton wept…his wife,
Diane Blair’s best friend, held steady in the front row.” This presents the image that Hillary’s tough-as-nails
demeanor pervades even into her personal life, and perpetuates the descriptors used previously in the article.
Bill Clinton’s presence in the media coverage of Hillary Clinton’s campaign can be attributed to the
fact that she was the first lady of the United States, and it would be unreasonable to completely ignore that
part of her life. Her time as first lady established her on a national level, and allowed her to gain exposure in
more ways than being a senator would have allowed. On the other hand, the percentage of stories occupied
by Bill—and the extent to which he is covered—seems very high. The candidate in this race is Hillary Clinton,
not Bill Clinton, who already had his time in the White House. Other candidates’ spouses—Michelle Obama,
a prominent lawyer; Todd Palin, a champion snowmobile racer; and Cindy McCain, chair of Hensley & Co.—
were featured prominently in the news during certain times in the campaign, but not as consistently as Bill
Clinton.

IV. Discussion
Media coverage of women in politics has evolved over the last half century, but the biases and stereo-
types seen in both public relations materials and print journalism articles leads to the conclusion that women
are still represented differently when it comes to national political campaigns. Women struggle to be seen as
competent enough to be a viable candidate for any major public office, which was evident in the 2008 presi-
dential election.
After examining the findings from the coding of the news articles and the press releases, several
overarching themes presented themselves. By combining the different qualitative results and interview
responses from public relations professionals, the following four themes classifying the images of candidates
can be identified, and their effect on the campaigns of the women can be inferred:

Extreme Perceptions
Both Palin and Clinton were the subject of extreme perceptions, a category previously mentioned,
which was established by the group the Catalyst in 2007 as a result of a research study. The Catalyst, a lead-
ing nonprofit organization that specializes in expanding opportunities for women in the workplace, found that
thee pigeonholing of women into extreme roles has been noted in both corporate offices and in the political
sphere. When women act in accordance with traditional gender roles, they are seen as too “soft”, yet when
they conform to the masculine traits favored in political office, they are seen as too “tough” (Double Bind
Dilemmas for Women, 2007, pp. 60-61). The Catalyst’s “too soft” category occurs when women act in ways
consistent with traditionally feminine stereotypes and are deemed incompetent. The “too hard” category oc-
curs when women do not take traditionally feminine stereotypes and are deemed “unfeminine” and therefore
“too tough” (Catalyst, 2007). Clinton and Palin both suffered from extreme classifications, with Clinton often
falling on the “too tough” end of the spectrum and Palin spending the beginning of her campaign on the “too
soft” end and shifting towards the “too tough” end towards the election.
At the beginning of Palin’s campaign, she found herself classified in the “too soft” end of the spectrum
after her handlers cut off media access to “protect” her. Palin also was framed as the subject of “attacks” by
the Democratic Party and placed into the role of a victim to villainize Obama and the Democratic campaign.
The articles analyzed framed Sarah Palin as victimized by both the media and by the Obama campaign.
Palin’s sequestration, followed by much media speculation, actually hurt her campaign because of
the lack of outgoing information on her platforms and political stances. Palin now says that she regrets not
speaking out against her handlers and talking to the media anyway, but because of her instructions, she kept
quiet (Palin, 2009).
This emotional appeal portraying Palin as a victim paved the way for the other side of Palin; the side
presented as a gung-ho, “moose-shooting” maverick attack dog that would clean-up Washington’s political.
Palin won over many voters by her outward love of her family and vow to defend them, and by identifying
herself as a “Washington outsider.” After she established a relationship with her voting base, she could pass
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 25

into the territory known so well by Clinton: acting as a confrontational candidate without alienating voters.
The victimized and outcast Sarah Palin from the early campaign presented in both print journalism and by
the McCain-Palin press team grew to a “killer” candidate, and no one seemed to be bothered. By using the
two extremes of Palin in this order, the campaign allowed the actions and words from Palin to be excusable,
almost as a way to get revenge or to “fight back” for the injustice done against her and her family.
Still, try as she might, Palin could not shake the initial brand of being “too soft.” She did aim to portray
herself as hardened and tough but the image did not stick: she likened herself to a “pit bull with lipstick” in her
famous vice presidential nomination speech, and often referred to herself as a “mother bear.” However, even
after she stood her ground in the vice presidential debate with Sen. Joe Biden, her looks, which brought about
the slogan, “Coldest state, hottest governor” seemed to impede on her portrayal as a toughened politician.
This hurt her chances at being taken seriously on a national political stage.
Clinton, on the other hand, was criticized during her time in the White House as well as on the cam-
paign trail for being too hard, harsh, or impersonal (Hsu, 2009). By the time the 2008 election rolled around,
Clinton had already established herself as a non-traditional female because of her often criticized demeanor
during her time as First Lady. She had already established herself as unconventional, unemotional, and
even cold in the eyes of American voters, which was hard to overcome. Through her husband’s two terms
and the tumultuous relationship she shared with him, Hillary Clinton drew much attention for her lack of public
emotion. This persona continued and followed her to the campaign trail, where she was criticized for her
hardened demeanor by opponents, the media, and members of her own party.
The prime example of media criticism during Clinton’s campaign was at her friend Diane Blair’s
funeral, when she did not cry but her husband did (Liebovich, Clinton proudly talks of scars while keeping her
guard up, 2007). Clinton’s lack of tears became the topic of debate instead of political issues like healthcare
or foreign policy. In a completely different case, Clinton did shed tears—and was criticized for it. After an
audience question at the New Hampshire primary caused her to break down in tears, the media flocked to
analyze her show of emotion, saying she was insincere or that it was staged (Lawrence J. , Candidates make
final push before primary: Clinton loses lead in nat’l Gallup Poll, 2008). Some critics even said that her tears
meant she was not qualified to lead the country, even though in months prior President Bush had cried on
television during a Medal of Honor presentation (Benac, 2007).
These two completely opposite events show that no matter what Clinton did, she could not escape
the criticism that she was never “just right” for the office of president. Juxtaposed together, these incidents
are a perfect example of the way that women struggle for acceptance and the validity that they can be legiti-
mate candidates for offices on a national level.
Women candidates are stuck in a vicious cycle in a similar vein as the fairy tale, Goldilocks and the
Three Bears; these candidates have been labeled too hot and too cold, but we are still waiting to find when
they will be labeled “just right.”

Family
In the news articles about Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton, family was very prominently featured. The
number of articles and stories about the families of the women reflects the framing of the candidates by both
print articles and public relations materials as mothers and caretakers that will ensure the wellbeing of the
country.
Often, the press gets blamed for focusing too much on the candidate’s family members. In both her
book, Going Rogue, and in interviews after her campaign, Sarah Palin frequently criticized the media for
focusing on her family, from breaking the news of Bristol’s pregnancy to the “Troopergate” scandal. Palin, a
self-proclaimed “mother bear,” said that she begged the media to leave her family alone and they did not ac-
quiesce, yet when Barack Obama asked the media to leave his children be, the media listened (Palin, 2009).
In Clinton’s campaign, print news articles featured Bill prominently, and went as far as to base whole
articles around his role in Clinton’s campaign. It is important to acknowledge the fact that he was previously
the President of the United States, and therefore a newsworthy public figure, so some media coverage was
expected. Constantly comparing the Clintons, however, was not. It is possible that the journalists writing the
stories used Bill Clinton as an easy way to establish the story or to set the political scene. Bill Clinton offered
a newsworthy name in conjunction with Hillary Clinton, so journalists may have seen this as an opportunity to
attract more readers to their stories.
26 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Other candidate’s families were not featured as prominently as Clinton and Palin’s. Cindy McCain
seldom made news articles, and McCain’s children or other family were hardly ever involved in press cover-
age. Obama asked the press to leave his children out of the media spotlight, and his request was relatively
respected. The exception to this trend was Michelle Obama, who was featured more often than most of the
other candidate’s family members. Michelle Obama was talked about because of her accomplishments as
a black woman in a professional field, her role as a successful working woman and mother, and because of
her fashion choices. These frames support the observations of this research. Michelle Obama was seen
as a novelty because few black women have been prominently featured on the national political stage. Her
skills as a mother were also called into the spotlight, and media tended to speculate how she would raise her
two daughters, Malia and Sasha, in the White House. The media also drew much attention to her impressive
sense of style, comparing her to a modern day Jacquelyn Kennedy. Her fashion choices, often full of color
and from publicly accessible stores like White House, Black Market, were a stark contrast to the expensive
navy suits worn on the campaign trail by both Palin and Clinton. Michelle Obama was neatly boxed into the
same frames that the female candidates in the race were framed in; as a motherly figure, as a figure who rep-
resented the average or disadvantaged American family, and as a novelty representation of how the United
States has succeeded in leveling the playing field for all citizens.

Mother or Candidate: Pick One.

In the same mindset that frames female candidates as caretakers and family figures, they are criti-
cized more than male candidates for the toll taken on their family life. This was especially seen in the 2008
election with Palin’s campaign. News stories repeatedly mentioned Palin’s motherhood as a major part of her
candidacy, especially since she had one son serving in Iraq, one pregnant teenage daughter, and one special
needs child. While many mothers and women across the country rejoiced that “one of us” was on the road to
the White House, speculation grew about the viability of a candidate with so many young children. Palin, the
mother of five, was routinely questioned on her ability to raise a family with a special needs child—her ability
to be a “good” mom—and her ability to hold and perform well in the office of Vice President at the same time.
Palin, who had successfully been a mayor and Governor of the State of Alaska, drew much fire for exposing
her children to such a spotlight as the national political stage, and was doubted for her competency to raise a
family while Vice President.
This election spared Clinton some of the turmoil she suffered during her time as First Lady (Turner,
1996). During her time as First Lady, Clinton was criticized for breaking the “normal” role of a First Lady by
refusing to be a “sweet, quiet wife behind her husband” and instead being “professional, tough, and indepen-
dent” (Hsu, 2009). Gleason notes, Clinton was “demonized from the beginning…if people think Sarah Palin
was demonized [in the media], Clinton has been from the early days.
Different media outlets described her as “ambitious, aggressive, and hardheaded…the yuppie wife
from hell,” and the New York Times wrote that she “made her husband seem like a wimp” (Hsu, 2009).
This election, journalists seemed to be more respectful of Clinton than they were during her time as
First Lady. The elite newspapers did not use such aggressive and scathing terminology when describing
Clinton as a candidate. Bracey hypothesized that the previously established relationship between Clinton
and the media was the cause. He says, “In 1990, Hillary Clinton gave press conference where she sat down
and answered every question from bloodthirsty reporters. At the end of it, people still felt negatively about her
[choices in her] personal life, but a lot of people had respect for her.”
Clinton’s willingness to cooperate with the media established a relationship that may have affected
her media coverage. While the portrayal of Clinton was far from gentle, her give and take relationship with
the media, especially compared to Palin’s relationship, generally created a more respectful news environment
than the one that existed during her time as first lady.
In general, questions surrounding child rearing while being a national political figure seemed to point
at the women involved in the 2008 election. According to most media speculation, women cannot hold posi-
tions of power while being “good” mothers; one must be one or the other.
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 27

V. Conclusion
While coverage of female candidates has evolved to be less biased in terms of amount of coverage
and story type, there are still discrepancies in the themes of both the press releases and print articles and
the polarization of women running for office. Women are still characterized in both public relations materials
and in print articles by platforms for “feminine” causes and in the polarization of female candidates by framing
them as too “hard” or too “soft.” It is unclear if this is intentional, or if the stereotypical frames inherent in hu-
man behavior cause the separation and polarization of male and female to pervade all aspects of life.
Because of the gendered office of president and vice president, many scholars note women are still
trapped in the double bind that causes them to be a competent candidate or a good mother, overly outgoing
or bitchy, an accomplished leader or not well liked, with no option in between. The campaigns of both Palin
and Clinton are indicative of the trend that women cannot run as “normal” candidates as they are represented
as extreme and larger-than-life by the media. It is only by reshaping the framing and coverage of national
political offices that we can realistically expect women running for office to have an equal chance at repre-
sentation, portrayal, and perhaps election. The media play an important role in this reshaping because of
their power to frame candidates, issues, and political offices. If public relations departments of campaigns as
well as popular media outlets refuse to propagate candidates’ gender stereotypes, the “glass ceiling” hold-
ing minorities of all genders and races from political office will finally break, leading to a more democratic and
representative government.

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my thesis mentor, Dr. Frances Ward-Johnson, for mentoring me through the
research process. I would also like to thank Elon’s communications school for everything I have learned
over the past 4 years, the Honors Fellows program for its support and for promoting undergraduate research
projects, and to all of my professors who never fail to amaze me with their dedication and commitment to their
students.

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 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 31

Kaiser, R. G. (2008, September 21). Format of Biden-Palin debate sets no limit on subject matter. The Wash-
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Kiely, K. (2008, June 27). Clinton calls on Hispanic supporters to back Obama. USA Today , p. 8A.
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Kiely, K. (2007). Immigration vote stuns Senate supporters. USA Today , p. 13A.
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Kurtz, H. (2008, September 25). Palin mamrkets McCain as market reformer. The Washington Post , p. A09.
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A08.
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32 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Lawrence, J. (2008, September 15). Both Obama & Clinton to be nominated at convention. USA Today , p.
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Lawrence, J. (2007, July 23). Clinton focuses on female bonding. USA Today , p. 1A.
Lawrence, J. (2008, June 2). Clinton makes closing arguement after landslide. USA Today , p. 4A.
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Lawrence, J. (2008, February 6). Early wins indicate fierce fight far from over. USA Today , p. 4A.
Lawrence, J. (2007, July 23). Fight is on to capture women’s votes. USA Today , p. 5A.
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Lawrence, J. (2007, April 12). Treatment of troops “outrageous”. USA Today , p. 6A.
Lawrence, J. (2007, December 4). War of words between Clinton, Obama rages on. USA Today , p. 8A.
Lawrence, J. (2007, July 25). What’s so funny? The 2008 contenders using jokes to score points. USA Today
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Lawrence, J., & Kieley, K. (2008, April 22). Demobrats make final push for voters in PA. USA Today , p. 6A.
Lawrence, J., & Kiely, K. (2008, March 4). Clinton continues to rep rival on nat’l security. USA Today , p. 8A.
Lawrence, J., & Kiely, K. (2008, April 21). Obama, Clinton tour Pensylvannia armed with critiques new and
old. USA Today , p. 2A.
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Liebovich, M. (2008, October 30). At rallies of faithful, contrasts in red and blue. New York Times , p. A1.
Liebovich, M. (2007, December 9). Clinton proudly talks of scars while keeping her guard up. The New York
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 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 33

Luo, M. (2007, July 14). Comeback kid if 92, now half ofcombo, returns to NH. New York Times , p. A9.
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Washington Post , p. A01.
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public. The Washington Post , p. A01.
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when the candidates don’t fit the stereotypes? The Howard Journal of Communications , 315-332.
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Memmott, M. (2008, September 9). Disconnect on Palin’s bridge line. USA Today , p. 4A.
Merida, K. (2008, January 9). Clinton’s faithful, bruised, but coming back. Washington Post , p. 2008.
Mermott, M. (2008, May 30). Journalism report: Clinton got a fair shake. USA Today , p. 5A.
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Milbank, D. (2008, June 4). In defeat, Clinton graciously pretends to win. Washington Post , p. A03.
Milbank, D. (2007, April 6). The right dusts off ‘Impeach Clinton’ buttons. Washington Post , p. A02.
Miller, A. (2008, September 12). Palin beats Hillary in metaphor wars. Biotech Bisoness Week , p. 1693.
Moore, M. (2008, May 5). Clinton, Obama give ‘final push’ for votes in Indiana. USA Today , p. 7A.
Moore, M. (2008, September 12). Huge effect of Palin pick on campaign cuts both ways. USA Today , p. 5A.
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Moore, M. (2008, September 11). Palin set for sit-down interviews. USA Today , p. 4A.
Moore, M. T. (2008, March 6). Its now a marathon, with PA the big prize. USA Today , p. 1A.
Moore, M. T. (2008, September 4). Palin speech aims to fill in some key gaps. USA Today , p. 5A.
Moore, M. T., & Jackson, D. (2008, October 10). Biden, Palin make their cases in spirited debate. USA Today
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Moore, M. T., & Jackson, D. (2008, October 3). Campaigns await impact from spirited VP debate. USA Today
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Page, S. (2007, December 3). Clinton urges moratorium on foreclosures. USA Today , p. 5A.
Page, S. (2008, April 23). Clinton wins Pensylvannia. USA Today , p. 1A.
Page, S. (2008, May 13). Dems say let the contest continue. USA Today , p. 1A.
Page, S. (2007, November 7). Guiliani, Clinton maintain leads in double digits. USA Today , p. 7A.
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Page, S. (2007, August 7). More Democrats favorClinton over Obama, poll finds. USA Today , p. 5A.
Page, S. (2008, February 20). Obama adds to victory street. USA Today , p. 1A.
Page, S. (2007, December 21). Obama makes gains, is even with Clinton in NH. USA Today , p. 1A.
Page, S. (2007, June 5). Obama now virtually tied with Clinton, poll shows. USA Today , p. 1A.
Page, S. (2008, May 13). Obama-Clinton race echos past bouts. USA Today , p. 4A.
Page, S. (2008, 4 September). Palin address stirs excitement. USA Today , p. 3 A.
Page, S. (2008, September 4). Palin makes landfall in St. Paul. USA Today , p. 6A.
Page, S. (2008, October 3). Palin, Biden side-step predicted missteps. USA Today , p. 5A.
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Page, S. (2007, December 4). Support says for Guiliani & Clinton in poll. USA Today , p. 8A.
Page, S., & Moore, M. T. (2008, September 3). McCain’s bet on Palin sets up a “wild ride” in fall campaign.
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Shear, M., & Vick, K. (2008, September 18). Hackers access Palin’s personal email, post some online. The
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36 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Times , p. E1.
Steinberg, J. (2008, September 13). Palin reviews are in, and Gibson got an... New York Times , p. A12.
Stelter, B. (2008, October 9). Ratings up, but still not no. 1. New York Times , p. A24.
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Targeted News Service. (2009). Targeted News. Retrieved July 29, 2009, from Targeted News Service: http://
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ruary, from The Gleason Group: http://www.gleasongroupinc.com
The New York Times. (2008, September). The New York Times-- Advertising-- Circulation Highlights. Re-
trieved March 20, 2009, from The New York Times media kit: http://www.nytimes.whsites.net/mediakit/
newspaper/circulation/circulation_facts.php
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 8). 100 U.S. Ambassadors endorse McCain-Palin.
Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 24). Gov. Sarah Palin addresses Beaver, Penn-
sylvania. New York: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 24). Gov. Sarah Palin addresses Troy, OH on
October. New York: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 19). Governor Palin to participate in a Road to
Victory rally in Lady Lake, Florida. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 12). Governor Sarah Palin to participate in a
Victory 2008 rally in Carson City, Nevada. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 4). Governor Sarah Palin to participate in Road to
Victory rally in Estero, Florida. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 1). ICYMI: Governor Sarah Palin on the Sean
Hannity Show. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 16). John McCain and Governor Palin to par-
ticipate in Road to Victory rally in Green Bay, Wisconson. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 16). John McCain and Governor Palin to par-
ticipate in town hall meeting in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 17). John McCain and Governor Palin to par-
ticipate in Victory Rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 8). John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin to
participate in town hall meeting in Waukesha, Wisconson. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 15). John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin
to particpate in Road to Victory rally in Vienna, Ohio. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 6). John McCain and Sarah Palin to campaign in
Virginia Beach and Richmond. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 30). John McCain- Sarah Palin statement on
American’s abroad. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, September 15). McCain-Palin 2008 launches new TV ad:
‘Crisis’. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 37

The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 1). McCain-Palin 2008 launches new web ad:
‘Better Off’. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 30). McCain-Palin announces the ‘Meet the Par-
ents’ tour. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 30). McCain-Palin campaign welcomes Patricia
Heaton to Las Vegas. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 30). Remarks by Governor Sarah Palin after hold-
ing a national security roundtable discussion. New York: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 29). Remarks by Governor Sarah Palin on achiev-
ing strategic energy independance. New York: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 2). Statement from communications director Jill
Hazelbaker. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 21). Statement from Senator McCain and Gover-
nor Palin on an economic stimulus. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 24). The McCain-Palin commitment to children
with special needs. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 2). What they’re saying about Governor Sarah
Palin at Wash U. debate. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 3). What they’re saying about Governor Sarah
Palin on Wash U. debate: Vol. 2. Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of John McCain. (2008, October 3). What they’re saying about Governor Sarah
Palin on Wash U. debate: Vol. 3. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 6). 50 elected officials from across
Oregon endorse Hillary. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 18). African American community
leaders in PA support Hillary Clinton’s urban agenda. Philadelphia, Pennsylvannia: Targeted News
Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 18). African American community
leaders in PA support Hillary Clinton’s urban agenda. Philadelphia, Pennsylvannia: Targeted News
Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 24). An open letter from Dr. Maya
Angelou. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 7). As West Virginia takes center
stage, Clinton campaign ramps up statewide Get Out the Vote effort. Charleston, West Virginia: Tar-
geted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 21). Bozeman legislator Franke
Wilmer endorses Hillary Clinton for president. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, March 19). Campaign unveils testamonials
from retired admirals and generals supporting Hillary Clinton to be Commander-in-Chief. Washington
DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2007, November 7). Clinton c ampaign announc-
es Washington DC for Hillary steering comittee. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLc.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 28). Clinton campaign announces
Montana Women’s Leadership Council and Montana Women for Hillary. Washington dC: Targeted
News Service LLC.
38 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 9). Clinton campaign announces Or-
egon LGBT steering committee. Portland, Oregon: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 29). Clinton campaign announces
South Dakota Veterans for Hillary steering committee. Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 30). Clinton campaign announces the
endorsement of 22 South Dakota Native American Leaders. Washington DC: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2007, December 20). Clinton campaign announc-
es Utah steering committee. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 5). Clinton campaign announces West
Virginia for Hillary leadership council. Charleston, West Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 7). Clinton campaign announces West
Virginia Women for Hillary. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, March 20). Clinton campaign names Clay
Haynes Oregon state director. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 21). Clinton campaign names state
director and communications director of Kentucky. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 9). Clinton campaign released video
narrative by Chelsea Clinton in honor of Mother’s Day. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, March 17). Clinton campaign statement
on release of Hillary Clinton’s schedules by the National Archives. Washington DC: Targeted News
Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 20). Clinton campaign unveils new re-
sponse ad to negative Obama healthcare spot. Philadelphia, Pennsylvannia: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, SMayMay 8). Clinton campaign unvels
‘Hats off for Hillary’. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 9). Clinton endorsed by former West
Virginia Governor Hulett Smith. Charleston, West Virginia: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 23). Clinton momentum continues,
recieves prominent Montana endorsements. Helena, Montana: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, March 20). Clinton PA campaign kicks off
March Madness: ‘Final Four’ days of voter registration. Philadelphia, Pennsylvannia: Targeted News
Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, August 14). Clinton to make history again.
Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, January 12). Colorado hispanic leadership
council kicks of ‘Un nuevo da’ volunteer recruitment effort. Denver, Colorado: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 9). Congressman Chris Carney en-
dorses Hillary Clinton for president. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 23). Congressman John Tanner en-
dorses Hillary Clinton for president. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, January 9). Continuing omentum, Clinton
campaign announces steering committee of Connecticut. Washington DC: Targeted News Service
LLC.
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 39

The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 5). Democrats abroad automatic del-
egate Theresa Morelli endorses Hillary. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, August 26). DNC launches new web ad:
‘Hillary is right”. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, August 27). DNC: Obama and Clinton
nominators announced. Denver, Colorado: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 8). Former Democratic party chair
Sally Richardson endorses Hillary Clinton for President. Charleston, West Virginia: Targeted News
Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2007, December 19). Former DNC chairman Don
Fowler endorses Clinton. Columbia, South Carolina: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 22). Former House Democratic leader
Cocciarella endorses Hillary Clinton. Missoula, Montana: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 22). Guam automatic delegate Pilar
Lujan endorses Hillary. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 20). Hillary Clinton responds to new
attack ad released by the Obama campaign. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 20). Hillary Clinton responds to Sen.
Obama’s suggestion that Sen. McCain would be a better president than George Bush. Washington
DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 27). Hillary Clinton statement of the
record decline in the housing prices. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 9). Hillary Clinton supporters criss-
cross Pennsylvannia. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2007, November 12). Hillary Clinton trailblazes
across NH as campaign fires on all cylinders. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 29). Hillary Clinton: Standing up for
Montana’s service members and veterans. Washington DC: Targetd News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, may 19). Hillary Clinton’s agenda to protect
America’s miners. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, June 7). Hillary’s remarks in Washington.
Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 26). Hillary’s statement on Memorial
day. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 7). Hoosiers for Hillary launches first
television ad. Indianapolis, Indiana: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 7). HUBdate: A cure within out life-
time. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 28). HUBdate: ‘A strong partner with
Indian country’. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 6). HUBdate: Election day. Washing-
ton DC: Targeted news Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 22). HUBdate: Election day in Penn-
sylvannia. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 27). HUBdate: Fighting for Puerto
40 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Rico’s soldiers and veterans. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 19). HUBdate: Getting out the vote.
Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 3). HUBdate: In her element. Wash-
ington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, June 1). HUBdate: ‘La Grande Caravana’
and election day in Puerto Rico. Washington DC: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 15). HUBdate: Leading the popular
vote. Washington DC: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 21). HUBdate: Pennsylvannia primary
eve. Washington DC: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 20). HUBdate: Political courage.
Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 10). HUBdate: Strongest at the top of
the ticket. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 30). HUBdate: ‘Top candidate for
Dems’. Washington DC: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 8). HUBdate: ‘True tale’. Washington
DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 29). HUBdate: Why Hillary is the
strongest candidate. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 21). HUBdateL Celebrating in the
bluegrass state. Washington DC: Targeted NEws Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 29). In first Montana TV ad Hillary
says ‘I intend to be a president who stands up for all of you’. Washington DC: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 22). In new NC ask me ad Hillary
vows to care for our veterans. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2007, December 22). Iowa labor leaders ensorse
Hillary for president. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 15). Kallispell mayor endorses Hillary
for president. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 12). MEMO: 10K in PA-- Women turn
out strong in Pennsylvannia. Washington: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 21). MEMO: Countdown to PA prima-
ry. Washington DC: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 19). Memo: Mission accomplished?
Not so fast. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 23). Memo: The tide is turning. Wash-
ington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 6). Memo: Tie breaker. Washington
DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 21). Momentum grows for Clinton in
Oregon. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 41

The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, March 18). Morning HUBDate: Stronger v.
McCain. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, February 6). Morning HUBDate: Tremen-
dous victories 2/6/2008. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 4). Must Read: alem statesman jour-
nal endorses Hillary Clinton. Washington DC: Targeted news Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 22). New ad: Hillary will stand up for
your jobs, your future. Indianapolis, Indiana: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 27). New ad: South Dakota can ‘Pick
a president’. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 5). New ad: Under Hillary’s plan, oil
companies would pay gas tax-- not drivers. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2007, December 19). New Jersey for Hillary an-
nounces Hispanic leadership council. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 16). New Kentucky ads: Hillary vows
to stand up for working families and level the playing field. Washington DC: Targeted News Service
LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, June 1). New Montana ad highlights Hill-
ary’s historic popular vote total. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (208, May 9). New Oregon ad: Ambassador Joe
Wilson and Valerie Plame say Hillary best to end Iraq war bring troops home. Washington DC: Tar-
geted news Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 9). New West Virginia ad: Hillary vows
to level playing field. Washington DC: Targeted ews Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 19). New York farm advocated hit Big
Sky country touting Hillary Clinton’s rural record. Billings, Montana: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 18). NY farmer, rural advocate to tour
South Dakota on Hillary behalf. Mithcell, South Dakota: Targted News service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 7). NY ‘travelers’ hit campaign trail
touting Clinton’s rural and agricultural record. Campellsville, Kentucky: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 21). Ohio automatic delegate Craig
Bashein endorses Hillary. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 5). Oregon Seniors for Hillary to
spearhead outreach to senior community. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, March 19). Pennsylvannia for Hillary an-
nounces statewide communications team. Philadelphia, Pennsylvannia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 8). Pennsylvannia for Hillary launches
five television ads. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, April 8). Pennsylvannia for Hillary launches
five television ads. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, January 17). Richardson Colorado cam-
paign co-chairs, superdelegate, and steering committee members endorse Hillary Clinton. Washing-
ton DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 29). Ricky Martin endorses Hillary for
president. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
42 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 22). Senator Clinton heralds fix to
student crisis. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, March 17). Sir Elton John to perform at
Clinton fundraiser on April 9th. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 20). Statement by Hillary Clinton on
Cuban Independance Day. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, June 13). Statement f Senator Hillary Rod-
ham Clinton and former President William Jefferson Clinton on the death of Tim Russert. Washington
DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 30). Statement from Hillary Clinton on
investigating oil price manipulation. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 9). Swing state Democrats say Hillary
best for top of ticket. 2008 . Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, January 16). Updated morning HUBdate:
Clear winner. Washington DC: Targeted News Service.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2007, November 8). Utah leaders endores Hillary.
Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 29). Washington automatic delegate
Eileen Macoll endorses Hillary. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, May 19). While Obama camp moves to end
campaign before South Dakotans voices are heard, Clinton campaign accepts McGovern proposal.
Washington DC: Targeted NEws Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, January 15). Women in business hail Hill-
ary as their leader. Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. (2008, January 15). Yesterday in the states.
Washington DC: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain. (2008, September 12). Governor Sarah Palin to participate
in a Victory 2008 rally in Carson City, Nevada. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain. (2008, September 9). Governor Sarah Palin to participate in
a welcome home rally in Fairbanks, Alaska. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain. (2008, September 10). McCain-Palin 2008 launche new web
ad: ‘Lipstick’. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain. (2008, September 10). McCain-Palin 2008 launches new TV
ad: ‘Fact check’. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain. (2008, September 9). McCain-Palin 2008 launches truth
squad to counter attacks on Governor Sarah Palin. Arlington, Virginia: Targeted News Service LLC.
The Presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain. (2008, November 4). Sen John McCain’s remarks as deliv-
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 Framing of Female Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Race by Caroline Fox — 43

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44 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Developing Health Communication with Displaced Populations:

An Exploration of Cultural Barriers to Health Care Experienced
by Southeast Asian Refugees

Margeaux Rose Corby*

Journalism and Biology

Elon University

Abstract
Culture is primary in shaping an individual’s perception of illness and compliance with prescribed
medical regimens, making identification of health-related cultural elements critical. This research attempts to
identify the cultural barriers to displaced populations’ acceptance of “Western” medicine and compliance to its
tenets. Evidence-based cross-cultural health knowledge of the Montagnard community in Greensboro, North
Carolina was collected via snowball sampling in this ethnographic study. Subjective narratives, in combina-
tion with investigator observations and review of previous research, were used to analyze the overall patterns
observed in both first- and second-hand accounts of health-related activities and health care utilization by
the Montagnard community. Patterns found included misunderstandings between patient and provider due
to differences in defining illness and false perceptions of Western medicine and health services. These fos-
tered patient noncompliance and explained ignorance of clinical appointment and payment systems. The
possibility of new health concerns related to an unbalanced diet was also found due to the introduction of
American fast food and formation of new dietary habits by refugees.

I. Introduction
Health communication can increase an audience’s awareness of health problems and solutions, influ-
ence perceptions and beliefs, prompt action, demonstrate healthy behaviors, and reinforce existing knowl-
edge or behaviors (Freimuth & Quinn, 2004). Customization of health communication programs and health
services to better meet the needs of minority and vulnerable populations is done by recognizing and practic-
ing culturally relevant modes of appropriating knowledge (Kreuter & McClure, 2004).1
Non-native and refugee populations are especially vulnerable to significant discrepancies in health
care access and are in great need of culturally relevant, accurate, and timely health information (Kreps &
Sparks, 2008). To provide a reference that health agencies and communicators can draw from when creat-
ing public health materials for isolated communities, this paper will explore the cultural barriers to displaced
Southeast Asian populations’ acceptance of “Western” medicine and compliance to its tenets. Before the sto-
ries of these cultural groups can be told, an introduction to the populations being examined and the reasons
behind their exodus to the United States must be understood.
For the past 35 years, 1.3 million refugees have arrived from Southeast Asia. Cambodia, Laos and
* Keywords: Refugee health, health culture, Western medicine, Montagnards, displaced populations
Email:[email protected]
 Developing Health Communication with Displaced Populations by Margeaux Corby — 45

Vietnam are the three major countries represented by the immigration of Hmong, Cambodian, Laotian, Viet-
namese and Montagnard communities following the end of the Vietnam War (2009). The importance of health
care providers understanding Southeast Asian refugee populations’ cultural tenets and ideologies in order to
establish patient-doctor relationships and ensure successful provision of care has been documented in both
scientific studies and practitioner observations (Ito, 1999; Stephenson, 1995; Uba, 1992).
Southeast Asian refugees in the United States, despite many cultural, linguistic, and national differ-
ences, share common pre-emigration experiences of war and flight from oppressive governments and com-
mon governmental benefits once in America (Ito, 1999). As such, information about Montagnards normative
cultural values and their direct and indirect influence on health care will be supplemented by findings of other
Southeast Asian refugee experiences and cultural patterns observed by other health care providers and docu-
mented in anthropological studies.

II Literature Review
Modeling health messages in a culturally appropriate framework is primary for health communication
to be effective between health provider and patient or health agency and target community. The significance
of cultural awareness in health communication has been explored by scholars via 1) an examination how
health culture develops and its influence on patient compliance, 2) the role of health providers in establishing
culturally appropriate communication, and 3) the special need for culturally appropriate health care for refugee
populations.
Culture is best thought of as an adaptive system of meaning, in which behavior, values, and ethnicity
contribute to, but do not encompass the mass of, its depth and density. While not inherently cultural, factors
such as familial roles, religiosity, the importance of individualism versus collectivism, and specific behavioral
engagement can help define culture for a group if the aforementioned factors have a special meaning to
group members (Kreuter et al., 2002). These integrated patterns of human behavior are the underlying deter-
minants of individual decision-making, especially those related to the use and trust in health care (Paez et al.,
2008). Developing culturally appropriate programs and materials requires the identification of authentic com-
munity structures, beliefs, and roles instead of relying on easy but ultimately superficial identifiers like ethnicity
and race (Kreuter et al., 2002). Examining cultural issues that impact and influence the way in which mem-
bers of vulnerable populations respond to health communication and care is crucial for success in disease
prevention and health management (Kreps & Sparks, 2008).
Health culture is also transmitted through social networks and interactions with others. This reinforces
an individual’s interpretations of illness and appropriate reactions and solutions to a given disease or sickness
(Ito, 1999). Health culture includes the belief systems, spiritual values, and behavioral decisions that filter
health messages, instructions, and communications. After such processing, the program’s message is either
ignored or accepted (Institute of Medicine, 2002). Health culture has the capacity to determine from whom
health care is sought, how symptoms are described, and whether treatment options will be complied with or
even considered (Andrulis & Brach, 2007). Patient beliefs can impede preventative care efforts, delay, or com-
plicate clinical care and result in a lack of treatment or inappropriate remedies (Flores, 2000).
In addition, health providers’ willingness to acknowledge the existence of a patient’s unique health
culture and its potentially conflicting etiologies is critical. By accepting the idea of a different sociocultural
context through which patients are communicating their concerns as well as hearing medical professional’s
instructions, health care providers can begin taking steps to modify their own messages for greater treatment
success. In order to assure that patient-provider interactions are successful, clinicians must learn about their
patients’ health literacy and health culture and use that information to improve communication with diverse
patients (Andrulis & Brach, 2007). The health culture in which a patient is immersed affects several levels of
health care. This includes interpretations of the origins of disease and decisions concerning compliance and
overall efficacy of care (Ito, 1999). The elicitation of symptoms and evaluation of signs and descriptions of
illness are highly related to a patient’s health culture and the selection of medications or treatment plans must
be done with regard to patient culture (Horner et al., 2004).
Thus, reaching non-native populations is a tremendously complex but acute need in the United States
as these groups are the most vulnerable health care consumer population. Refugee populations are minor-
46 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

ity groups that are not only subject to discrimination based on ethnicity and race but often have low, if any,
English language proficiency, occupy low socioeconomic status, and have been displaced from their native
country and sometimes even their families. They are at greatest risk for higher levels of death and disease
than other segments of the population (Kreps & Sparks, 2008). Traditional culture and accompanying values
are highly valued by populations who, because of violent and horrific circumstance, are forced to live without
the basic comforts of a familiar language, nationality, and political structure (Frye & D’Avanzo, 1994). Cultural
traditions provide stability to these groups, who have become stripped of most all worldly possessions, and
help them face the challenges of a foreign and intimidating environment. Often these belief structures have
been threatened in their native country and refugees have suffered violence from the governing bodies that
forced their exodus (Frye & D’Avanzo, 1994).
Refugees, therefore, are leaving one volatile and violent environment for a potentially safer but more
unpredictable and foreign one. The loss of possessions, loved ones, and the experience of actual or threat-
ened violence take a toll. So do the emotional and physical demands of flight and uncertainties encountered
in an alien country. These are just some of the many hardships refugees must face when entering the United
States (Starr & Roberts, 1982). These numerous potential sources of stress refugees face make them prime
candidates for health problems, but because of the cultural and linguistic barriers before them, refugees are
the least likely population to take advantage of necessary and available health care systems.
Culturally appropriate health communication targeted at health care providers or agencies is thus
necessary to limit health disparities and encourage medical compliance in non-native and refugee popula-
tions. In order to fully demonstrate this need for cultural awareness in a clinical and public health setting, the
cultural barriers experienced by Southeast Asian refugees, specifically the findings of an ethnographic study
of the Montagnard refugee population in Greensboro, North Carolina, were examined.

III. Methods
This ethnographic study, which was conducted between September 2008 and February 2010, fo-
cused on the subsection of Montagnard refugees in the Greensboro area, as well as community members
who have worked extensively with the population. Snowball sampling was used to locate and interview
subjects since organizations familiar with the community mainly work exclusively with the local Montagnard
religious leaders and are not in contact with other individuals except on a case-by-case basis. The sensitive
nature of questioning, as it regarded health-related information, made introductions through acquaintances
beneficial in securing source confidence. Since there is very little current literature about the Montagnards
in general, much less about those living in North Carolina, the researcher began the process of contacting
members of the Montagnard community by contacting refugee resettlement agencies and requesting referrals
for community leaders. By attending regular Sunday worship services at the United Montagnard Church, the
researcher established a familiarity with the community and recruited interviewees, most of who suggested
other family members or friends as potential interviewees.
Interviews, which ranged from 45 to 90 minutes in length, were conducted individually, although family
members were sometimes present, and participant narratives were recorded and transcribed. Interviewees
were asked questions that covered a variety of topics, including inquiries about their health histories, personal
experiences with health care in the United States and Vietnam, challenges they faced during the resettlement
process, religious beliefs, Montagnard traditions and health experiences related to them by friends and fam-
ily members. Visual material (photographs and video of some informant interviews) and audio material from
taped conversations were collected. These subjective narratives, in combination with investigator observa-
tions and review of previous research, were used to analyze the overall patterns observed in both first- and
second-hand accounts of health-related activities and health-care utilization by the Montagnard community.
Analyzing techniques involved 1) the identification of indigenous themes that appeared to characterize the
health care experience of an interviewee and 2) the comparison of these themes to other interviewee ac-
counts and current scholarly research.2

2 Interviewees are not identified in the paper, unless their position is relevant to the quoted informa-
tion.
 Developing Health Communication with Displaced Populations by Margeaux Corby — 47

IV. Results
Patterns found among Montagnard refugees included misunderstandings between patient and
provider due to differences in defining illness and false perceptions of Western medicine. The introduction of
American fast food is leading to the formation of new dietary habits by refugees, forecasting the possibility of
new health concerns related to an unbalanced diet.

Defining sickness
Modern health care is highly regarded by many Southeast Asian groups. Problems related to these
groups’ utilization of health care are due more often to misunderstandings rather than a lack of acceptance
(Kemp, 1985). Since health culture shapes the way in which sickness and its severity are defined, it also
influences the actions necessary to treat it and the way in which it is described to others. Ideas concerning
the source of sickness and disease, something many mistakenly believe are universally understood and ac-
cepted, are susceptible to varying explanations. For instance, the idea of preventative care is not a familiar
mode of thinking for many Montagnards. “They work until they get hurt or are too sick to go into work,” said
one interviewee. “If someone gets them to a medical provider, then they get care, and if they don’t they don’t.”
An individual’s understanding of illness etiologies are created well before a clinical encounter (Ito,
1999). Such interpretations of symptoms and causation of sickness are conceived through interactions with
people within important social networks and can influence behavior both before and after a doctor’s visit (Ito,
1999). Moreover, procedures such as circumcision or tonsillectomies, which are considered routine in the
United States, are frightening to many Southeast Asian refugees. Some groups believe such invasive pro-
cedures have long lasting and multiple effects that outweigh the benefits of surgical relief or cures (Muecke,
1983). Religious beliefs also play a role in why many routine procedures are refused by Montagnard pa-
tients. “Circumcision [the doctors] explain is cleanliness, for a better health, but in our culture and belief you
shouldn’t take off anything that’s given, you go against God’s will and those are the things that are so sensi-
tive because once it’s done you can’t sew it back.”
Southeast Asians who decide to seek health care are often apprehensive about the treatments and
diagnostic tools used in Western medicine because of their lack of familiarity with and misinterpretation of
the functions of such procedures, no matter how non-invasive or simple they may seem to Westerners (Uba,
1992). One Montagnard woman gave birth to a son with a malfunctioning liver and although the doctor sug-
gested a transplant, she refused to give permission for such an operation. “They keep him two months and
they said they want change for him, change his liver,” she said. “I say he still little, I’m scary for him. At the
meeting they say ‘Why you say no?’ I say no I can’t do it, they want me to sign the paper, and I say no I just
speak to God I pray to God.” This Montagnard mother’s lack of knowledge about the technology, process
and safety measures taken before, during and after organ transplants in the United States led her to refuse a
potentially health-improving, even life-saving, surgery for her son.

Unfamiliarity and misunderstandings of Western health care systems

Those familiar with the Western medical system often consider intake procedures routine but these
same situations are often confusing to Southeast Asian refugees new to the process. Members of minority
groups may try to hide or mask their limited health literacy or unfamiliarity with Western systems of care by
not asking questions or simply feigning comprehension (Andrulis & Brach, 2007). The American appointment
system is often misunderstood both in terms of needing an appointment and the fact that once an appoint-
ment is made, patients still must often wait past the scheduled time (Muecke, 1983). According to one Mon-
tagnard interviewee, the concept of needing to make an appointment time, arriving at the doctor’s office or
clinic at that specified time and then having to wait several minutes past that time is unusual and frustrating.
“It’s different from Vietnam and here. When I was in Vietnam when I got to doctor, when we go there, it’s like
they working when we get hurt but over here we have to wait. No, in Vietnam when you get hurt just go, you
don’t need to make an appointment or anything.” The appointment system continues to be a source of confu-
sion and sometimes a reason behind a lack of health care seeking behavior, according to community leaders.
“They keep say ‘Why doctor make appointment for me and I have to come on time, but I wait over 30 minutes
or one hour how is that?’” Frustration felt by Montagnard patients already dealing with stresses of relocation
can lead to bitterness toward Western health services, a dim prospect for the resolution of future medical
conditions.
48 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

The purpose behind physical examinations and the listing of health histories is not understood by
many refugees. Indochinese groups tend to focus on treatment of symptoms rather than discovering the
underlying causes (Kemp, 1985). In addition, obtaining medical histories from many Southeast Asian patients
tends to be unproductive because they are rarely told the names of previous illnesses or medicines given to
them. “Many time when they do a family health history, we don’t know,” an interviewee said. “We know our
folks died, but we don’t know what they die from. We just say one day we come home and after meal she die.
It’s hard for [doctor] to acknowledge that.” Thus knowledge of past diagnostic procedures and the results of
such tests are rarely known (Muecke, 1983).
Any foreign-born person’s first contact with Western health services requires them to fill out question-
naires. These situations reveal unfamiliarity with Western medicine’s typical instructions such as check boxes
and rating scores of symptoms, and require the patient to reveal private and possibly embarrassing health-
related information (Zanchetta & Poureslami, 2006). “They ask you how many partners you have,” one inter-
viewee said. “We don’t ask that back home or are you active and things like that, we don’t ask those things.
When they asked me for the first time I was like ‘What do you mean? I’m single.’ You didn’t understand the
question to be honest.” Such misunderstandings of important medical questions have the potential to lead to
inaccurate health histories, which may cause clinicians to order unnecessary, expensive and time-consuming
diagnostic procedures or misdiagnose a patient.
The medical billing system, which remains enigmatic and confusing for many natural born citizens,
is also challenging for many Montagnards since even hospital staff are unsure about the exact cost of some
procedures, and the prices are not readily available to patients at the time of care. “You go to a doctor in this
country and they don’t tell you how much it’s gonna be,” an interviewee said. “You get a bill later, and then
you get a different bill from different department and they are like ‘I only went one time.’” Some of them said,
“Well, I felt better until I saw the bill.” It appears that Western health services generally lack in easily acces-
sible pricing information about procedures and treatment plans interject even more uncertainty into a situation
where Montagnard patients already feel lost and uneasy, foreshadowing a potential lack of health-seeking
behavior.
The roles of hospital or clinical personnel differ from country to country, and the breadth of respon-
sibility exercised by a nurse versus a doctor or a receptionist may be unfamiliar to a patient. A Montagnard
woman who was a nurse in her native country continually seemed confused by how little nurses seemed to in-
fluence care regimens. “Everybody know the nurse in Vietnam not same as here,” she said. “Here somebody
sew they only sew, somebody take out baby they only take out baby and over there I do everything. I take out
baby, I can see ear, can see jaw, can see everything. I give the medicine. I don’t need the doctor.” The idea
of specialization or different fields of medicine is also a hard idea to grasp for some Montagnards used to a
more generalized system of care. “In Vietnam they have a general doctor,” one interviewee said. “One doctor
he can make decision to do things. Here you go to primary doctor, and he cannot do the family practice he
sent you to specialist and that is different way of treatment.” Montagnards wanting to see a physician must
find some form of transportation and potentially secure a translator, in addition to the regular scheduling steps
taken by most Americans needing to use health services. After putting so much effort into seeing one doctor, it
can be incredibly disheartening for a patient to realize the process must be repeated. The prospect of repeat-
ing such a daunting task may lead to an abandonment of efforts all together.

Changes in diet and lifestyle

The “bigness” of American lifestyle, including the availability of high calorie, large proportioned food
not available in Vietnam has contributed to the formation of new health concerns for Southeast Asian popula-
tions. According to one interviewee, the Montagnards have adopted all of the American bad dietary habits.
“Over here it’s like it’s kind of easy,” according to one interviewee. “It’s like hamburgers, in Vietnam it’s tree
leaves and what we found in jungle just eat something we found in jungle. In America it’s like kind of get big-
ger, in Vietnam it’s not get big.” The vast selection of food and its availability in America appears to be in stark
contrast with what many Montagnards experienced in their native country. “In Vietnam no food, no anything,”
one interviewee said. “In America you have salt, you have food, you have anything.” Another interviewee em-
phasized the people’s dependence on the natural environment for sustenance in Vietnam. “I told Montagnard
one word in the beginning, Montagnard have never die by food. Many people surprise when I say that. But
when we are in Vietnam we are starving, we don’t have food enough, and we eat nature; we not eat meat too
much because we don’t have.”
 Developing Health Communication with Displaced Populations by Margeaux Corby — 49

This new selection of food and its unhealthiness is compounded by the sedentary lifestyle propagated
by Western luxuries such as public transportation and factory jobs that don’t involve manual labor. “I never
exercise,” one interviewee said. “Because they used to work a lot so they don’t need exercise and they all
skinny. When they get here they are kind of big. Even me when I was in Vietnam I was so skinny.” High blood
pressure and other diseases associated with weight gain are very plausible future medical concerns for these
populations not used to having to compensate for lack of everyday exercise and the accessibility of cheap,
unhealthy fare. “In America many people get wrong food, high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes and often
if you not careful with nutrition you get because of that,” said the leader of a local Montagnard congregation.
“I have over history 30 Montagnard die in America. Same cause from stroke because of high blood pressure,
and they never heard that in Vietnam.”

V. Discussion
In this study, cultural barriers to the Montagnard refugee populations’ acceptance of “Western” medi-
cine and compliance to its tenets have been examined. The findings point to the need for greater acceptance
and understanding of Montagnards’ definition of illness and false perceptions of Western medicine by health
care professionals to improve the quality and accessibility of information and treatments. A clinician seeking to
learn about the Montagnard needs to know about how these cultural factors can negatively influence a clinical
encounter.
The sensitive, non-judgmental clinician is able to learn about a patient’s belief system and practices
and replace harmful or ineffective remedies with harmless ones that are consistent with individual beliefs
(Flores, 2000). Providers who accommodate folk illness beliefs and practices, and are able to integrate them
into suggestions for appropriate care, will be better able to explain the rationale behind a particular biomedical
condition and treatment plan (Flores, 2000). Cross-cultural exploration by providers will better allow them to
appropriately diagnose and treat culturally diverse, minority patients. An understanding and culturally ap-
propriate approach must be taken by providers to support their patients’ self-management efforts (Andrulis &
Brach, 2007).
Accomplishing this is possible if clinicians are willing to adapt their own approaches to accommodate
multiple needs of culturally diverse minority community members (Andrulis & Brach, 2007). This can be ac-
complished by establishing cultural competency training in collaboration with local resettlement agencies or
building relationships with community leaders who can communicate the needs and cultural nuances of their
group to medical professionals and health educators. When meeting with patients individually, providers can
attempt to gauge patient understanding by asking the patient, and any accompanying relative or friend, to
repeat instructions. The scope of these methods can be as large as instituting new training programs or as
small as assuring understanding in a single patient encounter. No matter the extent of these accommodation
efforts, all bring providers and refugees one step closer to real understanding and effective care that contin-
ues outside the hospital or clinic.
All of those working in a patient-care, health provider setting must be able to acknowledge and move
beyond their own personal perceptions of perceived lack of time, lack of care coordination, racial and ethnic
prejudices and assumed patient ignorance in order for the cultural competency process to begin (Paez et al.,
2008). Further cataloging of the problems of limited health communication between provider and patient is
no longer necessary —identification and implementation of strategies and knowledge bases to remedy such
disparities in the access and utilization of care should now be at the forefront of social science as it relates to
medicine and managed care practices (Paez et al., 2008).
No matter the extent of these accommodation efforts, an increase of cultural awareness and knowl-
edge by providers and educators can bring refugees one step closer to real understanding and effective care
that continues outside the hospital or clinic. This progress is sorely needed by refugee communities, espe-
cially the Montagnards, whose want for comprehensive health care is great because of intense pre- and post
immigration experiences but ability to access and understand such beneficial health services is limited by
cultural barriers.
50 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Acknowledgments
The author is thankful to Dr. Copeland and Dr. Padgett at Elon University for their supervision, sug-
gestions and support. Without their time and advice, as well as the input of numerous reviewers who helped
review this work, this article could not be published.

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 Effective Health Communication Strategies in Ghana by Megan Prilutski — 51

A Brief Look at Effective Health Communication

Strategies in Ghana

Megan A. Prilutski*

Strategic Communications
Elon University

Abstract
Health communication is widely considered to be a major aspect of any public health campaign.
Strategies integrated into a community, based on personal contact and delivered through culturally appro-
priate media, are effective communication tools in Ghana. However, no comprehensive research has been
conducted to analyze the success of public health campaigns that include extensive use of interpersonal
communication. The goal of the research conducted was to discuss the impact of personal contact in the suc-
cess of Ghanaian public health initiatives. An analysis of four different public health campaigns in Ghana was
performed, examining the communication strategies used in each. It was determined that using interpersonal
communication, in conjunction with other appropriate strategies, gives the highest success rate in Ghanaian
health campaigns.

I. Introduction
Health communication plays a vital role in public health campaigns designed to prevent infectious
disease in the developing world. The purpose of the research presented in this article is to examine the role
that interpersonal communication plays in the success of government-sponsored public health campaigns in
Ghana. The goal is to determine whether imparting knowledge of infectious disease prevention and treatment
on a personal level, not just via mass media, will better equip the government to be able to decrease prevent-
able disease morbidity rates across the entire nation.
Infectious disease has been a significant component in the history of many countries and continues
to have a major impact in worldwide (Koop, Pearson and Schwarz, 2001). The origin of infectious disease
dates back to the beginning of civilization, when hunter-gatherers began to settle into villages and towns.
The combination of close living spaces, the introduction of agriculture and irrigation, and the domestication of
animals allowed ample ways for diseases to spread (Robbins, 2006). While it is generally acknowledged that
the majority of diseases are either treatable or preventable in developed countries, most developing countries
lack the advanced medical training and technology prevalent in Westernized countries. However, it is possible
for the level of awareness of preventable diseases to be increased with the health communication models and
systems that have been created for developing countries (Johns Hopkins, 2010). Unfortunately, this is often
not the case. A case study on HIV/AIDS in South Africa shows that posters designed to increase awareness
and change people’s behavior towards this virus lack integral components from a communication perspective
(Beaudoin, 2007). Another program focusing on reproductive health in Zambia used television to increase
* Keywords: Health communication, interpersonal communication, Ghana, public health campaigns, health
awareness
Email: [email protected]
52 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

condom use and had positive results (Rossem and Meekers, 2007); however, this study is not applicable to
regions of sub-Saharan Africa that do not have access to television.
The same is true for Ghana, a democratic country located in Western sub-Saharan Africa. Ghana is
a country that exhibits marked differences in both cultural and climate changes in its various geographical
regions. However, one thing is constant across the entire nation: infectious diseases are running rampant.
Ghana, along with most African countries, has faced many infectious diseases for several centuries, includ-
ing “malaria, syphillis [sic], yaws, leprosy, spirillum fever, dysentery and worms, to which must be added such
epidemic diseases as yellow fever, small pox and sleeping sickness and the new imports of tuberculosis and
cholera” (Boahen, 1990). While developed countries have created methods and treatments for these diseas-
es, countries such as Ghana face economic, geographical, infrastructural, educational and political factors, as
well as government corruption, that hinder them from treating and preventing such diseases (Koop, Pearson
and Schwarz, 2001). While many of these issues are beyond the realm of communication, health communi-
cation can be used in conjunction with public health planning to increase levels of awareness of infectious
disease in Ghana.
This research examines the methods in which the Ghanaian government has attempted to overcome
its alarming medical issues with health communication to increase awareness of disease. Currently, almost
half of Ghanaians have absolutely no access to healthcare due to a lack of staff and inaccessible or non-exis-
tent roadways (Mba & Kwanyke, 2007). Thus, it is important for these Ghanaians to have access to informa-
tion on how to prevent lethal diseases still prevalent in their country, such as malaria, cholera, dysentery, den-
gue fever, sleeping sickness and worms. Communicating health information to under-educated and largely
geographically inaccessible people is a significant challenge for any country; thus, this research examines the
best way to enhance disease awareness in the developing West African country of Ghana.

II. Literature Review

A myriad of different studies have been conducted on various specific aspects of health communica-
tion in Ghana. Overall, these studies indicate that communicating to rural Ghanaians requires integration into
a community that includes presenting material in a manner that rural persons are familiar with and allowing for
discussion and input from community members.
Cultural familiarity often affects the way that medical information is effectively communicated in
Ghana. For instance, when comparing the usage of traditional medicine versus Western biomedical medicine,
Ghanaians typically tend to use traditional medicine because it is more fully integrated in Ghanaian lifestyles
and is more familiar than biomedical medicine (Aries, Joosten, Wedgda & van der Geest, 2007). This prelimi-
nary understanding of the weight given to known information sources is the first aspect of Ghanaian culture
that needs to be understood when communicating biomedical health information to the population.
As a result, this norm of sticking to the familiar seen with traditional medicine usage is expanded to
being applicable to behavioral change in Ghana. Among adults and adolescents, peer education increases
the chances that individuals will change their behavior by 1.74 times the normal amount simply due to the
similarities that can exist between the educator and the target. Essentially, the higher the demographic simi-
larities between the educator and the target group, the larger the increase in behavioral change towards the
desired result (Wolf & Bond, 2002).
In Ghana, these demographic similarities, along with trends toward the familiar, can be observed in
effective health communication. In the late 1940s, when health communication to the Ghanaian people by
the government was beginning, attempts at showing film clips and using other modern technology failed. It
was only through the use of specially designed puppet shows and performances tailored to the specific ethnic
groups that the desired behavior and awareness level change occurred (du Sautoy, 1958).
It has been determined that the best communication strategy for developing countries is based on
the idea of integration with the community. The principles of “inclusion, participation and self-determination”
help defeat the major problems seen with solely increasing comprehension of why a certain health behavior is
wrong (Ford, Abimbola, Renshaw & Nkum, 2005); such problems with just increasing comprehension include
the fact that just understanding an issue does not lead to a change in behavior and that awareness alone
does not hold people responsible for their own health. Allowing people to have input on how health informa-
 Effective Health Communication Strategies in Ghana by Megan Prilutski — 53

tion is going to help them change by both discussing different communication channels to be used and setting
goals for desired change together provide such responsibility (Ford, Abimbola, Renshaw & Nkum, 2005).
Through these studies, it is clear that the closer a message is to the culture, expectations, and lifestyle of
individuals and the more integrated a campaign is, the more effectively health communication information can
be communicated to the Ghanaian people.
There have been a couple studies conducted trying to discover the best communication channels to
reach Ghanaians. In a study on the implementation of a vitamin regimen in a Ghanaian village, a huge result
of the research was the determination of the best manner to communicate with rural Ghanaians. Overall, it
was determined that radio is the best way to communicate because, although many Ghanaians do not per-
sonally own a radio, most have access to one. In addition, “town criers, radio, posters, church, mosque and
market announcements, loudspeaker vans and a song” were more popular and effective channels of health
communication than community groups, television, movies, videos, healthcare personnel, billboards, newspa-
pers and schools (Hill, Kirkwood, Kendall, Adjei, Arthur & Agyemang, 2007).
By examining this data and realizing that the more traditional, less mass media-oriented methods
were the most popular among rural Ghanaians, it is clear that this supports another study conducted on the
importance of folk-media as a communication channel. Folk media is a channel that uses communication
methods already in place in certain villages to discuss pertinent issues, including health education and dis-
ease prevention and care. Since this type of communication is embedded in the culture of a particular com-
munity, it increases the audience’s belief and trust in it and thereby increases the likelihood of its effectiveness
(Panford, Nyaney, Amoah & Aidoo, 2001).
A specific case example of this situation was seen in the successful Stop Aids Love Life HIV/AIDS
prevention campaign. This campaign used song and dance through multiple different media channels, in-
cluding radio, to reach Ghanaians across the country. The song was sung in many different languages and
the campaign achieved success through the use of “the ABCs of prevention (Abstinence, Being faithful, and
Condom use), … [increased] personal perception of HIV risk, and testimonies from Ghanaians living with HIV
or AIDS” (Johns Hopkins, 2003). By using different tribal languages, appropriate media forms and creating a
similarity between the persons giving testimony and those listening, this particular campaign is an example of
successful health communication strategies.
Overall, previous research has proved the importance of using folk-media, integration and culturally
appropriate channels during health campaigns in Ghana. In addition, information being disseminated by per-
sonal contact during peer education is extremely effective, although the impact on public health initiatives has
not been examined. Together, integration, appropriate channels and personal contact have been shown to be
truly effective Ghanaian communication strategies.

Research Purpose
The purpose of this research is to examine the Ghanaian government in its effectiveness in health
communication as compared to the conclusions obtained via previous health communication research in
Ghana. The main question asked through this research is what the impact of having interpersonal contact,
along with other media forms, as part of government-sponsored health communication campaigns has upon
the success of such initiatives.

III. Methods
Four public health campaigns conducted within the past ten years were examined. The four cam-
paigns analyzed were the National Tuberculosis Control Program: Stop TB, the Integrated Child Health
Campaign, the Home-based Care for Malaria Campaign and the Life Choices Campaign. Each campaign
was examined qualitatively, using a case-study approach that permitted cross-comparisons to draw conclu-
sions about the success of the health communication strategies utilized. These campaigns were selected to
have varying specific public health topics in order to solely focus on the communication strategies used and to
eliminate any stigma associated with specific diseases and treatments. Since public health research conduct-
ed and evaluated in Ghana is often not published externally and very little research exists on Ghanaian health
communication, the other selection criteria for the campaigns used was the amount of information avail-
54 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

able on the specific campaigns via the World Wide Web and library databases. The data given from several
sources of information were examined for all campaigns studied. Then, each campaign was analyzed in terms
of proven methods of health communication to the Ghanaian people along with the success, if known, of the
campaign.

IV. Findings
Campaign #1: National Tuberculosis Control Program: Stop TB
The Stop TB campaign is an on-going collaboration between Ghana Health Services (a sector of the
Ghanaian government), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Danish International Development
Agency (DANIDA). The program was started in 1994 as a test program in three regions of the country and
has expanded to be nationwide with, according to WHO standards, 100 percent of Ghanaians reached. This
campaign originally developed out of the desire to curb the increasing TB infection rates that occurred from
the early 1960s through the 1990s (Ghana Health Services n.d. a).
The approach taken by the Ghana Health Services was the WHO DOTS method. DOTS stands for
Directly Observed Treatment Short course and consists of five different components designed to help treat
and prevent TB (WHO, 2010 b). The five components are as follows:
1. “Political commitment with increased and sustained financing
2. Case detection through quality-assured bacteriology
3. Standardized treatment with supervision and patient support
4. An effective drug supply and management system
5. Monitoring and evaluation system and impact measurement” (WHO, 2010b).

These steps highlight the means to reduce TB morbidity rates by properly detecting, treating and
monitoring the disease (WHO, 2010b). However, it interestingly does not provide any method to raise aware-
ness of the treatments available for TB and decrease stigma of TB in Ghana. According to recent research on
the disease, TB remains highly stigmatized even after the implementation of the program. As a result, people
tend to ignore the symptoms or use another condition to explain such systems in order to avoid being isolated
by society. After having TB, people are generally always socially associated and isolated due to the disease,
largely due to misconceptions (Dodor & Kelly, 2009). Thus, the fact that incorrect information regarding the
disease is still strongly prevalent throughout the country, despite the efforts of the Stop TB program, indicates
a need for health communication tactics to be in place simultaneously with DOTS.
Ghana has most recently updated its use of the WHO Stop TB program to include an expanded
program that does address communication strategies about the disease (Ghana Health Services n.d. a). This
new program includes expanded efforts to identify the reasons that people do not act on information they
receive, such as the need to start TB treatment, and create behavioral-change messages to address those
causes. This type of communication is supposed to deliver messages that will help change the behavior of
Ghanaians. Methods recommended by the WHO include all different types of media channels as well as
seminars, print materials and community activities (WHO, 2010a). This updated program was initiated in 2005
with a goal of reaching 75 percent of adults; however, thus far, no public evaluation of the campaign is avail-
able online (Ghana Health Services n.d. b).

Campaign #2: Integrated Child Health Campaign

In conjunction with a variety of different sectors of the Ghanaian government, the Ghana Health Ser-
vices and the Ghana Ministry of Health held a one-week campaign in 2006 to improve the health of children
across the nation. The main goal of the campaign was to provide 2.1 million bed-nets for malaria prevention
to children under the age of two years. Additional goals included immunizing children against measles and po-
lio. Communication strategies were used at the start of this campaign to raise awareness of children’s health
and to increase the level of participation among the Ghanaian people in the effort. This campaign utilized the
decentralization of the Ghanaian healthcare system into community health centers to implement it (Communi-
cation Initiative, 2010).
 Effective Health Communication Strategies in Ghana by Megan Prilutski — 55

A variety of communication strategies were used during the course of the Integrated Child’s Health
campaign. The primary audience of this campaign was the parents of children under five and the secondary
audience was political, traditional and community leaders. The main strategy used during the campaign was
interpersonal communication via the use of trained volunteers who were from the same village they presented
the campaign data to; in addition to children’s health information, these volunteers also delivered informa-
tion to increase the level of awareness of malaria and bed-nets (UNICEF, 2006). Overall, there were 28,000
volunteers in this campaign spread out among 9,505 immunization sites (DFID, 2007). Other communication
tactics used in this campaign included celebrity appearances, popular artists singing the campaign song and
the delivery of 1.5 million leaflets about the campaign to primary schools nationwide (DFID, 2007; UNICEF,
2006). In addition, radio and TV were used extensively in multiple languages to increase awareness of the
campaign itself. The success of the campaign was such that 96.4 percent of Ghanaian’s children less than
two years of age received bed-nets (DFID, 2007). No long-term studies of the effects of the campaign have
been conducted.

Campaign #3: Home-based Care for Malaria Campaign

The home-based care for malaria started in 2002 in conjunction with the He – Ha – Ho campaign,
standing for healthier happier homes. This campaign was sponsored largely by Ghana Health Services with
additional funding coming from Johns Hopkins University, USAID and, later, UNICEF. The campaign worked
to increase awareness among mothers of how to recognize malaria and treat it among their children. The
campaign was also intended to increase knowledge among pharmacists about dosing information (WHO,
2009). The need for this campaign developed out of the fact that most cases of malaria are treated at home
but only 15 percent of people treat malaria effectively and only 52 percent of pharmacists know correct dosing
information (WHO, 2009; Baffoe-Wilmot, 2002).
The communication strategies in this campaign were heavily based on electronic media, namely radio
and TV. A specific theme song was developed for He – Ho – Ha and aired on both television and TV in local
languages. The television advertisement walked the audience through a mother noticing her sick child, going
to the pharmacy for medication, giving the child the medicine and then stressing to her friends the need to
rely on pharmacists to provide the appropriate medication (Baffoe-Wilmot, 2002). In addition to radio and TV
ads, this campaign also used posters, leaflets and flip cards to help the public recognize malaria and serve as
motivation to receive treatment (WHO, 2009). Some of the initial issues with the campaign were its promotion
of malaria tablets for treatment instead of the syrup-based treatment, the need for more staff and the need for
more educational materials to be available (Baffoe-Wilmot, 2002). A presentation made by the deputy head
of the Ghanaian national malaria control program, Aba Baffoe-Wilmot, spoke of the need to use interpersonal
communication, not just TV and radio, to increase the success of this campaign (Baffoe-Wilmot, 2002). No
specific data on the results of this campaign are available.

Campaign #4: Life Choices

The life choices campaign was started in 2001 by Ghanaian president J.A. Kufuor in order to empow-
er women to control the number of children they want to have, along with the timing of each pregnancy (Johns
Hopkins, 2005b). A variety of national and international agencies provided support to the Ministry of Health
and Ghana Health Services to implement the campaign (Johns Hopkins, 2005a). The campaign worked
to correct misconceptions of the use of contraception such as exaggerated negative side effects from the
medication and the idea that contraception should only be used to prevent further children, not to space births
(Communication Initiative, 2009; Johns Hopkins, 2005b). It also worked to fill an expressed need among
women for more information on family planning (Johns Hopkins, 2005b).
In terms of communication strategies, the main objective of this campaign was to increase the use of
modern family planning techniques by targeting single and married adults and opinion leaders (Communica-
tion Initiative, 2009). The campaign had two major strategies: using a life stage approach to show the use
of contraception at different stages of life and a lifestyle approach to show the benefits of contraception use.
A variety of different media were used during this campaign including songs on the radio and TV, leaflets,
posters and stickers, educational sessions, and community networking and events (Johns Hopkins, 2005b).
One hundred billboards were put up nationwide and representatives of different social classes were used in
the television and radio advertisements (Johns Hopkins, 2005a). Results from a survey taken in urban areas
of the country showed that 89 percent of members of the target audience were aware of the Life Choices
56 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

campaign and the messages within the campaign. No results from rural areas were provided. Although the
campaign used both interpersonal and electronic methods of message dissemination, mass media was cited
to be the most effective form of communication in this particular campaign (Johns Hopkins, 2005b). However,
the campaign seeks to strengthen its use of interpersonal communication through peer testimonials and the
expansion of community networks, rallies and seminars (Johns Hopkins, 2005a).

V. Discussion
Overall, it is clear from the success of the Integrated Child’s Health campaign and the expressed
need for more community-based personal interaction in the other three campaigns that interpersonal commu-
nication integrated at a local community level is the most all-around effective way to have health behavioral
change among the Ghanaian people. This reflects the ideas presented in previous literature that integrated
health campaigns in local communities can account for cultural similarity between those delivering messages
and those receiving them, thus increasing the likelihood of behavior change.
In the Stop TB campaign, there was originally a dearth of communication strategies. The original
campaign was not effective at actually impacting people’s behavior, its objective, even though it did deliver its
message to 100 percent of Ghanaians; reaching the entire population does nothing unless it is accompanied
by communication strategies that combat myths and raise awareness of the disease. As previously stated,
the results from the revised campaign are not available but the new initiative does specifically emphasize the
power of community-level communication. Overall, this campaign proves that communication about disease
fact, treatments and prevention is a necessary part of the success of any public health campaign.
The Integrated Health Campaign is a great example of the power that integrated interpersonal com-
munication as a health communication strategy can have the success of a campaign. This campaign, by far,
had the best success rate out of the four campaigns analyzed with 96.4 percent of children under two receiv-
ing bed-nets and 72 percent of these children sleeping under the bed-nets. The one variable factor that differs
with this campaign from the others is the substantial use of community-level interpersonal communication.
The campaign was integrated into every local community nationwide and was far more effective than a cam-
paign using solely mass media, such as was seen in the home-based care malaria campaign.
The He – Ho – Ha home-care malaria campaign initially deliberately emphasized the use of electronic
media, such as radio and television, as the primary means of communication along with print materials. While
radio is considered to be the most effective form of mass-media oriented communication, even the deputy
head of the malaria control program in Ghana acknowledged the need to expand the program to include com-
munity and individual level communication to obtain a high success rate. Once again, it appears that although
mass media has some effect, integrating into local communities is quickly gaining recognition as the most
effective way overall to communicate.
Lastly, the life choices campaign chose to use both mass media and community-level communication
strategies to increase the use of modern family planning methods among reproductive-age persons in Ghana.
The evaluative research from a survey shows that the mass media channels were most effective; however,
only people living in urban areas took the surveys. Thus, nothing can be evaluated about the effects of the
campaign among rural Ghanaians or the country as a whole. It is interesting to note that the campaign is ex-
panding the community-based communication approach to increase coverage of more Ghanaians, most likely
in an attempt to reach rural Ghanaians who may not have ready access to either TV or radio.
Overall, it appears that each of the three campaigns examined not using integrated interpersonal
communication is expanding their campaign to make extensive use of this particular strategy. It is clear that
the highly integrated and personal contact approach of the Integrated Child’s Health campaign is what gave
it a high rate of success and can tentatively be considered the best approach for health communication in
Ghana.

VI. Future Research

This particular research was limited in the depth of analysis and breadth of the number of campaigns
 Effective Health Communication Strategies in Ghana by Megan Prilutski — 57

examined. Future research needs to be performed to analyze the strategies and success of many more cam-
paigns, particularly analysis conducted in Ghana. In addition, the health communication efforts of nonprofits,
in addition to the government research performed here, needs to be analyzed both on its own and in conjunc-
tion with the programs from the Ghanaian Health Services. With this research a more thorough understanding
of the role of health communications in Ghana can be appropriately determined.

Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Dr. George Padgett at Elon University for his advice and support, with-
out which the article could not be published. The author also appreciates the numerous reviewers who have
helped edit this article.

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 Social Media: No “Friend” of Personal Privacy by Christopher Spinelli — 59

Social Media: No ‘Friend’ of Personal Privacy

Christopher F. Spinelli

Corporate Communications
Elon University

Abstract
This comment examines the lack of regulation of social media websites, such as Facebook and
MySpace, and the effects this lack of regulations has had on the liberties guaranteed by the Fourth Amend-
ment to the United States Constitution. This comment argues that by establishing privacy settings on social
networking websites, users construct a reasonable expectation of privacy. Examples are provided to illustrate
the detrimental nature and ineffectiveness of industry self-regulation. A relevant case study is explored to
highlight the societal concerns that are being brought forth within the legal system at an ever-increasing rate.
Scholarly opinion is then analyzed in order to reinterpret privacy law so that it properly adapts to rapidly evolv-
ing social media networks within cyberspace.

I. Introduction
Industry leaders Facebook and MySpace have largely defined the advent of popular social network-
ing websites. According to Hitwise, a distinguished tracking service, Facebook alone comprises approximately
7.07 percent of all Internet visits.1 Furthermore, Facebook and MySpace account for an estimated 249 million
unique visitors monthly and, on average, Facebook users spend about 6 hours and 30 minutes on the site ev-
ery month.2 These statistics are nothing short of remarkable considering that, to a large extent, these websites
did not exist prior to 2006.
Social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace often divulge personal information
through the inclusion of personal profiles, pictures, video, and the ability to send messages to friends, family,
co-workers, and acquaintances. These key features have raised significant privacy concerns for individual
users of these websites. Current policy dictates that the social networking industry should practice self-regu-
lation. However, there has been frequent public objection to self-regulation. Social networking websites have
based their arguments on the fact that higher rates of disclosure produce increased revenues. Therefore,
social networking sites are less likely to have their users best interests in mind when the disclosure of per-
sonal information is at stake. As Brooklyn Law School professor Paul M. Schwartz argues, “Legal protection

*Keywords: Facebook, MySpace, Fourth Amendment, Social Media Regulation, Privacy Law, Expectations of
Privacy in Cyberspace
Email: [email protected]
1 Reinan, John. “Facebook Overtakes Google -- and the Marketing World Salivates.” MinnPost.com (blog). 12
Apr. 2010. Web.
2 ComScore. Marketing Communications. Social Networking Explodes Worldwide as Sites Increase Their
Focus on Cultural Relevance. ComScore, 12 Aug. 2008. Web.
60 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

of personal information on the Internet is generally limited and often incoherent.”3 Additionally, law and policy
has been slow in keeping up with the ever-evolving social networking applications that have developed over
the course of the past decade. More specifically, “Despite the centrality of these issues the American courts
lack a coherent methodology for determining whether an individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy
in a particular fact that has been shared with one or more persons. Indeed, jurisdictions cannot agree on a
framework for resolving these kinds of cases.”4 The following document will provide an overview of the court
decisions and policy initiatives that relate to this discussion. In addition, it will provide a brief summary of the
legal opinions held by several attorneys and law professors.
The main focus of this article is to demonstrate how privacy law should evolve to account for the tech-
nological advancement of the Internet with a particular emphasis on the social media networks Facebook and
MySpace. Although the Supreme Court has been hesitant to definitively rule on this issue, lower court opin-
ions, legal ethics opinions, and relevant policy are included in this comment. These sources are examined in
order to understand how the law is approaching the privacy issues surrounding social media including “cyber-
bullying,” employment practices, and law enforcement monitoring of the internet. Through careful analysis,
it can be determined how policymakers and the courts can aid in resolving these issues and progressively
establish a more clear definition of the legal obligations placed on Facebook and MySpace. After doing so,
this article argues that that by recognizing privacy abuse on social networking websites, Congress can pass
and enforce new laws that protect Americans from these harms and provide greater protection to individual
privacy.

II. Current policy

To a large extent, social networking websites receive government protection from policy written in
the 1990s. Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (“CDA”) protects Facebook and MySpace. This
policy states, “No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or
speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.”5 In other words, if person A
posts a defamatory comment about person B on a social networking website such as Facebook, person B
cannot sue Facebook for allowing the post because social networks cannot be found liable for these criminal
damages. The Act establishes the notion of “cyberspace exceptionalism,” a concept that endorses the belief
that, “the Internet is unique/special/different and therefore should be regulated differently. Section 230 of the
CDA is a flagship example of such exceptionalism. It creates rules that really differ between the online and of-
fline worlds, such that publishing content online may not create liability where publishing the identical content
offline would. The medium matters.”6

III. Fourth amendment background & applicable Supreme Court deci-

sions
The Fourth Amendment protects “the people” from “unreasonable searches and seizures.”7 In 1967
the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Katz v. United States.8 Prior to this date, the Court had ad-
opted a literal interpretation of the Fourth Amendment. It had ruled that a violation of privacy could only occur

3 Schwartz, Paul M. “Privacy and Democracy in Cyberspace.” Vanderbilt Law Review 52.1607 (1999), 1632.
LexisNexis. Web.
4 Strahilevitz, Lior J. “A Social Networks Theory of Privacy.” The University of Chicago Law Review 72.3, 921.
JSTOR. Web. Summer 2005.
5 Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress (1996) (enacted). Print.
6 Goldman, Eric. “Re: Roommates.com Denied 230 Immunity by Ninth Circuit En Banc (With My Com-
ments).” Web log comment. Technology & Marketing Law Blog. 3 Apr. 2008. Web. <http://blog.ericgoldman.
org/archives/2008/04/roommatescom_de_1.htm>.
7 U.S. Const. amend IV.
8 Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347 (1967).
 Social Media: No “Friend” of Personal Privacy by Christopher Spinelli — 61

in a physical or tangible sense. In other words, “the Fourth Amendment was not violated as long as there
was no official search of a person, or his tangible, material effects.”9 Thus, establishing the trespass doctrine,
which held that the Fourth Amendment is not implicated unless there is a physical intrusion, or trespass, into
a private area such as an individual’s residence. In the landmark privacy case of Olmstead v. United States
this doctrine was upheld in light of the advent of wiretapping technology. Recognizing the dangers this ruling
posed to the Fourth Amendment in light of technological advances, Justice Brandeis authored a famous dis-
sent, hinting at a new Fourth Amendment standard:
Time works changes, brings into existence new conditions and purposes. Subtler and more
far-reaching means of invading privacy have become available… Discovery and invention
have made it possible… by means far more effective than stretching upon the rack, to obtain
disclosure in court of what is whispered in the closet. Advances in the psychic and related sci-
ences may bring means of exploring unexpressed beliefs, thoughts and emotions. Can it be
that the Constitution affords no protection against such invasions of individual security?10
Justice Brandeis’ words emphasize the dangers that the advancement of technology poses to indi-
vidual privacy. His view was ultimately vindicated nearly 40 years later in Katz.
Fearful of the limited protection that a trespass standard provided, Katz adopted a two-step approach
to determine the legality of Fourth Amendment searches and seizures. Justice Harlan explained in his concur-
ring opinion: “there is a twofold requirement, first, that a person have exhibited an actual expectation of pri-
vacy and, second, that the expectation be one that society is prepared to recognize as ‘reasonable.’”11 Thus,
Harlan established the modern Fourth Amendment standard for a search: an invasion of a zone of which a
person has a reasonable expectation of privacy
In regards to this discussion, the question then becomes, “how is this construction of the Fourth
Amendment then applied to an intangible medium such as a social networking website?” To date, the Su-
preme Court has yet to consider this question. Therefore, the lower courts are forced to draw analogies to
Supreme Court rulings dealing with situations outside of cyberspace.
Some courts have expressed their discontent with this approach. For instance, in United States v.
Walser the Tenth Circuit Judge Stephanie Seymour stated, “[t]he advent of the electronic age and . . . the
development of desktop computers . . . go beyond the established categories of constitutional doctrine. Analo-
gies to other physical objects, such as dressers or file cabinets, do not often inform the situations we now
face as judges when applying search and seizure law.”12 Yet, the fact remains that lower courts are forced to
connect expectations of privacy on the Internet with the provisions outlined in Katz. In doing so, they have
relied largely on Smith v. Maryland and United States v. Miller. In Smith, the Court ruled that the installation
of a pen register did not constitute a search that would breach the defendant’s reasonable expectation of
privacy.13 For clarification, “A pen register is a device installed by the telephone company which can track the
phone numbers of all calls outgoing from a person’s house.”14 Therefore, since the numbers are automatically
shared with a third party, the telephone company, an individual cannot reasonably expect this information to
be private.
In Miller, the Court ruled that a person does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy over his
bank records. In delivering the majority opinion Justice Powell stated, “documents subpoenaed are not
[Miller’s] ‘private papers’, but instead, part of the bank’s business records.” Therefore, “Miller’s rights were
not violated when a third party - his bank - transmitted information that he had entrusted them with to the
government.”15
In most respects, the decisions handed down in both Smith and Miller permit the government to, with-
9 See Olmstead v. United States, 277 U.S. 438, 466 (1928).
10 Id. at 472-73 (“Clauses guaranteeing to the individual protection against specific abuses of power, must
have a similar capacity of adaptation to a changing world.”) Id at 472 (Brandeis, J., dissenting).
11 Katz, 389 U.S. at 361.
12 United States v. Walser, 275 F.3d 981, 986 (10th Cir. 2001).
13 Smith v. Maryland, 442 U.S. 735 (1979).
14 Hodge, Matthew J. “The Fourth Amendment and Privacy Issues on the ‘New’ Internet: Facebook.com and
MySpace.com.” Southern Illinois University Law Journal 31.95 (2006), 102. LexisNexis. Web.
15 United States v. Miller, 425 U.S. 435 (1976).
62 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

out any suspicion at all, seize and search the records of third party entities, such as Facebook and MySpace.
However, as Matthew Hodge states in his comment, state and appellate courts have not strictly
adhered to these rulings when interpreting an expectation of privacy based their own state constitutions.16
Furthermore, Congress itself has passed legislation that has largely supplanted these rulings.17

IV. Consequences of pure market self-regulation

In most cases, the policies previously described have been used to protect the social media indus-
try and have not protected an Internet user’s privacy. Essentially, social media outlets have been permitted
to regulate themselves. Paul Schwartz advances two critical assertions why this self-regulation has been
largely ineffective in protecting one’s privacy on the Internet. “(1) the ‘knowledge gap,’ which refers to the
widespread ignorance regarding terms that regulate disclosure or nondisclosure of personal information and
(2) the ‘consent fallacy,’ which points to weaknesses in the nature of agreement to data use. Both support a
conclusion that reliance on a privacy market will not generate appropriate rules regarding personal data use
in cyberspace.”18 Further research has shown that Schwartz is quite correct in this assessment, especially
when applied to social networking websites. According to a research survey conducted by students at M.I.T.
in 2005, over 90% of users of Facebook said that they had not read the site’s terms and conditions.19 Addi-
tionally, in December 2009 Facebook overhauled the privacy settings of every user’s profile and reset them
to the default. In conducting its own survey, Facebook revealed that 35% of users had read the documenta-
tion outlining this change and modified their privacy settings appropriately. Therefore, 65% remained largely
unaware of whom their information was being shared with.20 In investigating this development, Danah Boyd, a
Social Media Researcher at Microsoft Research New England, has noted that in her interviews with Facebook
users she has yet to find an individual who could correctly describe their current privacy settings. In a recent
speech, Boyd narrated a story involving a woman who had moved away from her abusive father. “The young
woman talked with her mother (who had moved with her) about possibly joining Facebook. They sat down
to make the content as private as possible, which worked well. But in December, the young woman clicked
through Facebook’s privacy dialog (as most people did) and had no idea her content was public. She only
found out when someone who should not have seen the content told her.”21
In conjunction with Boyd’s analysis, in March 2009 Cambridge University’s Computing Laboratory
published a report criticizing Facebook for its excessive use of pithy legal language within its terms of service
document. These criticisms stem from the fact that Facebook has publicly claimed to be a democratic service,
when in fact, if read carefully, its terms of service prove otherwise. As Professor Ross Anderson of Cambridge
University stated following the release of the aforementioned study, “We should not be surprised that corpo-
rations do not want to give power to their users, but pretending that the site is democratic when it is not is
offensive - it is reminiscent of the old German Democratic Republic, which was actually a Russian colony and
not democratic at all.”22 The report itself identifies several terms that are particularly vague and can produce
multiple interpretations.
Facebook has failed by its own standards by not providing a Statement that is clear and free

16 Hodge, “The Fourth Amendment and Privacy Issues on the ‘New’ Internet: Facebook.com and MySpace.
com” 103.
17 Hodge, “The Fourth Amendment and Privacy Issues on the ‘New’ Internet: Facebook.com and MySpace.
com” 104.
18 Schwartz, Paul M. “Privacy and Democracy in Cyberspace.” Vanderbilt Law Review 52.1607 (1999), 1683
LexisNexis. Web.
19 The Global Covenant Network. The Shocking Truth of Facebook. I-Newswire, 2 Aug. 2008. Web.
20 Kincaid, Jason. “Danah Boyd: How Technology Makes A Mess Of Privacy and Publicity.” TechCrunch.
WordPress.com, 13 Mar. 2010. Web.
21 Kincaid, “Danah Boyd: How Technology Makes A Mess Of Privacy and Publicity.”
22 Saran, Cliff. “Cambridge Researchers Slam Facebook Democracy.” ComputerWeekly.com. Reed Business
Information Ltd, 17 Apr. 2009. Web. <http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2009/04/17/235687/cambridge-
researchers-slam-facebook-democracy.htm>.
 Social Media: No “Friend” of Personal Privacy by Christopher Spinelli — 63

from “legalese.” §14 “Disputes” is a particularly bad example, as the Statement contains
many loaded legal terms such as “indemnify and hold harmless,” which most users will not
be able to properly interpret. §14.3 then provides a long disclaimer of responsibility, which is
typed in all capital letters, limiting readability, and contains technical phrases such as “NON-
INFRINGEMENT,” “DAMAGES, KNOWN AND UNKNOWN,” and “MATERIALLY AFFECTED.”
Finally, §16, “Other,” adds several more critical disclaimers of responsibility in a set of seven
disorganized sentences… the Statement reverts to increasingly arcane legal formalisms after
most users will have stopped reading.”23
Yet, the most troubling revelation that the Cambridge report discloses is the way in which Facebook has con-
cealed the details of its privacy policy.
The Privacy Policy and several other documents are referenced by the Statement but not
included in it, and must be accessed separately despite §16.1, which says, ‘This Statement
makes up the entire agreement between the parties regarding Facebook, and supersedes
any prior agreements.’ The privacy policy is glossed over with the platitude ‘Your privacy is
very important to us,’ which might re-assure users who will then skip over reading it, despite it
carrying the same legal weight as the Statement. 24
Boyd’s story and the analysis conducted by Cambridge University’s Computing Laboratory illustrates that self-
regulation has prompted social networking websites to take advantage of both the “knowledge gap” and “con-
sent fallacy” for purely financial gains. The greater number of profiles that are open to the public increases the
likelihood that advertisers will utilize the website. Default privacy settings allow companies to view a person’s
interests, hobbies, etc. and advertise certain products to a specific individual. To generate considerable profit,
social networking websites need to appeal to these advertisers. Therefore, ensuring that a large number of
profiles remain public, to a large extent, conforms to the website’s financial interests.

V. Determining expectations of privacy on Facebook or MySpace

Law professor James Grimmelmann analyzes a pertinent case study in his lecture on Internet privacy
and its application to Facebook,
“In 2006, two students at the University of Illinois were urinating on the front of a bar. When a
police officer approached, Marc Chiles escaped while Adam Gartner was detained. Gartner
denied knowing Chiles. Later, the officer accessed Facebook and scoured student profiles.
When he realized Chiles and Gartner were Friends on Facebook the officer charged the latter
with obstruction of justice.”25
Grimmelmann goes on to explain that, “when users make privacy choices using Facebook’s technical
controls, they’re expressing expectations about who will and won’t see their information, and society should
treat those expectations as reasonable for Fourth Amendment purposes.”26 However, to date, Facebook has
not been held legally responsible for policing its own network. Although it explicitly states to its users that it
has no control over the actions of other individuals using the website, there should at least be some measures
taken to deter hackers or law enforcement officials from using the network in a criminal manner, legally or
otherwise. The same M.I.T. students who reported that over 90% of users of Facebook stated that they had
not read the site’s terms and conditions, were also able to download over 70,000 profiles using an applica-

23 Bonneau, Joseph, Soren Preibusch, Jonathan Anderson, Richard Clayton, and Ross Anderson. Democra-
cy Theatre: Comments on Facebooks Proposed Governance Scheme. Rep. University of Cambridge Com-
puter Laboratory, 2009. 4-5. Web. <http://preibusch.de/publications/Bonneau_Preibusch_Anderson_Clayton_
Anderson__Facebook_Governance_Comments.pdf>.
24 Bonneau, Preibusch, J. Anderson, Clayton, and R. Anderson, Democracy Theatre: Comments on Face-
books Proposed Governance Scheme 5.
25 Grimmelmann, James. Internet Law: Spring 2010. Reading Packet 3: Privacy, 50. New York Law School.
Web. <http://james.grimmelmann.net/courses/internet/Internet2010SReader3.pdf>.
26 Grimmelmann, James. “Saving Facebook.” Iowa Law Review 94 (2009), 1197. JSTOR. Web.
64 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

tion they had created.27 What’s more troubling is that Grimmelmann reports, “Facebook has trouble control-
ling its own employees, who treat access to profile and user-activity information as a ‘job perk.”28 This kind
of unwanted disclosure has recently led to a number of state and appellate cases, which will be discussed in
greater detail below. As indicated earlier, the courts have received little guidance from the federal government
in ruling on this issue.

VI. “Cyberbullying:” a product of unwanted disclosure

“Cyberbullying” has emerged as a prominent Internet safety concern over the course of the past
several years. A United States research center dedicated to the study and prevention of cyberbullying has de-
fined it as, “willful and repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic
devices.”29 Therefore, cyberbullying clearly constitutes as a violation of the privacy rights that protect against
the disclosure of private facts that would be considered highly offensive to a reasonable person, and the plac-
ing of someone in a false light. Facebook and MySpace are two mediums where cyberbullying has occurred
quite frequently. The lack of website surveillance, and an effective legal response, has aided in facilitating this
type of behavior. This has resulted in the filing of a number of recent lawsuits. The most current being, Finkel
v. Facebook.30
There, teenager Denise Finkel sued four high school students, their parents, and Facebook argu-
ing that they were liable for the production of defamatory statements made about her. The suit began after
Finkel discovered that the four students had created a Facebook group entitled, “90 Cents Short of a Dollar.”
Statements made within the group declared and implied that Finkel “was a woman of dubious morals, dubi-
ous sexual character, having engaged in bestiality, an ‘IV drug user’ as well as having contracted the H.I.V.
virus and AIDS.”31 Finkel asserted in her complaint that Facebook should be held accountable for allowing
the defamatory material to be published on its website claiming, “[Facebook] should have known that such
statements were false and/or have taken steps to verify the genuineness of the statements.”32 Predictably, the
court granted Facebook’s motion to dismiss the charges as a result of the protection supplied under Sec-
tion 230 of the CDA. However, Finkel’s attorney’s response raised an interesting argument. They chose to
highlight that in its terms of service Facebook claims ownership of the material posted on their website. As a
result, “Facebook wants to use the CDA as a shield to immunize itself form being sued for defamation due to
any postings of its users while also claiming ownership of the content posted on its site.”33 To a large extent,
these assertions are meritless and the court rejected this response due to the fact that “Ownership of con-
tent plays no role in the Act’s statutory scheme.”34 Ultimately, there is no precedent to support Finkle’s claim
that ownership should establish liability under Section 230 of the CDA. However, this argument shows that
Facebook has been permitted to, as the cliché goes, have its cake and eat it too. Policies should be enacted
to prevent Facebook from claiming ownerships over its materials and at the same time being absolved of
responsibility over the very material it owns.
Current federal policy has also ineffectively punished individual users who have abused their use of
27 I-Newswire, The Shocking Truth of Facebook.
28 Grimmelmann, “Saving Facebook” 1183.
29 Cyberbullying Research Center. Web. <http://www.cyberbullying.us/index.php>.
30 “Finkel v. Facebook.” Citizen Media Law Project. Berkman Center for Internet & Society, 3 Mar. 2009.
Web.
31 “Finkel v. Facebook.” Cmplt. ¶ 23.
32 “Finkel v. Facebook.” Id. ¶ 28.
33 Altschul, Mark M. “Finkel Opposition to Facebook Motion to Dismiss.” Letter to Supreme Court of the State
of New York. 16 Feb. 2009. Citizen Media Law Project. Citizen Media Law Project. Web.
<http://www.citmedialaw.org/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2009-03-26-Finkel%20Opposition%20to%20Face-
book%20Motion%20to%20Dismiss.pdf>.
34 Alonso, Morris D. “Notice of Motion to Dismiss.” Letter to Altschul & Altschul & Orrick Herrington & Sut-
cliffe. 23 Apr. 2009. Citizen Media Law Project. Web. <http://www.citmedialaw.org/sites/citmedialaw.org/
files/2009-04-23%20Finkle-%20Schwartz%20notice%20of%20motion%20to%20dismiss.pdf>.
 Social Media: No “Friend” of Personal Privacy by Christopher Spinelli — 65

Facebook and MySpace. For instance, in United States v. Drew35 a 47-year-old mother, Lori Drew, was partly
responsible for the suicide of 13-year-old Megan Meier. Drew created a fake MySpace account and contacted
Meier posing as a 16-year-old boy. Using the account, Drew harassed Meier and inflicted significant emo-
tional distress. A month after the fake account was created, Meier hung herself in her bedroom closet. Drew
was later indicted and accused of violating the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act on several counts. One of the
charges brought against Drew accused her of violating MySpace’s terms of service as a result of her access-
ing MySpace servers in order to gather more information on Meier. The creation of a false account violated
MySpace’s terms and conditions as well. The indictment was legally questionable because the Computer
Fraud and Abuse Act, as currently written, only encompasses federal, state, and designated financial com-
puter systems. As a result, on August 28, 2009, Drew was acquitted of these charges.
This case has incited a significant call to change state and federal policy. Most notable is a bill intro-
duced to Congress on August 2, 2009, titled the Megan Meier Cyberbullying Prevention Act. If it were to be
passed, the bill would establish a federal definition of cyberbullying and criminalize online communication that
is done “with the intent to coerce, intimidate, harass, or cause substantial emotional distress to a person.”36
Further highlighting the ineffectiveness of social networking website self-regulation, in February 2007
a case titled Doe v. MySpace attempted to reframe the responsibility of social networking websites in the
context of protection from sexual predators. The plaintiff accused MySpace of negligence that stemmed from
the belief that MySpace should have “implemented basic safety measures to prevent sexual predators from
communicating with minors.”37 The District Court again denied these claims on the basis of the Communica-
tions Decency Act. The Appeal’s Court affirmed this decision, relying on precedent established in Green v.
AOL and finding that MySpace was not liable for user-generated content on its website.38 The Supreme Court
denied certiorari to hear the case in November 2008.
All three of these cases provide a clear example of how Facebook’s and MySpace’s practice of self-
regulation have been ineffective and unreliable. The question then becomes whether the government should
abandon this policy of self-regulation and begin to hold Facebook and MySpace liable due to their claimed
ownership of defamatory content, and the necessity to protect children. Without enforcing it personally, or
specifically mandating guidelines for Facebook and MySpace, the government essentially permits the exis-
tence of a medium that has the potential to become a safe-haven for sexual predators and the circulation of
defamatory comments.

VII. Facebook’s & MySpace’s connection to discriminating employment

practices
The limited amount of regulation on websites such as MySpace and Facebook has also led to a
disturbing trend in the workplace. Both have displayed an inability to keep information that is thought to be
private, out of the hands of current or potential employers. The damaging effects this can have on one’s
career was made clearly evident in Barrow County School District v. Payne.39 There, Ashley Payne was a
Barrow County schoolteacher who, in August 2009, was forced to resign from her job. Ms. Payne alleges that
she was asked to resign after photos from a recent vacation in Europe surfaced on Facebook. These photos
reportedly show Ms. Payne holding wine and beer. Below the photo is a posting that states she was “headed
out to play Crazy Bitch Bingo.” The school contends that it was forced to ask for Ms. Payne’s resignation
after a parent called the school complaining about the content. However, Ms. Payne asserts that she was not
“Facebook friends” with any of her students and had enabled all proper privacy settings on her profile. Con-
tending such, Ms. Payne has filed a lawsuit against the school district. As of this writing, the trial is forthcom-
ing.
35 United States v. Lori Drew, No. CR 08-0582-GW, http://www.scribd.com/doc/23406419.
36 Congress, 1st Session, H.R. 1966, (April 2, 2009), http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c111:H.R.1966.
37 Doe v. MySpace, 528 F. 3d 413 (5th Cir. 2008).
38 Green v. America Online (AOL), 318 F. 3d 465 – 2003.
39 “Barrow County School District v. Payne.” Citizen Media Law Project. Berkman Center for Internet & Soci-
ety, 4 Mar. 2010. Web.
66 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

The Payne case highlights a frequent trend that has become quite common in today’s job markets.
Employers have become especially adept at using Facebook and MySpace to screen job applicants and
current employees. A 2006 survey conducted by researchers at the University of Dayton concluded, “Out of a
pool of 5,000 employers nationwide, 40% would consider using the Facebook profile of a potential employee
in making the hiring decision. Several employers even reported rescinding offers after checking out profiles
on Facebook.”40 In many cases, these employers violate Facebook and MySpace’s terms of service in retriev-
ing information from a current or prospective employee’s profile. For instance, “a method employers have
been known to use involves the use of their current employees’ Facebook accounts to search applicant’s
profiles in which they are in the same network, such as the same college. The employee may have reserva-
tions about probing the profiles of their younger college mates, but do so anyway for fear of repercussions
from their employer due to noncompliance.”41
To a limited extent, a recent court case, Pietrylo v. Hillstone Restaurant42 challenged this common,
unethical practice in a court of law. Two employees at Hillstone Restaurant decided to create a MySpace
page where other fellow employees could join and express their grievances with the management. The
page was protected by the password and none of the managers were invited to join. However, one manager
eventually learned of the MySpace page and, after repeated attempts, convinced an employee to reveal the
page’s password. Shortly thereafter, the creators of the MySpace page were fired for “damaging employee
morale and violating the restaurant’s ‘core values. ’”43 The two employees, Pietrylo and Marino filed a lawsuit
against the restaurant alleging that its actions violated the Federal Stored Communications Act. In addition,
both plaintiffs argued that the restaurant’s actions also violated their right to privacy. The jury found that the
restaurant did violate the federal Stored Communications Act, due to the fact that the restaurant compelled
the employee to allow them unauthorized access to stored electronic communications. However, they also
found that the plaintiffs had no reasonable expectation of privacy within the MySpace group. The jury reached
this conclusion by following the third party doctrine, which states, “Knowingly revealing information to a third
party relinquishes Fourth Amendment protection in that information.”44 This case illustrates how the unethical
practice of coercing an employee to reveal communication on a social networking working website is punish-
able in a court of law. Yet, this can only occur if the website is protected by a password and stored communi-
cation is being sought. Unfortunately, Facebook and MySpace profiles do not fall under the category of stored
communication. Thus, limiting the employer’s responsibility in coercing a fellow employee to allow him or her
to view a current or potential employee’s profile and bypass privacy settings.
In addition, “a [second] means of accessing Facebook profiles and by far the most invasive is to hack
into the Facebook database. This may not be such a hard task for many tech-savvy IT employees at most
companies. By this means the company would have access to any profile they wish.”45 The ease with which
IT employees can hack into information stored on Facebook is further highlighted by the actions of the two
M.I.T. students previously described in this comment. If two undergraduate students were able to access over
70,000 profiles using a program they designed, it is not unreasonable to suggest that it is not difficult for a
company’s IT professionals to easily find ways to bypass Facebook and MySpace’s privacy controls.

VIII. Application of tort law

In his comment, A Social Networks Theory of Privacy46, law professor Jacob Strahilevit contends
40 C. Wiley, “Facing the Consequences of Facebook.” University of Dayton. 22 Nov. 2006. 4 Mar. 2007, http://
www.udnews.org/2006/11/facing_the_cons.html.
41 Engler, Peter, and Peter Tanoury. Employers Use of Facebook in Recruiting. Publication. Ethica Publish-
ing. Web.
42 Pietrylo v. Hillstone Restaurant. LexisNexis. United States District Court District of New Jersey. 24 July
2008. Web.
43 Pietrylo v. Hillstone Restaurant, United States District Court District of New Jersey.
44 Pietrylo v. Hillstone Restaurant, United States District Court District of New Jersey.
45 Engler and Tanoury, Employers Use of Facebook in Recruiting.
46 Strahilevitz, Lior J. “A Social Networks Theory of Privacy.” The University of Chicago Law Review 72.3:
919-88. JSTOR. Web. Summer 2005.
 Social Media: No “Friend” of Personal Privacy by Christopher Spinelli — 67

that understanding social networks will aid the courts in applying a more balanced standard of a reasonable
expectation of privacy. Strahilevit agrees that state and appellate courts have been inconsistent in making this
determination. “Jurisdictions cannot agree on a framework for resolving these kinds of cases. Hence, Georgia
law holds that disclosing sensitive information to dozens of people, and perhaps even tens of thousands of
strangers, does not necessarily render information ‘public’ for the purposes of the public disclosure of private
facts tort, but Ohio law governing the same tort holds that a plaintiff’s decision to share sensitive information
with four coworkers eviscerates her expectation of privacy in that information.”47
The key to resolving this type of discrepancy is to accept “the fact that an event is not wholly ‘private’
does not mean that an individual has no interest in limiting disclosure or dissemination of the information.”48
According to Strahilevit, “tort law can thus function as a form of social insurance: protecting those people who
engaged in socially desirable sharing of personal information, but who had the misfortune to see those per-
sonal details disseminated to the general public without their consent.”49 In his analysis, Strahilevit proposes
that a reasonable expectation of privacy can be determined based on “the possibility that the information
will be disseminated to a number of people that exceeds the size of his social network.”50 On Facebook and
MySpace, privacy features are often used to restrict access to a specific group of people. Therefore, they are
an appropriate indication of with whom the individual would like his information to be shared, and the extent
to which he would prefer it to be spread. In accordance with this assertion, any unauthorized access by an
outside party to bypass a person’s privacy settings would constitute a violation of their reasonable expecta-
tion of privacy. Strahilevit’s proposal conforms to the research conducted by Boyd and Cambridge University’s
Computing Laboratory concluding that many users incorrectly believe that only select friends and family can
access their information. Therefore, Strahilevit’s solution can go a long way in resolving instances of cyber-
bullying, defamation, child predation, and employee discrimination on Facebook and MySpace. Although
Strahilevit offers an effective resolution to many of the problems plaguing social networking websites such
as Facebook and MySpace, it is unreasonable to expect a reinterpretation of privacy law to come from the
Judicial Branch. Rather, it is the legislature that must become the innovator of new laws that govern privacy
through this newborn medium. In doing so, they should heed the advice of scholars such as Strahilevit, and
establish a system that clearly outlines how social networks are used to determine a person’s reasonable
expectation of privacy.

IX. Proposed resolution

The argument furthered in this comment places emphasis on the need to correct privacy concerns
facing the users of social networking websites such as MySpace and Facebook. It is evident that free market
self-regulation of social networking websites denies individuals the privacy protection they deserve. As shown
earlier, it is counter-intuitive for social networking websites to protect one’s privacy because it adversely af-
fects financial gain provided by the business of advertisers. Additionally, protecting social networking websites
from any sort of regulatory responsibility through the application of Section 230 of the CDA, has produced
multiple negative consequences including the emergence of “cyberbullying” and concerns over the potential
for child molestation and employee discrimination.
Congress should take decisive action to combat these growing problems. One such solution may in-
volve the passing of legislation that redefines a “reasonable expectation of privacy” on social networking web-
sites. A more appropriate way to view privacy on social networking websites is advanced by J.D. candidate
Matthew Hodge. In his comment, Hodge provides an analogy that accurately depicts how social networking
websites should be regarded in light of privacy controls. By relating an individual’s Facebook or MySpace ac-
count to a safety deposit box Hodge asserts:
In each case, a person rents a small area in a public facility to store effects or information.
The vendors of these areas hold them out to be private, by giving the purchaser a tangible
key, or in the case of cyberspace, through a password. In both the case of the safety deposit

47 Strahilevitz, “A Social Networks Theory of Privacy” 921.

48 Strahilevitz, “A Social Networks Theory of Privacy” 923.
49 Strahilevitz, “A Social Networks Theory of Privacy” 927.
50 Strahilevitz, “A Social Networks Theory of Privacy” 974.
68 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

box and storage area, the vendor/owner may have a legitimate business purpose to have ac-
cess to the area, but it would not be one which a person would reasonably expect to occur. In
both situations, this information, much like the profile with the protection of the extra settings,
could be considered to be not in open view, and therefore, be the equivalent of a ‘closed,
opaque container.51
Congress should take Mr. Hodge’s assertion into consideration when passing several new Acts that would
protect the privacy of personal information on social networking websites. After placing these Acts in effect, in
order to ensure that this new perception of social networking privacy is respected, a regulatory agency should
be installed to police the misuse of these websites. This agency would behave similarly to the FCC, which was
similarly created in large part to keep up with the regulation of emerging technology. The United States can
follow the lead of nations such as Australia52 and Canada53, which have already established an Office of the
Privacy Commissioner. This independent regulatory agency is obligated to “Determine how public bodies may
collect, use and disclose personal information” and “set out how private organizations (including businesses,
charities, associations and labour organizations) may collect, use and disclose personal information.”54 In fact,
the Canadian office has already filed a case against Facebook that outlines its various privacy infractions.55
This comment has examined privacy on social networking websites largely from a legal perspective
because it draws attention to important privacy concerns that require further clarification and interpretation.
Historically, it typically takes an extended period of time for the law to catch up with new technology. Yet, the
extraordinarily rapid growth of social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace emphasize the
perception that time is of the essence. Commonly, important legal issues are discussed in the lower courts
extensively before the Supreme Court deems it necessary to provide further legal clarification. In this particu-
lar instance, however, an effective solution must swiftly come from the legislature. It is not hard to conceive
that the current Supreme Court will have difficulty understanding the innovative technological capabilities
of social networking on the Internet. The average age of the current Supreme Court is 68 years of age and
on several occasions Justices have showcased their inability to stay up-to-date with current technology.
This became especially apparent during oral arguments conducted on April 19th, 2010 for a case concern-
ing text messaging.56 At one point Chief Justice Roberts asked what the difference was “between email and
a pager?”57 Shortly thereafter, Justice Anthony Kennedy inquired as to what occurs when an incoming text
arrives at a cell phone just as another is being sent. “Does it say: ‘Your call is important to us, and we will get
back to you?”58 At one point, Justice Scalia even asked whether texts are printed out in “hard copy.”59 The
struggles the Supreme Court had in understanding the technological functions of cell phones highlights that it
is unlikely the Court will understand the significance of addressing privacy on social networking websites in a
prompt manner.
The Internet is evolving at a breathtaking pace. Its advancement has opened up new doorways
through which the exchange of information can now flow. In deciding to create a profile on a social network-
ing website such as Facebook or MySpace, an individual makes a conscious decision to share their personal
information with others. However, this same individual does not expect this information to be guaranteed
virtually no protection. It is improper to assert that privacy is rendered impotent the instant one establishes an
account. Despite the difference in medium, citizens still deserve a right to certain protections. It is the duty of
51 Hodge, “The Fourth Amendment and Privacy Issues on the ‘New’ Internet: Facebook.com and MySpace.
com” 119.
52 “Privacy Law.” Australian Government - Office of the Privacy Minister. Web. <http://www.privacy.gov.au/>.
53 “About Us.” Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Web. <http://www.priv.gc.ca/index_e.cfm>.
54 Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.
55 McNish, Jacquie. “Jennifer Stoddart Blazes a Global Trail for Privacy Protection.” Globe and Mail. 27 Apr.
2010. Web. <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/industry-news/the-law-page/jennifer-stod-
dart-blazes-a-global-trail-for-privacy-protection/article1548740/>.
56 Frauenfelder, Mark. “Supreme Court Justices Ask Important Questions About Text Messaging and Email.”
Boing Boing. Happy Mutants LLC, 21 Apr. 2010. Web. <http://www.boingboing.net/2010/04/21/supreme-court-
justic.html>.
57 Frauenfelder, “Supreme Court Justices Ask Important Questions About Text Messaging and Email.”
58 Frauenfelder, “Supreme Court Justices Ask Important Questions About Text Messaging and Email.”
59 Frauenfelder, “Supreme Court Justices Ask Important Questions About Text Messaging and Email.”
 Social Media: No “Friend” of Personal Privacy by Christopher Spinelli — 69

the U.S. government to ensure that these rights and liberties are protected even in the advent of technological
development. Action must be taken to resolve the problems facing millions. If not, privacy in cyberspace runs
the risk of becoming virtually extinct.

Acknowledgments
This author is thankful to Dr. Naeemah Clark at Elon University for her supervision and advice, with-
out which the article could not be published. The author also appreciates the numerous reviewers who have
helped revise this article, particularly Matthew Bova, a J.D. candidate at George Washington Law School,
whose revisions and advice are greatly valued.
70 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

The Effect of Personality Styles

(Level of Introversion- Extroversion)
on Social Media Use

Erin Ryan Harbaugh*

Strategic Communications & Psychology : Double Major

Elon University

Abstract
This research paper details a study of social network users personality style and their consequent
social media use on the popular social networking site (SNS), Facebook. The self-reported level of extrover-
sion amongst other personality traits served as the central delineation of personality style. The amount of
social media usage was determined based on basic behaviors and motivations for using the site (e.g., time
spent, purpose, etc.). The objective of this study was to determine if and how a relationship existed between
Facebook use and personality type in that one personality type would use Facebook more often and for differ-
ent reasons than the other, unrepresented personality type. The results indicated that heavy Facebook users,
who spend more than two hours daily on the site, are seen by themselves and others as more outgoing and
extroverted.

I. Introduction
The conceptualization of the Internet has been undeniable, affecting the way millions of people
today communicate, interact and gather information.1 People use the Internet to “send e-mail, check news,
research, play games, download music or movies, keep in touch with family and friends, seek similar others,
buy products, and engage in numerous other activities.”2 Additionally, the Internet is used to conduct busi-
ness, keep in touch with family and friends, seek emotional support, and search for romantic partners.3 The
Internet we know today has come about not in the form of a replacement for the real world, but rather as a
part of it in our present society, and this is just the beginning. The ability of the Internet to touch almost every
aspect of our life is likely to increase over the next few years.4 This gives the Internet a great influence over
the ability it has to shape our lives, now and for generations to come.
* Keywords: Social Networking Sites, Social Media Use, Personality style: introversion/ extroversion, Behav-
iors/ motivations for Social Networking
Email: [email protected] / [email protected]
1 Tel Amiel and Stephanie Lee Sargent, “Individual Differences in Internet Usage Motives,” Computers in Hu-
man Behavior 20 (2004): 712.
2 Vikanda Pornsakulvanich and Paul M. Haridakis, “The Influence of Dispositions and Internet-use Motivation
on Online Communication Satisfaction and Relationship Closeness,” (Paper presented at the annual meeting
of the NCA 93rd Annual Convention, Chicago, IL, January 24, 2010), 2.
3 Ibid.
4 Hamburger, “Internet and Personality,” 2.
 Personality Styles Effect on Social Media Use by Erin Harbaugh — 71

With the advent of a new form of communication comes both positive and negative feedback. The
Internet has been said to have created a new, different approach towards interpersonal interaction improving
individuals’ lives, while it has also been said to have eroded psychological well-being (by increasing loneli-
ness and depression), weaken real-world ties and reduce any sense of community involvement.5 No matter
how important the advantages or disadvantages of this new form of communication, it is still a fact that 80
percent of U.S. adults go online, whether at home, work or elsewhere.6 There are different types of Internet
use, including non-interpersonal communication use (e.g., entertainment) and interpersonal communication
use (e.g., email and social media use). Of those Internet users, the average user spends 13 hours per week
online.7 Of these 13 hours, the average user around the world spent more than five and a half hours on social
networks in December 2009, up 200 percent from the same month in 2008.8
Social networks are defined as “web-based services that allow individuals to (1) construct a public or
semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a con-
nection, and (3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system.”9
Social networks offer users to become part of a network of online friends that allows them to keep in touch
with current friends, reconnect with old friends and/or create real–life friendships by joining groups/ forums of
those who share similar interests.10 Additionally, some social network sites (SNS) offer users the opportunities
to find a job or establish business contacts.11 Most SNS also offer further features. In addition to blogs and fo-
rums, users can express themselves by designing their profile page to reflect their individual personality.12 For
these reasons and more, 110 million Americans, or 60 percent of the online population, use social networks.13
Among all sites and applications on the Internet, social networks and blogs proved to be the most popular,
followed by online games and instant messaging.14 The average social networker visits a social site five days
a week and checks in about four times daily for a total of an hour each day.15
“Boasting 206.9 million users in December, 2009 [now more than 400 million as of April, 2010], Face-
book was the top SNS, according to Nielsen Media Research, grabbing 67 percent of social networking users
throughout the world,” according to Lance Whitney.16 Founded in 2004, Facebook is a social networking site
(SNS), which provides users with a platform to create a personal profile page, add ‘friends’, and send mes-
sages. “The average Facebook user is more likely to be married (40 percent), Caucasian (80 percent) and
retired (6 percent) than users of the other social networks. They have the second-highest average income of
other SNS, at $61,000, and an average of 121-130 connections.”17
One statistic that is left out here is the average Facebook user’s personality style and consequent
motivation for choosing to communicate in this way and on this particular SNS, Facebook, specifically. Not
much research has been conducted in this area. The little that has proved inconsequential evidence or evi-
dence that includes other extraneous variables. The current researcher is interested in answering the follow-
ing questions:
5 Ibid.
6 Lance Whitney, “Average Net User Now Online 13 Hours Per Week,” Cnet news Online, December 23,
2009, http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10421016-93.html (February 28, 2010).
7 Whitney, “Average Net User Now Online 13 Hours Per Week.”
8 Lance Whitney, “Twitter, Facebook Use Up 82 Percent,” Cnet news Online, February 22, 2010, http://news.
cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10457480-93.html?tag=mncol;posts (February 28, 2010).
9 danah m. boyd and Nicole B. Ellison, “Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship.” Journal of
Computer-Mediated Communication 13 (2007).
10 “Social Networking Websites Review,” Top Ten Reviews, http://social-networking-websites-review.toptenre-
views.com/ (March 20, 2010).
11 Ibid.
12 Ibid.
13 “What Social Networks Reveal About the User,” Advertising Age, July 8, 2009, http://www.lookingfit.com/
articles/what-social-networks-reveal-about-the-user.html (March 29, 2010).
14 Whitney, “Twitter, Facebook Use Up 82 Percent.”
15 “What Social Networks Reveal About the User.”
16 Whitney, “Twitter, Facebook Use Up 82 Percent.”
17 What Social Networks Reveal About the User.”; “Facebook Statistics.”
72 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

• R1: What personality characteristics does the average Facebook user possess?
• R2: Does his or her amount of personal use differ due to their personality?
• R3: Is the typical Facebook user extroverted or introverted?
• R4: What is his or her main purpose and motivation in maintaining membership on Facebook?
In attempting to answer these questions, past researchers have looked to behavior motivations, most
specifically, personality traits that cause and influence our actions online. This is because personality traits
influence peoples’ motivation and behavior during social interaction, both online and offline. 18 This study will
delve more into this area and seek to understand why and how individuals’ personality traits, mainly the level
of extroversion, affect one’s social media use (primarily Facebook).

II. Literature Review

A great deal of past research has sought to find out the many ways that personality may affect indi-
viduals’ media use patterns, particularly on the Internet or online.19 This is because people are different in their
social and psychological circumstances, which may affect how and why they use the differing forms of media
to fulfill their personal needs.20 These personality characteristics rely on several models differing between
three and five total dimensions accepted as the universal, comprehensive elements of human personality
including extroversion, neuroticism, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness.21 It is important to note
that the expression of one personality factor may depend on where an individual stands on another factor,
which suggests that personality characteristics interact to shape ones online behavior.22 It is widely known that
exposure to specific online media outlets is expectedly associated with an individuals’ personality character-
istics, inclusive of many background variables that can contribute to why individuals chose to interact online,
“such as loneliness, unwillingness to communicate, psychological variables such as locus of control and need
for cognition, and personality or temperament factors including need for activation, shyness, sensation seek-
ing, task orientation, and tendency to approach or withdrawal from new stimuli.”23
For the purpose of this study, the level of the extroversion personality trait has the greatest effect
on an individual’s online social media outlet tendencies. This is because extroversion relates to an individu-
als’ ability to engage with the environment.24 Sociability, social contact and a preference for companionship
are likely to be pursued by those high in extroversion.25 Those high in this trait, accordingly, tend to be lively,
assertive, active, carefree, outgoing and enjoy surrounding themselves with others mainly, while those lower
in the extroversion trait are more likely to be shy, introspective and less likely to seek external social stimula-
tion.26 The extrovert also desires excitement, takes risks and acts impulsively at times, while the introvert is
a quiet, reflective person who prefers time alone, does not crave excitement and can be seen as distant by
others at times.27

18 Katelyn Y.A. McKenna and John A. Bargh, “Plan 9 From Cyberspace: The Implications of the Internet for
Personality and Social Psychology,” Personality and Social Psychology Review 4 (2000): 63.
19 Alice Hall, “Audience Personality and the Selection of Media and Media Genres,” Media Psychology 7
(2005): 368.
20 Pornsakulvanich and Haridakis, “The Influence of Dispositions and Internet-Use Motivation,” 2.
21 Leman Pinar Tosun and Timo Lajunen, “Does Internet Use Reflect Your Personality? Relationship Between
Eysenck’s Personality Dimensions and Internet Use,” Computers in Human Behavior 26 (2010): 162; Hall,
“Audience Personality,” 378.
22 Hall, “Audience Personality,” 382.
23 Ibid., 378.
24 Amiel and Sargent, “Individual Differences in Internet Usage Motives,” 713.
25 Hall, “Audience Personality,” 370.
26 Ibid., 380; Hamburger, “Internet and Personality,” 6; Amiel and Sargent, “Individual Differences in Internet
Usage Motives,” 713; Tosun and Lajunen, “Does Internet Use Reflect Your Personality?,” 162.
27 Hall, “Audience Personality,” 382.
 Personality Styles Effect on Social Media Use by Erin Harbaugh — 73

Research has noted that extroverts experience more successful social interactions online than
introverts.28 Thus, it would seem that extroverts use social media more often because of their success. The
statistic found by Myers-Briggs researchers only supports this idea in saying that extroverts use social media
more often, because it is hypothesized that roughly two-thirds of any population is composed of extroverts,
with the remaining one-third introverts.29 It would then make sense that because the general population is
made up mostly of extroverts, that extroverts would be heavier users on SNS than introverts. Specifically, the
online environment is a place where individuals (both extroverts and introverts) can maintain existing relation-
ships with one another and/or solidify offline contacts.30
Similarly, extroversion was positively related to online use for supplementing the relationships previ-
ously established in face-to-face relationships.31 This phenomenon, also known as the social enhancement
hypothesis, states that extroverted and outgoing individuals are motivated to add online contacts to their
already large network of offline friends.32 These results are important because they show that personality is a
highly relevant factor in determining online behavior.33 However, social media use, particularly for purposes of
interacting with others, may be higher among those who rank lower in extroversion for the following reasons.34
Research has found that introverts are quite successful in social interactions online, find it easier to
express themselves online and, in turn, oftentimes prefer it.35 This is because introverts feel a need to control
the amount of social interaction they subject themselves to and the online world is a place where they have
this ability.36 Facebook has been described as the “ultimate communication platform for people who are more
introverted because they can be connected with their own world online and be by themselves at the same
time.”37 It has been said that Facebook offers introverts the opportunity and comfort to prescreen their friends
as they choose and present themselves in the way that they choose. 38 In other words, Facebook offers intro-
verts a painless, promising alternative to face-to-face interactions.
Researchers also note that introverts may be drawn to the Internet for the social interactions lacking
in their offline or ‘real’ lives. 39 In doing so, these introverts may adopt a more extroverted character online.40
“Introverts are able to construct and reconstruct their identity in numerous ways on the Internet—something
not possible for the average individual offline.”41 Consequently, it has been said that people, both introverts
and extroverts, may have changed their personality in the process of social interaction online. Compared to

28 Xun Liu and Robert Larose, “Does Using the Internet Make People More Satisfied With Their Lives?”
(Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Dresden, Germany,
May 25, 2009), 6.
29 Anne Baxter, “Are Social Networking Websites Better for Introverts or Extroverts?,” Associated Content,
February 12, 2009, http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1453268/are_social_networking_websites_bet-
ter.html?cat=9 (March 29, 2010).
30 danah m. boyd, and Nicole B. Ellison, “Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship.” Journal
of Computer-Mediated Communication 13 (2007).
31 Tosun and Lajunen, “Does Internet Use Reflect Your Personality,” 163.
32 Jolene Zywica and James Danowski, “The Faces of Facebookers: Investigating Social Enhancement and
Social Compensation Hypotheses; Predicting Facebook and Offline Popularity from Sociability and Self-
Esteem, and Mapping the Meanings of Popularity with Semantic Networks,” Journal of Computer-Mediated
Communication 14 (2008): 5.
33 Hamburger, “Internet and Personality,” 6.
34 Liu and Larose, “Are You a Different Person Online,” 11.
35 Ibid.
36 Baxter, “Are Social Networking Websites Better.”
37 Barclay, “Is Social Networking an Introverted or Extroverted Activity,” Introvert Retreat, May 20, 2009,
http://www.introvertretreat.com/?p=195 (February 27, 2010).
38 Baxter, “Are Social Networking Websites Better.”
39 Liu and Larose, “Are You a Different Person Online,” 9.
40 Ibid.
41 Ibid., 7.
74 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

their behavior in real life, some Internet users behave differently while they are online.42 In other words, they
are using a different or more perfected ‘version’ of their personality while online, which is something that can-
not be done offline.
Furthermore, the level of extroversion may influence media use in that extroverts and introverts will
differ in viewing the Internet as either an extension or a substitute for social interaction, respectively.43 Intro-
verts may be more likely than extroverted individuals to use the media as a replacement or alternative for
interpersonal face-to-face interaction, past research has shown.44 Research has been found demonstrating
that those who have difficulties in face-to-face interactions or who are communication-avoidant may also
communicate better and prefer online interactions more than in person.45 This is due to a slew of advantages
of the Internet including “anonymity, control over self-presentation, intense and intimate self-disclosure, less
perceived social risk, and less social responsibility.”46
This also suggests that a higher level of extroversion can be negatively related to those media outlets
that serve more so as a substitute for interpersonal interaction.47 This is known as the social compensation
hypothesis, which demonstrates that “introverts and socially anxious individuals, having difficulty develop-
ing friendships, are more likely to use the Internet because they substitute online contacts for an undesirable
offline social network.”48 However, the Internet allows the introverts positive relationships to take a new form
because they are able to participate in more sociable activities that are missing in their daily offline lives with
others.49 The Internet is an appealing and accessible alternative of gratifying the desires for socializing that
the introvert does have.
The Internet fulfills the desires for communication and interpersonal interaction for both the typical
introvert and extrovert. Both personality styles are drawn towards the Internet and towards online communi-
cation, but for different reasons. Individuals’ tendencies to use a particular communication medium to fulfill
their needs are shaped by the alternatives they have available, explained more by the Uses and Gratifications
theory.
Uses and Gratifications Theory:
The uses and gratifications approach has been used to give great insight into why individuals chose
the various media outlets that they do and why they interact with others the way they do.50 The uses and grati-
fications theory explains media exposure that has been applied to a wide range of conventional mass media
as well as interpersonal communication and now, to the Internet.51 This theory demonstrates that “individuals
have unique sets of psychological and social needs as well as specific expectations relating to how a particu-
lar media outlet can fulfill those needs.”52 These exact needs and expectations of individuals contribute to the
reasons behind why certain individuals chose to participate in different media outlets.53 Researchers found
eight reasons or gratification factors for Internet use including: “to keep informed, diversion and entertainment,
peer identity, good feelings, communication, sights and sounds, career, and ‘coolness.’ ”54
The uses and gratifications theory believes that “individuals are active, goal-directed, and motivated

42 Ibid., 2.
43 Amiel and Sargent, “Individual Differences in Internet Usage Motives,” 715.
44 McKenna and Bargh, “Plan 9 From Cyberspace,” 63; Hall, “Audience Personality,” 378.
45 Tosun and Lajunen, “Does Internet Use Reflect Your Personality,” 163; Pornsakulvanich and Haridakis,
“The Influence of Dispositions and Internet-use Motivation,” 2.
46 Liu and Larose, “Are You a Different Person Online,” 2.
47 Hall, “Audience Personality,” 380.
48 Zywica and Danowski, “The Faces of Facebookers,” 5.
49 Liu and Larose, “Are You a Different Person Online,” 9.
50 Hall, “Audience Personality,” 377.
51 Robert Larose, Dana Mastro and Matthew S. Eastin, “Understanding Internet Usage: A Social- Cognitive
Approach to Uses and Gratifications.” Social Science Computer Review 19 (2001): 397.
52 Hall, “Audience Personality,” 377.
53 Ibid.
54 Larose, Mastro, and Eastin “Understanding Internet Usage,” 399.
 Personality Styles Effect on Social Media Use by Erin Harbaugh — 75

in selecting their media for consumption.”55 In other words, mass media is purposeful and targeted.56 Addition-
ally, “people select and use the appropriate channels of communication to gratify their needs and wants.”57
Specifically, much initiative in linking need gratification and media choice lies with the individual.58 The uses
and gratifications theory offers that “different people have diverse communication behaviors, which are based
upon social and psychological factors.“59
Accordingly, “social and psychological situations influence how well and appropriately media can
serve and satisfy people’s needs and wants.”60 This is applicable to the personality styles mentioned above
because people are goal-oriented in their preferences for communication channels; thus, people chose to use
certain communication channels over others.61 It is widely known that media compete with other sources of
need satisfaction.62 Accordingly, people use the Internet for gratification of their needs for which they have dif-
ficulty “completing through their other communication” techniques (especially face-to-face interactions).63
By directly applying these assumptions to mass media in terms of social media outlets (such as Face-
book), a few customized observations can be made. First, the average user is active, as the individual has
willingly created an account and holds a membership on the site. Next, the user chose Facebook as a means
to fulfill their wants and needs over the many other possible media outlets. Essentially, the Facebook user
came to the site for a unique purpose that the other social media outlets could not provide. Thirdly, method-
ologically speaking, many of the goals of media use are supplied directly from self-report data provided by
audience users themselves.64 The uses and gratifications theory simply represents an attempt to explain why
individuals chose certain media outlets among other resources and alternatives in their environment, to satisfy
their needs and to achieve their interpersonal communications goals.65
Social networking encompasses a certain media outlet that is broadly targeted to all individuals who
want to interact and be involved in interpersonal relationships. Thus, social networking cannot be more equip
or more satisfying for any certain personality type because it is human nature to want to be involved in many
relationships in ones lifetime. What differs is the amount of time spent on these SNS and what the users
motivations are. SNS are seen as the “middle ground” between introverted and extroverted activities, because
“it provides introverts an opportunity to network with others, on a business or personal level, while remaining
in their own comfortable world, while, simultaneously allowing extroverts the ability to stay connected with the
outside world at times when they would otherwise be alone.”66
Though research in the area of personality and online media preferences has been limited, past stud-
ies have attempted to understand the relationship between the two. Because online media, most specifically,
the relationships in this form of media and interpersonal communication is such an area that is untouched,
researchers have to use results from traditional media. These encouraging results in prompt the overarch-
ing question to be addressed in this study, which is: why and how do individuals’ personality traits, mainly the
level of extroversion, affect their social media (primarily Facebook) use.

55 Pornsakulvanich and Haridakis, “The Influence of Dispositions and Internet-use Motivation,” 2.

56 Elihu Katz, Jay G. Blumler, Michael Gurevitch, “Uses and Gratifications Research.” The Public Opinion
Quarterly 37 (1974): 510.
57 Pornsakulvanich and Haridakis, “The Influence of Dispositions and Internet-use Motivation,” 2.
58 Katz, Blumler and Gurevitch, “Uses and Gratifications Research,” 512.
59 Pornsakulvanich and Haridakis, “The Influence of Dispositions and Internet-use Motivation,” 2.
60 Ibid.
61 Tosun and Lajunen, “Does Internet Use Reflect Your Personality,” 163.
62 Katz, Blumler and Gurevitch, “Uses and Gratifications Research,” 512.
63 Tosun and Lajunen, “Does Internet Use Reflect Your Personality,” 164.
64 Katz, Blumler and Gurevitch, “Uses and Gratifications Research,” 512.
65 Ibid.
66 Ibid.
76 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

III. Method
To address this question, journals, online articles and papers presented at conferences comprised the
secondary research for the current study. Because Internet use and personality is somewhat of an untouched
market, some primary sources that could have been used in the research were not available. From there, an
analysis of the past studies and results and hypotheses and research questions were framed. Then, a sur-
vey was formulated based on a set of mainly close-ended questions investigating individual social media use
and personality style. Past research shows that a survey of an undergraduate student sample is a relevant
and significant group, because college students fit the demographic of most social network site users (mainly
Facebook).
The survey was conducted using the Survey Monkey host where users can create their own web-
based surveys (www.surveymonkey.com). To maximize the potential for a large quantity of participants, Face-
book itself was used for maximum, quick, and fast exposure, where the researcher created an ‘event’ which
included a brief description of the research and a link to take the survey. The researcher invited all of her
‘friends’ on her Elon Facebook network. Additionally, the researcher sent out a similar brief description and
link to her spring semester courses and organizations. Because the researcher is female, the organizations
were more targeted towards females (e.g. sorority and volunteer organizations), thus, skewing the population
size, which primarily consisted of females. The participant’s results were analyzed based on their anonymous
survey responses.
The survey consisted of 10 questions, including three major sections: (1) Facebook Use, (2) Per-
sonality Type, and (3) Demographics [See Appendix A]. In the first section, participants answered questions
about their daily Facebook use, main purpose in using Facebook as often or seldom as they do, and how
often they change their content on their Facebook profile. The second section consisted of questions ranking
from strongly disagree to agree about their preference for Facebook versus offline interaction, their commu-
nications successfulness and sincerity on Facebook versus offline, and their Facebook use as a way to be
a different person or the person they are not in the ‘real world’. Additionally, participants answered questions
placing themselves into introvert or extrovert categories based on their own self-perception and outsiders’
perceptions of themselves. The third section of the survey consisted of close-ended demographic questions
that participants answered regarding their year in school (e.g. freshman, sophomore, etc.) and gender. In the
first two sections (Facebook Use and Personality Type), I included an optional open-ended question ‘Why?’
so that I could receive personal feedback from participants in their own words.

IV. Findings
The goal of the current study was to see if a valid relationship existed between Facebook use and
personality types in that one personality type (for example the typical introvert) would use Facebook more of-
ten and for different reasons than the other personality type (the typical extrovert). Each section of the survey
provided the participant the opportunity to honestly and openly express his or her behavior, perception and
give specific rationale for why they feel they way they do.

Demographics/ Participants:
Participants were college students enrolled at Elon University in North Carolina consisting of 4,995
undergraduate students; 59% female, 41% male.67 A total of 405 subjects participated in this study. Out of the
total number of participants: 77.4% were female and 22.6% were male. For year in college, 19.9% were fresh-
man, 25.0% were sophomores, 21.8% were juniors, and 33.2% were seniors.

Facebook Use:
In answering the question, ” How much time do you spend on Facebook daily?” most participants
(31.6%) answered between 30 and 60 minutes, while 25.2% answered less than 30 minutes, followed by
22.6% for 60-90 minutes, 9.2% for 90-120 minutes, and 11.4% for more than 120 minutes. This is meaning-
67 “About Elon University,” 2010, http://www.elon.edu/e-web/visit/about_elon.xhtml (March 3, 2010).
 Personality Styles Effect on Social Media Use by Erin Harbaugh — 77

ful because close to 50% stated that they spend 60 minutes or less a day on Facebook. Those that used it
for 60 minutes or less answered the optional open-ended question of ‘Why?’ by stating that they are too busy
and have more important uses for their time than Facebook, it is uninteresting to them, and they only check
it when they get an email notification. A very light user even mentioned, “it makes me sad that so many of my
peers waste so much of their lives on Facebook.”
Then, there is the other extreme that spends more than 120 minutes on Facebook. These individu-
als use Facebook for many reasons including: out of habit, procrastination, distraction (during classes, spare
and homework time), boredom, entertainment, and to be social (especially with friends not close in proximity:
home, studying abroad, etc.). These heavy users noted that they sign on to Facebook every time they are on
their computer and often just keep it up and open. They state that Facebook is “addicting” but also a “mind-
less way to unwind.”
It was interesting to note that both those students that use Facebook often and seldom state busy-
ness as an important factor. Light users do not use Facebook because they do not have time, while heavy
users say that Facebook is a great alternative to not having to spend an hour on the phone calling others
when they can keep up and catch up with friends on Facebook. Facebook is a main source of communication
for some heavy users because they note that Facebook is easier than email because people get on Facebook
more often than they check their email.
In answering the question, “What is your main purpose of using Facebook this often?” most partici-
pants (59.0%) chose time-passing entertainment, while 7.3% chose information, 0.2% chose relationship
development, 33.0% chose relationship maintenance, and 0.5% chose trend-following. This shows that the
entertainment factor is the most common motivation for being on Facebook. Ranking second is relationship
maintenance, which factors in maintaining relationships and wanting to stay in touch with people.
In this explanation of ‘Why,’ participants mentioned that they wanted to rank both time-passing enter-
tainment and relationship maintenance first but they could not choose both so they gave their reasons why
they chose one over the other. One participant noted, “I don’t need Facebook to build relationships … howev-
er, Facebook is a way to distract myself from harder, more difficult aspects of life.” I found this interesting, as
it seems this particular user uses Facebook as an escape or alternative to communicating in the other ways,
which aligns with past research. Others that ranked Facebook use as a time-passing alternative said that, “If
I have a lot of work to do, I try to use Facebook as motivation. I’ll tell myself I’m allowed to check Facebook
after I get an hour’s worth of work done.”
It was interesting to note that those participants that mentioned they had studied abroad ranked rela-
tionship maintenance higher than time-passing entertainment because they saw Facebook as more beneficial
for this factor than the other. Participants noted that Facebook is a great way to communicate with those who
he/she values the most: his/ her friends and family. They note, “If someone has impacted me, I want to main-
tain that friendship.” Also, those that ranked relationship maintenance higher than time-passing entertainment
showed how great and effective Facebook is at connecting with people not close in proximity. Participants
stated, “Besides texting, Facebook is the second way I can get in touch with people.”
For the question asked, “How often do you change the content and/ or features of your Facebook
profile (e.g. update your status)?” most participants (43%) said that they change their personal content some-
times/ almost weekly, while 9.5% make changes often/ almost daily, 31.6% rarely/ almost monthly, 15.5%
never/ almost yearly, and 0.5% do not know how often they change features of their Facebook profile. In an-
swering ‘Why,’ those participants that changed their content often mentioned that they like to let others know
what they are doing, especially if it is something important or worthwhile in sharing (events, travelling, music
lyrics, quotes, etc.). Those that rarely change their content say, “It’s not everyone’s business what I’m doing
all the time!” and show their dislike when others change their status in saying, “I hate when people think that I
care what they are doing for every second of their day because I do not care if and when they are showering,
shopping, etc.” They also mention that status updates are what Twitter is for.

Personality Type:
This section used three Likert scale questions ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree as
well as two questions asking about self and outsiders’ perceptions of personality. In answering the question,
“Do you agree or disagree with the following statement: Sometimes, I enjoy Facebook (and online) interac-
tions more so than face-to-face interactions (offline),” most participants (39.7%) noted that they disagree with
78 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

the statement, while 26.4% noted that they strongly disagree, 17.5% were undecided or neutral, 14.6% noted
that they agree, and 1.6% noted that they strongly agree. Past research shows that Facebook interactions are
well suited for those who are introverted so this is what the current researcher expected. The current study
brought about interesting results. Almost 60% showed that they disagreed or strongly disagreed with the idea
that they sometimes enjoy Facebook interaction more so than face-to-face interactions. These participants
mentioned that they prefer face-to-face interactions because “they are more rewarding” and “online interac-
tions mean nothing.” They stated that “nothing is substitute” for face-to-face interactions which are more
sincere, worthwhile, entertaining, and the stage where you make meaningful memories.
There were also participants that voted undecided and/or neutral because they mentioned that they
like both types of interactions with different people: “face-to-face with better friends, online/ on Facebook with
random people.” Other participants mentioned busyness once again stating that because they are busy col-
lege students; “Facebook is sometimes the best I can do to connect with people.” One participant mentioned,
“I’d rather interact with people face-to-face, but when that isn’t possible due to time, distance, etc. Facebook
is a more valid option.”
Those that voted undecided to strongly agree mentioned interesting and different reasons in why they
voted this particular way. Participants noted that sometimes communication on Facebook is easier, more con-
venient, less stressful, and less awkward (especially with people you do not know as well such as people you
are in classes with and not necessarily friends with). A participant honestly stated that there are “some occa-
sions when the digital wall lets me overcome shyness to jump-start a conversation that I wouldn’t in person.”
Another participant mentioned that “there are a few people I converse with online only.” For those that have a
difficult time in interpersonal interactions or are intimidated, Facebook is beneficial because they have more
time to think online; a participant noted their “slow processor,” and another mentioned their anxiety disorder,
which predisposes them towards preferring online interactions more than face-to-face.
There could be a self-report bias involved in answering this question because multiple participants
mentioned that they sometimes enjoy Facebook interactions more so than face-to-face. This is known be-
cause these participants mentioned the easiness and convenience in their answer to ‘Why’, but then dis-
agreed in the actual question because they didn’t want to or were too embarrassed to admit the truth.
To answer the question, “I feel I communicate and represent myself better on Facebook (online) than
offline (face-to-face) with others,” most participants (49.1%) noted that they disagree with the statement, while
30.8% noted that they strongly disagree, 12.8% were undecided or neutral, 5.5% noted that they agree, and
1.8% noted that they strongly agree. For the communication aspect of the question, there were those who
stated that they communicate much better in person than online because of the non-verbal cues, tone, etc.
that only occur in face-to-face interactions. These participants mentioned that “words can be misconceived
and/ or interpreted in many different ways.”
Those who agreed with the statement stated that they have an easier time communicating on Face-
book in that “I have time to compose my thoughts before sharing them, unlike in face-to-face conversations.”
They also agreed that they represent themselves better online because online interactions are more truthful
because they actually type out their words versus saying them without realizing what they are saying. One
participant stated, “Sometimes my status shows how I’m feeling when normally, I wouldn’t tell anyone face-to-
face.”
For those that disagree with the second half of the statement in that they represent themselves bet-
ter in person than online, “because it is more complex and meaningful.” Additionally, conflicting with above
response, a participant noted people are better represented in person because “a lot of times people put up
inaccurate information on Facebook.” Another participant believes, “I’d say my Facebook profile is a really ac-
curate representation of myself,” disagreeing that they represent themselves better in person.
On the other hand, there are those that agree with the idea that they represent themselves better on-
line than in person. One participant mentioned they represent themselves better online, “because I have time
to change myself on Facebook and can think about what I want to have known about me.” Another participant
noted, “I may present myself better because I can think about what is on my Facebook page, but it doesn’t
necessarily represent me at all. It represents the perfect, ideal me.” Thus, conflicting results come about in an-
swering this question because some participants feel they communicate and represent themselves in a more
positive light while others do not feel this way.
The question stating “I use the Internet and the online world to become the person I’m not offline or in
 Personality Styles Effect on Social Media Use by Erin Harbaugh — 79

the ‘real world’.” produced interesting results in that 68.9% of respondents noted that they strongly disagree
with the statement, while 24.8% noted that they disagree, 3.9% were undecided or neutral, 1.6% noted that
they agree, and 0.8% noted that they strongly agree. This question brought back the strongest results with
almost 70% answering in one way. The participants that answered strongly disagree voiced that they are the
same person both online and offline. They mentioned, “I wouldn’t want to be two people … that would be ex-
hausting.” Another mentioned, “Because I like who I am; I don’t feel any need to be who I’m not while online.”
Those that answered strongly agree felt as though they can be “more of myself and/or who they want
to be online”; in other words, they can be two different people. One participant even noted that online, they
can be who they want to be in that “I am whoever people need me to be (funny, witty, intelligent) online, while
offline I am myself.” Another participant noted their admiration more so of the person they are online in that “I
look perfect on Facebook. I am not perfect in real life (offline), but I would never post my flaws.”
Self-report bias might come into play in this question as well because participants rated that they
strongly disagreed with the statement, but then had conflicting rationale in their answer to the ‘Why’ por-
tion of the question. For example, one participant rated that they strongly disagreed with the idea but then in
their rationale they stated, “in some ways, yes, but overall, no.” Thus, they do not actually disagree with the
statement because they voice that at sometimes the online world is used as an escape or outlet to express a
different side of oneself. Additionally, there are individuals that report that for the most part, they are the same
person online as they are offline, when, in actuality, researchers know this cannot be true. Thus, there were
participants who were torn and answered that they strongly disagreed but in their rationale voiced their truthful
answer: “Although I would like to strongly disagree with this statement, I think that it is idealistic and maybe
even unattainable to be the exact same person both online and offline. Online and offline behavior are simply
different, and it would be impossible to act the same in both of these scenarios.” Additionally, one participant
voted that they strongly disagreed with the statement but consequently mentioned, “People say I talk differ-
ently online than in person. Also, I know that I am a shy person, but online I am more outgoing and step out
my shell.”
The remaining questions had to do with individual perceptions from the participant and of what they
believe others would classify them as, whether more introverted or extroverted. In answering the question,
“Which of the following statements do you most identify with?” most participants (37.6%) noted that they are
mostly outgoing and enjoy using Facebook as an outlet to fulfill their desire for continuous interpersonal en-
gagement, while 1.6% noted that they are shy but enjoy using Facebook because they are in control of their
interactions with others, 8.4% noted that they are somewhat shy and sometimes enjoy using Facebook as an
alternative for face-to-face interactions, 25.6% noted that they are neither shy nor outgoing and enjoy using
Facebook both as an alternative and a supplement for face-to-face interactions, and 26.9% noted, “I am very
outgoing and enjoy using Facebook to add to my offline (face-to-face) interactions.”
Of those who answered the ‘Why’ portion of this question, they stated that for them, “Facebook is
really useful in communicating with those people that I would not be outgoing enough to contact in person or
that I simply don’t have regular contact with in person.” For those who self-reported that they were outgoing
and/or extroverted, they said that they don’t use Facebook to fulfill any desires; but mainly “just use it to keep
in touch with people who are too far away to see regularly.” Even for those who self-reported that they were
shy agreed noting, “I feel I’m not very outgoing, but I use Facebook as a supplement … not as an alternative.”
Thus, both introverts and extroverts noticed that they don’t use or don’t want to use Facebook as an alterna-
tive but an extension.
To answer the question of “Others would describe me as … ,” most participants (41.5%) believed
they’d be described as someone who is talkative and seeks external face-to-face interactions oftentimes,
while 2.6% believed they are someone who is reserved and enjoys being alone most of the time, 3.1%
believed they are someone who sometimes seems distant and inhibited in face-to-face interactions, 32.9%
believed they are someone who is neither shy nor outgoing but enjoyable to be around in face-to-face interac-
tions, and 19.8% believed they are someone who is very outgoing and enjoys being always surrounded by
others.
For those who self-reported that they were seen by others to be more of an introvert, they duly noted
that they still enjoy face-to-face interactions. Additionally, one participant noted, “I’m shy and enjoy the time I
have being by myself … it’s quiet.” Another participant stated, “Being around people is a good way for me to
relieve stress, but I do like being alone oftentimes.” There were also those that coined themselves extroverts
as one participant mentioned that they love spending time with friends and being social but mentioned, “I
80 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

definitely need alone time to re-coup.”

V. Discussion
From these findings, I decided to filter the responses of the lightest Facebook users to the heaviest
Facebook users and see if their self-perceptions and others’ perceptions of their personality styles delineated
at all.
For the lightest Facebook users (those that spend less than 30 minutes daily), 31.7% self reported
that they are very outgoing, while 2.0% described themselves as shy, 6.9% described themselves as some-
what shy, 30.7% described themselves as neither shy nor outgoing, and 28.7% described themselves as
mostly outgoing (Table 1 in Appendix B). For the heaviest Facebook users (those that spend more than 120
minutes daily), 33.3% self reported that they were very outgoing, while 4.8% described themselves as shy,
11.9% described themselves as somewhat shy, 21.4% described themselves as neither shy nor outgoing, and
28.6% described themselves as mostly outgoing (Table 2 in Appendix B). This is important because those that
used Facebook the most often self-reported themselves as the most outgoing and extroverted factor while
those that use Facebook the least often were seen as the middle factor between shy and outgoing. In com-
parison of the heavy to light Facebook users, it is interesting to note that heavier users rank themselves more
outgoing and extroverted than the lighter users. This is a result that was suspected but not proved through
past research.
The lightest Facebook users were perceived by others to be mainly someone who is neither shy nor
outgoing with 38.6%, while 4.0% were described as reserved, 3.0% were described as distant in face-to-
face interactions, 34.7% were described as talkative, and 19.8% were described as very outgoing (Table 3 in
Appendix B). The heaviest users were perceived by others to be mainly someone who is talkative and seeks
face-to-face interactions with 35.7%, while 0.0% were described as reserved, 7.1% were described as distant
in face-to-face interactions, 31.0% were described as neither shy nor outgoing, and 26.2% were described
as very outgoing (Table 4 in Appendix B). This is important because those that used Facebook the most often
were perceived by others to be more outgoing and extroverted ranking on the 4th most outgoing factor (talk-
ative and interaction seeking), while those that use Facebook the least often were seen by others as those
that placed on the middle factor between shy and outgoing again (similar to their self-reported perceived per-
sonality type). In comparison of the heavy to light Facebook users, it is interesting to note that heavier users
are ranked by others as more outgoing and extroverted than the lighter users. Again, this is a result that was
suspected but not proved through past research.
Thus, the current researchers findings conclude that it is applicable to say that those who use Face-
book more often or heavily are recognized as more outgoing or more extroverted. This is important because
past research has delineated how and why introverts would be more heavy users of Facebook for many
reasons in that they seek to be a different person online and a comfort factor is found online and in online
interactions. A great deal of past research has attempted to make this assumption come to life stating that
introverts would be heavier users of Facebook because of the alternatives it offers to face-to-face communi-
cation. However, current research has found that Facebook and SNS, in general, offer the extrovert an outlet
and a new platform for which they can interact with others at times that they would not be able to and would
otherwise be alone.

VI. Conclusion
This study took a critical look at the impact and affect of personality type, specifically extroversion,
on social media, specifically Facebook, use. As of now, the only conclusive data that was found through the
current study is that heavier users of Facebook tend to be more extroverted individuals. This is because these
extroverts constantly seek interaction with others and the internet, specifically SNS, offers extroverts the abil-
ity and platform for which they can maintain and also create relationships with others both in their offline world
and those that are not yet a part of their online world. In other words, the Internet is an extension to the extro-
verts’ interaction with the outside world. Although it seems as if SNS fulfill the needs of the typical extrovert
 Personality Styles Effect on Social Media Use by Erin Harbaugh — 81

more than the introvert, this is not the case, because the introvert enjoys the online interaction just as much
as the extrovert. This conclusion directly relates to the uses and gratification theory mentioned in the literature
review in that the expectations of SNS users contribute to their actual use and rationale.
This study was limited because the sample size consisted primarily of women (77.4%) because it was
a convenience sample of college students rather than random sample. This was due to the lack of time to
collect the survey responses, thus, the researcher had to gather responses based on her social outlets (e.g.
sorority, campus organizations and courses), which consisted primarily of females because the researcher is
female. This was even more compromised because the current researcher, who readily defines herself as an
extreme extrovert, is involved in organizations that consist mainly of extroverts because her interests are ex-
troverted, in nature. These results should be replicated with a more diverse population encompassing larger
school populations and equal male/female ratios for a more accurate representation and generalizability to
the public. Another limitation is that this research used retrospective self-reports of media behavior and online
usage, which is an approach that is frequently criticized as being unreliable and biased. When necessary, the
researcher attempted to present this to the audience effectively. This study relied on self-reported measures
of usage and perceptions of usage motivations and behaviors, which have the potential to not reflect actual
behavior and usage patterns. Further research should use other alternatives in gathering information on on-
line media usage.
In order to further understand the existing relationship between SNS personality type and usage,
more research should be conducted. It would be beneficial to investigate a different Internet user base, such
as Internet newcomers and different age groups or demographics, in order to verify the replicability of these
results. Another alternative could include diaries used to record daily Internet use. Another limitation to the
current study is that more open-ended questions should have been asked. Also, the way the questions were
asked could have skewed the results in that starting with strongly agree and moving to strongly disagree
could change participants’ responses. Additionally, it would have been beneficial to ask the participants to
answer the survey questions as honestly and accurately as possible throughout the survey.
The goal of the current study was to see if a relationship exists between Facebook use and person-
ality types in that one personality type would use Facebook more often and for different reasons than the
other personality type. Again, the only conclusive finding was that heavier users of Facebook tend to be more
extroverted individuals. The current study contributes to an on-going dialogue about the importance of SNS in
the relationship between the personality style of users and their usage and behavior. Much still remains to be
explored. Methodologically, SNS researchers’ ability to make causal claims is limited by a lack of experimental
and longitudinal studies. Although the situation is rapidly changing, researchers still have a limited under-
standing of who is using these SNS, why, and for what main purposes. Such questions will require large-
scale quantitative and qualitative research. Thus, a focus group could be beneficial to gain more qualitative
research. The researcher hopes that the current study will help construct a foundation for future investigations
of these and other important issues surrounding social network sites.

Acknowledgments
The author would like to extend thanks to Professor Anthony Hatcher at Elon University for his guid-
ance, inspiration and advice, without which the article could not be published. The author is also thankful to
numerous reviewers at Elon University who have helped revise this article.

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Appendix A: Survey Questionnaire

Facebook Use

1. How much time do you spend on Facebook daily?

i. Less than 30 minutes

ii. 30-60 minutes
iii. 60-90 minutes/ 1-1.5 hours
iv. 90-120 minutes/ 1.5-2 hours
v. More than 120 minutes/ 2 hours

2. What is your main purpose of using Facebook this often?

i. Time-passing entertainment
(e.g. to overcome boredom; it is habit; it amuses/ entertains me)
ii. Information
(e.g. to find/ share information; keep up with interests/ hobbies)
iii. Relationship development/ companionship
(e.g. to make new friends; to find people like me)
iv. Relationship maintenance
(e.g. to stay in touch with people I see a lot and/or rarely; to make
plans with friends; to maintain relationships that I value)
v. Trend-following
(e.g. because everyone else is doing it; to impress people)

3. How often do you change the content and/ or features of your Facebook profile (e.g. update your status)?

i. Often/ Almost daily

ii. Sometimes/ Almost weekly
iii. Rarely/ Almost monthly
iv. Never/ Almost yearly
v. Don’t know

Personality Type
Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?:
4. Sometimes, I enjoy Facebook (and online) interactions more so than face-to-face interactions (offline).
i. Strongly disagree
ii. Disagree
iii. Undecided/ Neutral
iv. Agree
v. Strongly agree

5. I feel I communicate and represent myself better on Facebook (online) than offline (face-to-face) with oth-
ers.
i. Strongly disagree
ii. Disagree
iii. Undecided/ Neutral
iv. Agree
v. Strongly agree
84 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

6. I use the Internet and the online world to become the person I’m not offline or in the ‘real world’.
i. Strongly disagree – e.g. I am the same person both online and offline.
ii. Disagree
iii. Undecided/ Neutral
iv. Agree
v. Strongly agree – e.g. I can be more of myself and/or who I want to be online.

7. Which of the following statements do you most identify with?:

i. I’m shy but enjoy using Facebook because I am in control of the interactions
with others.
ii. I’m somewhat shy and sometimes enjoy using Facebook as an alternative for face-to-face interac-
tions.
iii. I’m neither shy nor outgoing and enjoy using Facebook both as an alternative and a supplement for
face-to-face interactions.
iv. I’m mostly outgoing and enjoy using Facebook as an outlet to fulfill desire for continuous interper-
sonal engagement.
v. I am very outgoing and enjoy using Facebook to add to my offline (face-to-face) interactions.

8. Others would describe me as:

i. Someone who is reserved and enjoys being alone most of the time.
ii. Someone who sometimes seems distant and inhibited in face-to-face interactions.
iii. Someone who is neither shy nor outgoing but enjoyable to be around in face-to-face interactions.
iv. Someone who is talkative and seeks external face-to-face interactions oftentimes.
v. Someone who is very outgoing and enjoys being always surrounded by others.

Demographics

9. What is your gender?

i. Male
ii. Female

10. What is your class year?

i. Freshman
ii. Sophomore
iii. Junior
iv. Senior
 Personality Styles Effect on Social Media Use by Erin Harbaugh — 85

Appendix B: Data Tables from Survey Monkey

Table 1. Less than 30 Minutes Daily on Facebook- Personality Type Question 4

Which of the following statements do you most identify with?

Response Response
Answer Options
Percent Count
I’m shy but enjoy using Facebook because I am in control of
2.0% 2
the interactions with others.
I’m somewhat shy and sometimes enjoy using Facebook as
6.9% 7
an alternative for face-to-face interactions.
I’m neither shy nor outgoing and enjoy using Facebook both
as an alternative and a supplement for face-to-face interac- 30.7% 31
tions.
I’m mostly outgoing and enjoy using Facebook as an outlet
28.7% 29
to fulfill desire for continuous interpersonal engagement.
I am very outgoing and enjoy using Facebook to add to my
31.7% 32
offline (face-to-face) interactions.
Why? 15
answered question 101

Table 2. More Than 120 Minutes Daily on Facebook- Personality Type Question 4

Which of the following statements do you most identify with?

Response Response
Answer Options
Percent Count
I’m shy but enjoy using Facebook because I am in control of
4.8% 2
the interactions with others.
I’m somewhat shy and sometimes enjoy using Facebook as
11.9% 5
an alternative for face-to-face interactions.
I’m neither shy nor outgoing and enjoy using Facebook both
as an alternative and a supplement for face-to-face interac- 21.4% 9
tions.
I’m mostly outgoing and enjoy using Facebook as an outlet
28.6% 12
to fulfill desire for continuous interpersonal engagement.
I am very outgoing and enjoy using Facebook to add to my
33.3% 14
offline (face-to-face) interactions.
Why? 8
answered question 42
86 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Table 3: Less Than 30 Minutes Daily on Facebook- Personality Type Question 5

Others would describe me as . . .

Response Per- Response

Answer Options
cent Count
Someone who is reserved and enjoys being alone most of
4.0% 4
the time.
Someone who sometimes seems distant and inhibited in
3.0% 3
face-to-face interactions.
Someone who is neither shy nor outgoing but enjoyable to
38.6% 39
be around in face-to-face interactions.
Someone who is talkative and seeks external face-to-face
34.7% 35
interactions oftentimes.
Someone who is very outgoing and enjoys being always sur-
19.8% 20
rounded by others.
Why? 12
answered question 101

Table 4. More Than 120 Minutes Daily on Facebook- Personality Type Question 5

Others would describe me as . . .

Response Per- Response

Answer Options
cent Count
Someone who is reserved and enjoys being alone most of
0.0% 0
the time.
Someone who sometimes seems distant and inhibited in
7.1% 3
face-to-face interactions.
Someone who is neither shy nor outgoing but enjoyable to
31.0% 13
be around in face-to-face interactions.
Someone who is talkative and seeks external face-to-face
35.7% 15
interactions oftentimes.
Someone who is very outgoing and enjoys being always sur-
26.2% 11
rounded by others.
Why? 8
answered question 42
 The Legality of Live Blogging from Sports Events by Dannika Lewis — 87

No Updates from the Bench, Stands or… Press Box?:

The Legality of Live Blogging from Sports Events

Dannika Lewis

Broadcast and New Media

Elon University

Abstract
As digital platforms for media become more diverse, media coverage of sports has expanded online
in many facets. The Internet creates opportunities for enhancing the product of sports organizations in addi-
tion to television broadcasts, but not without challenges. Contracts between networks and leagues solidify
the exclusive rights to telecast a certain event. However, the fairly new phenomena of live blogging from a
game presents a virtually untraceable way of distributing information in real time from the stands and thus,
an interesting dynamic in the legal realm of copyright for these sports organizations. While a case has not
yet reached the court system, there will likely be concern in the near future over what a live blog should be
considered in a legal sense. It does relay information almost as soon as the action has occurred, but does not
capture the audio-visual essence of the game like a broadcast. In order to determine whether or not live blog-
ging may be considered a violation of exclusive media rights in the future, this paper touches on the history
of sports broadcasting, pre-existing statutes and cases in sports law and Internet law, the current policies of
sports organizations and a hypothetical case study involving live blogging from a sports event. All of these el-
ements provide some legal context for live blogging from sporting events and allow for predictions to be made
about the state of live blogging in years to come.

I. Introduction
In January 2010, the online video site YouTube entered a “landmark” deal with Global Cricket Ven-
tures, giving them the rights to stream the Indian Premier League games on a specified online channel. The
chairman and commissioner of the Indian Premier League told CNN that Google gives his sport access to
half-a-billion viewers every moment of the day and will enhance his audience’s experience of the games. The
agreement is the first global sporting event to be streamed over the Internet and is expected to reach those
500 million viewers throughout the six week tournament (“YouTube confirms landmark”, 2010).
Convergence of different media continues to be a growing trend for the communications field, and the
realm of sportscasting is no exception. The digital platform of media is rapidly expanding and traditional sports
broadcasters are looking to these new forms of information distribution as ways to enhance a viewer’s experi-
ence during a sporting event. Clear contractual agreements exist between networks – cable and over the air
– to provide live coverage of certain sporting competitions to the public. However, those networks’ rights over
the digital coverage of those events are still fairly indistinguishable.
Live blogging from a sporting event presents a particular challenge to exclusive coverage. Modern
technology presents many unique and potentially untraceable means of blogging, so while it may be com-
pletely feasible to negotiate exclusive rights for broadcast coverage, a media organization may encounter
difficulty in successfully and legally gaining the rights to live blog exclusively at any given event. Fans become
88 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

citizen journalists with mobile devices or other sports journalists from competing media organizations can
report with laptops from the stands. Blogging may be an entirely unique manner of providing live statistics to
sports audiences void of exclusive coverage contract limits. With this, there is little to no researched material
and legal background concerning this area. However, league regulations are becoming more and more re-
stricting when it comes to live blogging, and it is likely that a case concerning this new field of sports reporting
will emerge in the near future. The conflict between copyright of an event’s broadcast and the First Amend-
ment rights of reporters and casual bloggers could soon reach a climax and be brought to court. But with no
clear precedents, it is unclear what decision would come from such a case.
This paper will investigate the history of sports broadcasting, pre-existing statutes and cases in sports
law and Internet law and the current policies of sports organizations, all of which could provide some legal
context for live blogging from sporting events. Ultimately, the background those elements provide will help
determine a predicted ruling for a hypothetical case involving live blogging from a game. Overall, the nature of
blogging statistics and action from a sporting event more closely resembles traditional print journalism than a
live audio-visual broadcast. Even though live blogging is considered “real-time” reporting, the factual nature of
much of the information and the delay of distribution and reception of that information (due to the time it takes
to manually post blogs) merits a less restraining approach than some of the leagues have insinuated espe-
cially without legal backing. Therefore, live blogging should not be considered a violation of exclusive broad-
casting rights but rather a supplement to the game’s telecast.

II. Literature Review

There is little if any concrete and scholarly research on the nature of live blogging from sporting
events and whether or not it violates exclusive rights merited by broadcast contracts. However, there are vari-
ous articles concerning the relationship between sport and media, the antitrust issues involved in that relation-
ship and new technological advances that may affect how deals are negotiated in the future.
In their 2002 article, Lee and Chun provide an overview of the value and growth of various broad-
cast rights. Professional football, basketball, baseball and hockey teams share the revenue generated from
national broadcast rights. Leagues are preempted from the antitrust laws of the Sherman Act under the Sports
Broadcasting Act of 1961, which allows them to sell the rights as “a single economic unit” (Lee & Chun, 2002),
although that does not mean teams are not exempt from review when it comes to antitrust law (Thorne, et al,
2001, p. 76). Based on the historical growth – in number and value – of broadcast contracts, Lee and Chun
conclude that revenues from media coverage will continue to increase to reach “an unthinkable position” in
the coming decade. Part of their reasoning includes the “consolidation of media and entertainment compa-
nies” (Lee & Chun, 2002), many of which now include online venues. It is only probable, then, to infer from
this supposition that Internet outlets and the sports blogosphere will also expand in the next ten years.
Thorne, et al. (2001) further explain the “symbiotic relationship” (p. 76) between sport and the media.
The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 is mentioned as a “clash” between media interests and leagues (Thorne,
et al., 2001, p. 76). This “clash” is illustrated by the case of Chicago Professional Sports Limited Partnership
and WGN Continental Broadcasting Company v. National Basketball Association in which the NBA attempted
to limit the number of games broadcast on the superstation WGN. The courts ultimately ruled that the NBA
was acting as a joint venture and was violating antitrust laws by trying to control the broadcast rights of a
single team. In this case, the Sports Broadcasting Act did not apply because the league was not acting as a
single unit (Thorne, et al., 2001, p. 79-80). Thorne, et al. states that “[t]he overall purpose of antitrust laws is
to protect the competitive process and preserve competitive markets” (Thorne, et al., 2001, p. 80). As online
ventures become more prevalent in years to come, it is questionable how the courts will deal with antitrust is-
sues when it comes to the Internet. Typically more individualistic mediums, sites and blogs may affect the ac-
tions of the leagues that are classified under law now as single entities. Furthermore, it may be more difficult
for leagues to act as such when bloggers can easily relay information from a sporting event that may be under
exclusive broadcast contract.
However, contracts are beginning to cover more than just broadcast, which may also reform the
legality of free live blogging from sporting events. A 2006 article by McGuire provides a case study of multi-
media contracting at the University of Missouri. McGuire concluded that the vastness of platforms that can
be approached and controlled with these agreements is great and presents even greater opportunity: “While
 The Legality of Live Blogging from Sports Events by Dannika Lewis — 89

traditional broadcast deals would have limited advertisers to presenting messages via radio or television, the
multimedia approach allows the distributor to utilize a variety of media (e.g., print, broadcast, and Internet) in
customizing client packages” (McGuire, 2006, p. 67). McGuire also notes that by consolidating services, new
media for content distribution is more apt to be developed, such as video-on-demand and podcasts (p. 68).
This study demonstrates the current evolution of exclusive contracts between sports franchises and a me-
dium, which is likely to expand further as other platforms, like blogging, become more and more established.
New technologies also play into the mutually beneficial relationship between sport and media. Bechis
(2009) explains the intrigue and issues surrounding the Slingbox, “a ‘place-shifting’ device that allows users
to stream broadcasts live from their home televisions onto laptops, cellular phones, and other Internet-ready
devices” (p. 17). Sling Media (Slingbox software) is compatible with both Apple and Palm-OS mobile devices,
meaning any home TV signal can be transferred digitally to another location where those devices are pres-
ent (Bechis, 2009, p. 18). The leagues that have exclusive rights to the reproduction and distribution (among
other copyright rights) of the games, Bechis argues, may find this new technology threatening to their ability
to sell and therefore, have three distinct options: ignore the Slingbox and allow it to co-exist, sue Sling Media
for copyright infringement or partner with Sling Media and negotiate a licensing agreement with the company
(p. 19). For professional sports leagues that “thrive on proximity controls” (Bechis, 2009, p. 27), Bechis sug-
gests that partnering with the technology developers would be most beneficial. While blogging constitutes a
completely different outlet (written and online) rather than simply place-shifting a broadcast, the parallels in
developments in media have similarities. It appears as though leagues have virtually the same options when
it comes to dealing with live blogging as they do with the Slingbox. In relation to live blogging, leagues have
taken different approaches and will likely experiment within these three options in the future.
As well as this, Bechis (2009) comes to his conclusion by exploring the option of suing for copyright
infringement with legal precedents and determining the success of the leagues based on those rulings. The
hypothetical section of this paper will be formatted similarly, utilizing legal precedents in place concerning
copyright, antitrust and other viable issues that involve the relationship between sport and media. Contrary to
Bechis’s supposition, the legal process in this paper will attempt to find whether or not live blogging could be
considered a violation of exclusive contract if brought to the court of law.
While there is a definite lack of literature concerning the actual topic in question, this previous schol-
arly research can help guide the investigation of live blogging’s legality. However, there is a plethora of infor-
mation regarding the legal rationale for exclusive broadcasting rights that can be seen as the media prede-
cessor to blogging straight from the games. The history of contracts, the laws that allow them to occur and the
cases that have brought exclusive media rights into question have all become precedents for new technology
developments in sports coverage, including blogging.

History of sports broadcasting and exclusive media rights

Sports broadcasting has a history that was pioneered and is still propelled by technology and Amer-
ica’s genuine love of the game. The first radio broadcast of a sporting event took place on September 6,
1920, a boxing match between Jack Dempsey and Billy Miske (Schwartz). Early sportscasters chose boxing
because the rings were well-lit and confined spaces to shoot in, perfect for the technological challenges they
faced in the earlier part of the century (Baran). The first time sports were televised was from a Columbia-
Princeton baseball game in the spring of 1939. NBC’s Bill Stern reported from the game with just one camera
shot along the third base line (Baran; Schwartz). The next two years brought the first professional baseball,
football, hockey and basketball games to television audiences, all from W2XBS, an experimental station run
by the National Broadcasting Company in New York City (Schwartz). NBC was the first network to broadcast
a network sports program in 1944 with the Gillete Cavalcade of Sports, which stayed on the air for two de-
cades (Baran). The first color broadcast in sports was the Davis Cup in August 1955 (Schwartz).
It didn’t take the leagues long to realize that selling sport to television was a profitable endeavor, and
the advent of contracting those rights out began. By the 1970s, networks were paying $50 million to broad-
cast professional football and $18 million for professional baseball. Just fifteen years later, those costs rose
to $450 million for NFL games and $160 million for MLB competitions (Baran). These contracts have their
foundation in the law from which they are derived. It is this law that allows leagues to even sell the rights in
the first place.
90 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Pertinent law and statutes

At a very basic level, U.S. law has given sports leagues and teams the authority to negotiate con-
tracts of broadcasts of their competitions due to copyright law. The United States Copyright Act was crucial
in establishing what is indeed copyrighted material. In 17 USC §102, motion pictures, audiovisual works,
sound recordings and pictorial and graphic works are all considered “original works of authorship fixed in any
tangible medium of expression” and therefore, subject to copyright (“17 USC 102 – Subject of matter of copy-
right: In general”). Dramatic works are also protected under copyright law (“17 USC 102 – Subject of matter
of copyright: In general”), and the combination of the performance that is involved in sporting events and the
capturing of video and/or audio that could potentially occur there gives the teams and leagues the right to sell
those copyrighted works to third parties. In most cases, these rights are contracted out to over-the-air broad-
cast networks or cable television networks.
Sports entities in this country have somewhat of special privileges when it comes to selling broadcast-
ing rights without violating antitrust laws. The Sherman Antitrust Act was passed in 1890 with the intention of
preventing industrial monopolies and trust building between businesses in America. Section 1 in particular
deems that “[e]very contract, combination in the form of trust otherwise, or conspiracy, in restraint of trade or
commerce among the several States, or with foreign nations, is declared to be illegal” (Sherman Antitrust Act,
1890). In other words, this first section of the Sherman Act was created to outlaw certain means of anticom-
petitive conduct particularly targeting agreements between two or more individuals or entities” and not “by the
unilateral action of a single actor” (Flatt, 2009, p. 641). This act has since served as “the foundation and the
basis for most federal antitrust litigation” (“Antitrust: an overview”). In the early days of sports broadcasting,
there was question of whether leagues could sell rights to all of their teams’ games collectively, as a single
unit.
In 1961, Congress passed the Sports Broadcasting Act. The act stated that the antitrust laws of the
Sherman Act “shall not apply to any joint agreement by or among persons engaging in or conducting the orga-
nized professional sports teams … by which any league of clubs … sells or otherwise transfers all or any part
of the rights of such league’s member clubs in the sponsored telecasting of the games” (Sports Broadcasting
Act of 1961). This amendment permitted professional football, baseball, basketball and hockey leagues to
sell broadcasting rights as a league without being considered an illegal conglomerate. This was in part due
to the fact that the horizontal scheme that sports leagues present (meaning that competitors are on a similar
commercial level) are not necessarily harmful, but can actually enhance the competitiveness of the individual
sports teams. For instance, the National Football League pools its broadcast revenues and splits them evenly
among teams. That way, less popular or profitable teams are given a share equal to those that have more
income from other means (Flynn & Gilbert, 2001, p. 29). As with many statutory laws, separate cases have
arisen from the ambiguity of the exception from antitrust laws and how much control sports entities truly have
over their copyrighted material.

Related cases
The realm of sports broadcasting has been affected by many cases, some with particular significance
when considering various antitrust issues, distribution of copyrighted material and the leagues’ ability to act as
a single entity with media contracts.
As early as 1922, professional sports were ruled exempt from antitrust restrictions. At that time, the
Supreme Court found that the “business of baseball” could not be deemed interstate commerce that falls
under the Sherman Act (Flynn & Gilbert, 2001, p. 31). In 1974, a federal district court decided in San Fran-
cisco Seals, Ltd. v. National Hockey League ruling that “the member clubs of the NHL did not compete against
each other; rather, they acted as a single entity in competition with other professional sports leagues” (Flynn
& Gilbert, 2001, p. 33). Both of these cases served as a foundation for leagues controlling the rights to their
media output.
The 1986 case of Baltimore Orioles, Inc. v. Major League Baseball Players Association was important
in further establishing professional leagues’ ownership of rights. A group of baseball players from the Orioles
sought to profit from telecasts of the games under their right to performance. However, courts ruled that the
MLB fully owned the copyright of broadcasts and the players’ performances featured in those broadcasts
were works made for hire under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976 (Baltimore Orioles, Inc. v. Major League Base-
ball Players Association, 1986). The authority that leagues have over media rights was even more solidified
 The Legality of Live Blogging from Sports Events by Dannika Lewis — 91

with Chicago Professional Sports Ltd. Partnership v. National Basketball Association (1996) when the NBA
filed suit against the Chicago Bulls after the team tried to sell rights to broadcast their games to superstation
WGN. Again, the courts found that the NBA was trying to promote competition in the marketplace of profes-
sional sport, not restrain it. As a result, the decision stated “that when acting in the broadcast market the NBA
is closer to a single firm than to a group of independent firms” and could potentially deny the Bulls the op-
portunity to sell rights to the superstation (Chicago Professional Sports Ltd. Partnership v. National Basketball
Association, 1996).
Fantasy leagues have been a considerably popular online venture for professional sport, and C.B.C.
Distribution & Marketing, Inc. v. Major League Baseball Advanced Media, L.P. (2006) dealt with use of players’
names and statistics on a fantasy league service. Ultimately, the court decided that C.B.C.’s use of names
and statistics was neither a violation of the players’ right of publicity since they were not seeking financial gain
by doing so, nor a violation of MLB’s copyright laws since the use of names and stats is not copyrightable.
The courts also noted that the distribution company’s First Amendment rights would override some of the
league’s rights in this particular case, likely due in part to the Internet having a great amount of free speech
protection (Mead, 2007, p. 730). While these names and statistics were not released in real-time like live
blogging, this case is representative of how courts may deal with information featured or released online.
One of the most significant cases when considering the legal implications of live blogging is The
National Basketball Association v. Motorola, Inc. (1997). The NBA brought the case to the courts in 1996 after
Motorola had been utilizing Sports Team Analysis and Tracking Systems, Inc. (also known as STATS, Inc.)
to send their customers updates from games as they were going on (Seidenberg, 2009). The NBA saw this
service as a violation of their copyrights and won their case at the district court level. However, when Motorola
appealed the decision, the circuit court of appeals ruled in its favor. Based on Feist Publications, Inc. v. Rural
Telephone Service Co., the court said that STATS was only reproducing factual information by sending out
statistics about the game to customers and “not the expression or description of the game that constitutes the
broadcast” (The National Basketball Association v. Motorola, Inc., 1997). The broadcast itself is protected, but
not the game and any facts associated with it. This idea is reflected in several of the leagues’ blogging poli-
cies that prohibit capturing the likeness of the competition.
While there are no cases specifically regarding live blogging from sport events, these cases put the
issue into some context and provide some precedents for how the issue may be dealt with in the courts.

III. Blogging and Internet laws

Courts have had trouble defining what a blog truly is from a legal perspective and arguably an even
more difficult time considering what should and should not be limited when it comes to this form of media
(Tune & Degner, 2009, p. 1). The Digital Millennium Copyright Act was passed in 1998 in response to the
growing utilization of the Internet and the potential copyright infringements that could occur as a result. Sec-
tion 512(c) of that legislation protects service providers – like blogging or other social media websites – from
being held liable for infringing material posted on their sites so long as they have the ability to request removal
of the material and are not receiving financial benefit from the infringing material (The Digital Millennium
Copyright Act of 1998). This was demonstrated in The Football Premier League Ltd. v. YouTube, Inc. when
the league suggested video of its games were being posted when YouTube was both aware and profiting from
it. The plaintiffs argued the DMCA requirement to request removal of the material was virtually inconsequen-
tial since “it is impossible for a copyright holder to find all instances of a copyrighted work that might appear
on YouTube, and because YouTube users can readily repost infringing matter under different user and/or file
names” (Tune & Degner, 2009, p. 3). While there is no official ruling on this case yet, it is interesting to consid-
er if the courts will choose to limit free speech rights online with this decision by somehow limiting copyrighted
video more vigorously or keep the regulations as they are and risk more copyright violations in the future.
Another court decision in BidZirk, LLC v. Smith concluded that certain online material in a blog format could
be classified as journalism if the content and intent are in line with that of a news outlet (Tune & Degner, 2009,
p. 6). If applied to blogging from sport events, the same standards for journalists would have to be applied to
bloggers. These kinds of rulings could certainly affect how other user-generated content, like blogs, is dealt
with in a legal sense as issues become more complex and cases brought to court more numerous.
92 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

League regulations on live blogging

In 2007, Brian Bennett was in the stands at the University of Louisville’s College World Series game
doing what he normally did as sports reporter with the Louisville Courier-Journal: blogging stats to fans
through the newspaper’s website. Soon after the National Collegiate Athletic Association officials found out,
he was evicted from the press box. A memo was quickly sent to all of the media at Patterson Stadium remind-
ing them that “any statistical or other live representation of the Super Regional games fall under the exclusive
broadcasting and Internet rights granted to the NCAA’s official rights holders” (“Live From Louisville”, 2007).
The NCAA’s media policy now includes a section on blogging stating that any blog “may not produce in any
form a ‘real-time’ description of the event” (“Section 6 – Internet”). The organization now does allow live blog-
ging, but under very specific terms including submission of the blog link to the NCAA blog central site, a logo
present on each blog pertaining to their sport events and a regulated limit on the number of posts per game
(“The NCAA Now Allows Live Blogging”, 2007).
The NCAA is not the only league trying to control social media output from its games. All of the pro-
fessional sports organizations have put rules on the books that in some capacity limit unauthorized informa-
tion distribution during competitions and, for some, beyond. The NFL has strictly prohibited players, coaches
and officials from posting any updates on social media sites (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) during games, including
90 minutes prior to and following a game. Even the media are encouraged to refrain from phone use during
the competition (Cheng, 2009). As well as this, video content from games (even with credentials) can only be
90 seconds long and available online for no longer than 24 hours (Stradley, 2008). Fans are not yet subject
to any restrictions. The NBA is similar in its restraints, not allowing players, coaches and team personnel to
use cell phones or other handheld devices 45 minutes before and after the game or at any press functions.
Additionally, individual teams have told their members that social media updates during practices and other
team times is also prohibited. The MLB has had numerous circumstances in which the league tried to prevent
real time reporting. Now the media can’t post more than seven photos and audio/video content has to be two
minutes or less with no streaming material allowed. The NHL is the only major professional sports organiza-
tion that hasn’t created policy to limit engaging in social media during games (Cheng, 2009).
While the vast majority of regulations deal with those directly involved with the leagues (mostly
through payroll), some measures are being taken to extend the rules to fans as well. The Southeastern
Conference, a sub-division of the NCAA, announced in August 2009 “that ticket-holding fans could not say
anything about the game in question on the Internet” including observations, descriptions, pictures, audio and
video (Cheng, 2009).
Bennie Ivory, executive editor of the Courier-Journal, published his own thoughts about Bennett’s
eviction from the baseball stadium, saying that “[i]t’s clearly a First Amendment issue. This is part of the evolu-
tion of how we present the news to our readers” (Bozich, 2007). The question of whether leagues are able to
restrict the speech happening from the press box or stands to protect their copyrighted material is still unan-
swered by the country’s court system.

IV. Hypothetical court case

The following is a hypothetical lawsuit involving live blogging from a sport event. Using the legal prec-
edents available in this field, a supposed ruling will be reached:
A credentialed journalist from the Baltimore Sun newspaper is in the press box at a season
Ravens home game. As he watches, he blogs a summary of each play from his Blackberry
sporadically taking photos and sending those with the updates. Most of the blog posts were
based on statistics with a few personal commentary comments inserted, such as “what a
throw” or “best defensive play so far.” When an NFL official noticed what he was doing, he
told the reporter to leave the media area because blogging real time information was strictly
prohibited. The reporter argued for a few minutes before being forced out of the press area.
The Baltimore Sun is now suing the NFL for unfairly restricting its First Amendment rights.
The NFL argues that the right to blog live from the event is one held exclusively by its orga-
nization and any allied network or media outlet that is contractually granted the permission to
disperse multimedia material.
 The Legality of Live Blogging from Sports Events by Dannika Lewis — 93

Even though there are no NFL regulations at the moment that completely restrict media blogging from the
game, with the trends going in a more limiting direction, it’s a definite possibility in the near future that doing
so will be the main consideration, not whether or a live blog appears to be or does the same thing for a poten-
tial audience as a live broadcast or whether blogging is, in fact, an infringement of copyright.
Based on the aforementioned cases, the NFL does have the right to sell its broadcast rights as a
single entity. However, the Sports Broadcasting Act only specifies selling rights for the telecast of the event.
If the blog were considered a form of journalism as in BidZirk, LLC v. Smith (2007), it would be assumed that
the blogger would have the same privileges as other forms of print media. Even though newspapers freely
report, they do so when they publish or after the game once they can summarize its events online. Live blog-
ging presents an interesting dynamic: written but real-time information. While live blogging has qualities of
print journalism, its speed makes it more similar to live broadcasting.
However, the content that is discussed in the blog is an essential part of the consideration. In order for
a live blog to truly resemble a live broadcast, it would have to create a visual representation of the event. This
is the reason for the language in the NCAA blogging policy that has no tolerance for capturing the likeness
of the game (“Live from Louisville”, 2007). In this situation, the personal commentary from the reporter could
be considered embellishment to what would otherwise be a collection of non-copyrightable facts according to
The National Basketball Association v. Motorola, Inc. (1997). The pictures the reporter posted with his facts
could amount to more of a live representation of the game; however, those images were not streaming con-
stantly so it’s questionable whether that really created a “broadcast” that closely amounts to what telecasts
offer to the audience.
While live blog posts from a sporting event are considered to be real-time accounts of the competi-
tion, the updates come after the action has occurred. Unless streaming video is a part of the blog, it is nearly
impossible to truly capture the event “live.” Live blogging could potentially be a supplement to, and therefore a
possible distraction from, the broadcast of a game or event. Yet, relaying statistics with brief comments about
the nature of the game barely has the same qualities as watching the game on television, and it is doubtful
that people would fully replace their live audio-visual experience for a delayed account of the game without
those elements. If anything, the game is now reaching more people through another medium. The blog really
isn’t a simulcast or a recreation of what is going on, but can be seen more as an analysis of fact (Bozich,
2007). It is understandable that the league or organization would seek to gain more profit from owning the
rights to the publication of blog posts from the game. However, as expressed in the plaintiff’s argument in The
Football Premier League Ltd. v. YouTube, Inc. (2007), it is unlikely that any league would be able to effectively
locate and punish all of the bloggers that are sending information of any sort from the venue during a game.
Finally, when it comes to protecting the rights of bloggers and their free speech or the rights of the
league and its copyrighted material, it is more likely that the courts will decide in favor of the blogosphere.
First Amendment rights are foundational to successful journalism and the idea of a public forum in this coun-
try. When basic rights are limited by rulings and that restriction is made a precedent, it is difficult to reverse
the action. A live blog does not amount to enough resemblance of a live broadcast to control it in light of
preserving copyright. In theory, it is the broadcast itself that is copyrighted, not the game and the facts that
surround it.
Therefore, in light of the importance of First Amendment rights (especially online), the actions of the
NFL in this case would likely be reprimanded. The economic harm, at this point, has not proven to be a valid
reason to so severely limit live blogging. The wording in policies now is too vague to constitute what would be
violating those live blogging rules and crossing the line into the realm of exclusive rights. This doesn’t limit the
leagues’ ability to create multimedia contracts including the rights to the official live blogging. However, the
organizations do not have the overriding right to prevent live blogging of factual information and brief com-
ments about the game when the right to free speech has historically trumped many other assumed rights in
this country. If a blog were to illegally present the copyrighted broadcast of an event, the ruling would address
the infringement and not the issue of free speech; but any ruling against live blogging in this circumstance has
a greater potential for harm when considering the repercussions it could have on other forms of online forums.
Therefore, in this situation, according to the precedents set by sports and Internet law statutes and cases,
the decision would likely be for the Baltimore Sun. This hypothetical is similar to situations that have actually
occurred at games with other professional leagues, so this case is not completely unfeasible in the years to
come.
94 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

V. Conclusion
Live blogging is a fairly new development in sports coverage, but one that has presented challenges
for leagues trying to sustain their copyrighted broadcasts and ability to form and profit from exclusive con-
tracts. The limitations of this research mainly lie in the lack of information directly related to the legality of live
blogging. There has been no official legal action against live bloggers, but regulations of the individual na-
tional sports leagues have reflected a desire to limit the act of posting statistics and other information about a
competition in real time. While scholarly research and direct legal context are somewhat sparse, statutes and
precedents from prior cases provide an adequate amount of context for the issue. The nature of the blog has
been central to the rules set by leagues that attempt to ensure only factual information (and only so much of
it) is being released from the venue as the game is going on. Successful or not, the growing trend of these re-
strictions has resulted in a more unwelcoming environment for live blogging. While it is important for leagues
to protect their copyrighted material, the First Amendment function that online content providers serve has of-
ten been found to be a more important role in past court rulings. Therefore, it seems unlikely that leagues will
prevail in completely eliminating live blogging from journalists and fans in the stands on the basis of protecting
their exclusive media contracts.
Multimedia contracts for sports games and events do exist, and there is no rationale for why they
should cease. The online presence of any sport is now essential to its image and consumer relations. Howev-
er, the language in these contracts will likely begin to specify the “official” provider of live statistics and infor-
mation as to not imply that the league is able to or can limit the live blogging of other outlets. The plays, the
score, the statistics of any given game are facts and not copyrighted and therefore should be open for anyone
to express. Instead of outlawing the act of live blogging, it is possible that the leagues could more effectively
ally themselves with these blogs and consequently increase the number of outlets their games are being seen
on. Overall, the free speech rights that are being utilized through live blogging can be seen as an asset to the
leagues rather than a detriment if relationships were formed between successful bloggers and those organi-
zations. Perhaps it is all in competitive spirit; we are talking about sportscasting. But it is time for leagues to
realize that live blogging is probably going to sustain its presence and possibly grow in popularity. Rather than
beat it (very few have defeated team First Amendment in the past), why not join it? Just as with any techno-
logical advancement, sports organizations will eventually find a way to adapt their methods of granting exclu-
sive media rights to broadcasters or online service providers without infringing on the rights of bloggers. This
will hopefully be the first of several academic investigations of the issue especially as live blogging becomes
more prominent in sports.

Acknowledgments
This author thanks Dr. David Copeland at Elon University for his supervision and Dr. Glenn Scott for
his guidance and advice on the topic. The author also appreciates the numerous reviewers of this article and
the overseers of the Elon Journal who have helped make this publication possible.

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 The Unexplored New Medium: Podcast Advertising by Molly McGowan — 97

The Unexplored New Medium:

Recent Trends in Podcast Advertising

Molly K. McGowan*

Journalism
Elon University

Abstract
This research paper explores advertising in podcasts – a relatively new medium – to see if there has
been an increase in the amount of advertising since 2007, when Daniel Haygood did a similar study, and
to observe if any trends have emerged in podcast advertising. Through listening to and coding episodes of
the top ten podcasts on iTunes for six weeks, the research found that while a significant amount of podcasts
lacked advertising, there were consistent advertising trends in those podcasts that did have advertisements.
Ads in podcasts tended to appear at the beginnings and ends of episodes, creating a “bookend” effect, and
the same products or services often appeared in episodes of the same podcast. Also, podcasts produced as
episodes of regular radio broadcasts that shared the same broadcasting station, such as NPR, also tended to
share the same advertisers.

I. Introduction
Declared as the word of the year by the New Oxford American Dictionary in 2005, “podcasting” is
real, and so are its implications in advertising (Levinson, 2007). As a medium still emerging amid the slew of
“alternative media” options, podcasting remains largely unexplored by advertisers today. Given the relatively
low production cost of creating a podcast – as low as $5,000 per episode – and the millions of consumers
each podcast can reach, one would think advertisers would be scrambling to get their products into a podcast
(Zucker, 2008), especially since research shows that “those who downloaded podcasts are the kind of target
audience advertisers crave; well educated, high incomes [and] technologically astute” (Haygood, 2007).
Perhaps advertisers are slow to bite at the new medium because while the podcast is easily acces-
sible to anyone with a computer, it is still less popular than the traditional modes of entertainment and news,
such as print and television. Regardless of the reason that advertisers have been less inclined to advertise
within podcasts versus with other forms of media, it is important for future advertisers – or current advertis-
ers who wish to expand their advertising – to understand the podcast and how it is currently being used in
advertising. While it’s still not the most popular vehicle of advertisement dissemination, podcasting has been
peppered with advertisements more now than it had been years ago, and has the potential to become a more
popular, advantageous resource to advertisers.

* Keywords: Podcasting, broadcasts, new media, advertising, bookend effect

Email: [email protected]
98 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

II. Literature Review

The general consensus of the literature on podcasting – which is still small due to the medium’s
novelty – is that few advertisers have taken advantage of advertising in podcasts. Ever since the term “pod-
casting” was coined in 2004 by journalist Ben Hammersley, podcasts have been considered to exist under the
category of “new media,” which is generally used to designate forms of media that consumers and advertisers
are still beginning to explore (Hammersley, 2004). However, in the midst of other such new media strategies
such as social sites, blogs, and mobile advertising, podcasting remains relatively untouched by advertisers.
According to a survey done in 2008, advertisers and marketers planned on only allocating 20% of their adver-
tising to podcasts in 2009 even though 45% of advertising spending in 2009 was expected to be allocated for
alternative media as a whole (Shreffler, 2009).
With the recent focus on incorporating “alternative” or “new” media into advertising campaigns, it is
a wonder why so little effort has been applied to advertising with podcasts. Podcast advertising is sparse,
while social media sites like Facebook and search engines such as YouTube and Google have been increas-
ing their advertising tactics at rapid rates. In January through March of 2010 alone, Facebook served 176.3
billion display ads (Vascellaro, 2010) and has recently extended its advertising reach with “social plugins” that
enable the site to track users’ interests and target ads to them based specifically on those interests (Nuttall,
2010). YouTube, originally just a video search engine, has adopted an entire advertising platform, showing “a
greater variety of ads against user-uploaded content and promot[ing] videos that draw higher ad rates more
than other videos” (Vascellaro, 2009). And Google has added personalized online banner ads – which also
target users based on their Internet habits – to its repertoire of ad campaigns (McCormick, 2010).
As recently as 2006, an article in Advertising Age postulated that “podcasting’s Wild West” is still a
relatively unsettled terrain because of an inconsistency in the number of listeners. The article referenced a
report from the same year that showed the total number of podcast users at 10 million, yet showed a number
of only 3 million who were considered active users, or who downloaded weekly (Klaassen, 2006). This incon-
sistency between passive and active consumers could potentially be what has been making advertisers wary
of investing in podcasting advertisements.
To help target this problem, new companies have been created to help advertisers see their options
more clearly. PodTrac, established in November of 2005, is a relatively “new service designed to provide third-
party audience measurement as well as an ad-sales infrastructure for podcasts” (Shields, 2005). PodTrac
allows podcasters to “collect demographic and behavioral data from their listeners,” which is then indexed
against MRI’s Survey of the American Consumer (Shields, 2005). In addition to this data collection, the mea-
surement tool tracks “hard usage numbers,” which PodTrac had initially hoped would be used by advertisers
who wanted to advertise on multiple podcasts (Shields, 2005).
Since PodTrac’s inception, other networks have emerged that offer similar podcast information-gath-
ering services which could potentially assist an advertiser. PodBridge’s services include presenting informa-
tion about if and when listeners hear an embedded ad, using “passive technology to track listening: When a
listener subscribes to a podcast within the PodBridge network, it installs a plug-in, a la Macromedia flash, that
asks basic demographic questions” (Klaassen, 2006). From there, the plug-in creates a header in the lis-
tener’s podcast content and records the time when the advertising content was played, and whether or not the
listener played it long enough to actually hear the advertisement (Klaassen, 2006).
Whether or not networks like PodTrac and PodBridge are actually assisting advertisers, a few more
companies have started pushing their products in podcasts, which Mat Zucker of Advertising Age thinks is
a smart and cost-effective strategy for marketing. In his 2008 article, he stated that it can cost as little as
$5,000-$30,000 to produce an audio podcast, which makes it easy for advertisers to afford paying sponsor-
ship fees (Zucker, 2008). According to an article in Advertising Age in 2006, most of the advertising done in
podcasts has been sponsorship-based: “A marketer commits a set amount of dollars against an estimated
number of downloads or impressions. Marketers can then back into a cost per download – a number that’s
ranged between a couple cents to $2” (Klaassen, 2006). One may wonder if, at this expansion rate, podcast
advertising might grow in the future. According to eMarketer, spending on podcast advertising should increase
to $400 million by 2011, reflecting a growth in the recently small shift towards populating podcasts with ads
(Haygood, 2007).
Volvo and Lexus were some of the first automobile companies to advertise on podcasts. Volvo paid a
total of $60,000 for a podcast sponsorship that lasted six months and was downloaded 150,000 times. Using
 The Unexplored New Medium: Podcast Advertising by Molly McGowan — 99

a different sponsorship model, Lexus paid a single flat rate to sponsor the podcast of Santa Monica radio sta-
tion KCRW, after which the station decided to charge advertisers $25 per thousand listeners as a general rule
and this number has become the normal rate for advertising on a podcast (Haygood, 2007).
With the podcast advertising rate roughly set, one may conjecture whether advertisers are using pod-
casts as marketing tools more than they did a few years ago. In Daniel Haygood’s 2007 article, “A Status Re-
port on Podcast Advertising,” he outlined an experiment that coded when and how frequently advertisements
showed up in the top 100 podcasts on iTunes. After coding the data, his results showed that the majority of
advertisements were placed at the beginnings and ends of podcasts, creating a “bookend” effect (Haygood,
2007).

III. Method
This research examined the type of advertising that is currently being used in the top ten most popu-
lar podcasts on iTunes, over the course of six weeks. The research included a record of what types of prod-
ucts and companies are using podcasts as an advertising medium, based on the brands with advertisements
in the podcasts studied. This will potentially show which type of product or service provider has implemented
podcasting into their repertoire of advertising techniques, which may be helpful for the future advertiser. In ad-
dition to this classification, the placement of the ads within the podcasts was examined. In order to determine
whether advertising has become more prevalent in podcasting, a system of coding was implemented, where-
by the frequency and placement of specific products or services in the advertisements were documented.
Modeled after Haygood’s research in 2007, the most popular podcasts on iTunes were selected for
study. However, in the interest of time and personal computer hard drive capacity, the top ten most popular
podcasts on iTunes were downloaded for coding, instead of the top 100. At the time of download, March 6,
2010, the top ten podcasts were “NPR: Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me,” “NPR: Fresh Air Broadcast,” “This Ameri-
can Life,” “Freakonomics Radio,” “Stuff You Should Know,” “Stuff You Missed In History Class,” “WNYC’s
Radiolab,” “The Nerdist,” “The Adam Carolla Podcast,” and “Tell ‘Em Steve-Dave.” It is important to note that
the positions of iTunes’ top ten podcasts fluctuate on a weekly basis, and that these particular podcasts were
the top ten during time of download. However, regardless of popularity fluctuation over the six weeks of study,
the same ten podcasts were listened to and coded to maintain consistency.
Over the period of six weeks, each podcast episode was listened to in its entirety, and any advertise-
ment information – including the name of the product or service being advertised, its placement within the
podcast, and terminology used to introduce the advertisement – was recorded. Due to individual podcast’s
broadcasting schedules, there were weeks when certain podcasts did not broadcast an episode within the
specific seven-day week of study. Thus, not an exactly equal number of episodes per podcast was able to be
studied; however, the consistency of advertisement appearances within said podcasts suggested relatively
consistent results, despite the slight discrepancy in episode number.

IV. Results Discussion

Studying and coding the ten podcasts over six weeks yielded results showing that 24 out of 66 epi-
sodes, or 36%, had advertisements. Four of the ten podcasts didn’t have any advertising whatsoever: “Stuff
You Should Know,” “Stuff You Missed in History Class,” “The Nerdist,” and “The Adam Carolla Podcast.” The
other six podcasts had regular advertising, three of which had a relatively established schedule: “NPR: Wait
Wait…Don’t Tell Me,” “NPR: Fresh Air,” and “This American Life.” The largest similarity among these three
podcasts was that they were episodes of regular radio show broadcasts, “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me” and
“Fresh Air” belonging to National Public Radio (NPR) and “This American Life” regularly broadcast on Chicago
Public Radio. The majority of the advertisements in these three podcasts were at the beginnings and ends of
each episode, creating the same “bookend” effect that Haygood observed in his 2007 study of podcast adver-
tising. In fact, seven of the 17 episodes in these three podcasts with advertisements (41%) had ads at both
the beginnings and ends of each episode. The remaining ten of the 17 episodes (59%) in the aforementioned
three podcasts just had a single ad at the beginning of the podcast (see Appendix).
100 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

This bookend effect remained consistent in the podcasts that featured ads less frequently, with 10 out
of the total 24 episodes with advertisements (42%) displaying ads at the beginnings and ends of episodes.
The other podcasts with ads (58%) lacked the bookend structure, placing either a single ad at the beginning
of an episode, and sometimes in the middle.
Another similarity that all the podcasts with advertising shared was the continued use of the same
supporters. For example, “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me” consistently had ads from Angie’s List, Visa Signature,
and the National Association of Realtors. “Fresh Air Broadcast” consistently had advertisements from Visa
Signature; “This American Life” had multiple advertisements from Kohler; and “Freakonomics Radio” consis-
tently had advertisements from Audible.com and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business (see Ap-
pendix). It is important to note that for the purposes of this research, supporters and underwriters for podcasts
were considered advertisers because they gained recognition in a medium to which many potential consum-
ers had access.
Also consistent within the advertisements themselves was the wording used to introduce the ads. For
example, both Angie’s List and Visa Signature advertisements were introduced by “Support for this podcast
comes from…”; Kohler ads were consistently preceded by “Support for This American Life comes from…”;
and advertisements for the University of Chicago Booth School of Business were introduced using “Support
for Freakonomics Radio comes from…” The consistent use of the same supporters using the same language
suggests that advertisers paid for blocks of time, similar to purchasing advertising time in other media.
Also noted was that the two podcasts by NPR – “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me” and “Fresh Air Broad-
cast” – shared Visa Signature as a consistent sponsor in their episodes. These ads always appeared at the
episodes’ beginning, and were always introduced by “Support for this podcast comes from…” regardless of
podcast and episode (see Appendix). This, too, suggests that advertisers bought pieces of advertising time
from the original radio broadcasting station.
The research found that advertising in the ten podcasts included ads for both products and services.
Products advertised included Kohler, Visa Signature and the Mini Cooper automobile. However, a large
amount of the advertising coded was for service providers, such as Progressive Insurance and Lindamood-
Bell learning centers. Also noted was the fact that several of the service providers advertising on the podcasts
were educational service providers: Lindamood-Bell is a family of learning centers; The John S. and James L.
Knight Foundation is a national foundation for the advancement of journalism; and The George Lucas Edu-
cational Foundation was created to improve public education. Granted, these are underwriters for the shows,
but because they gained recognition in the episodes, they were coded as advertisers.
In regards to self-supporting advertising, only one of the ten podcasts studied included self-support
ads in their episodes. “WNYC’s Radiolab” inserted advertisements encouraging listeners to access their web
site and click on the “support” button to help fund the podcast. These advertisements were placed at the be-
ginning, middle, and ending of episodes, without any specific structure (see Appendix).

V. Conclusion
Even though three years have passed since Haygood published his research on podcast advertising
– a significant amount of time for change to occur in media – only a small amount of progress has been made
in advertising within podcasts. The medium remains relatively untouched by advertisers, yet the trends that
Haygood observed in 2007 have stayed consistent in podcast episodes in 2010. For example, the placement
of ads at the beginning and ends of episodes – creating a “bookend” effect – is still in practice today.
In addition to already-established trends in podcast advertising, a few others were observed, such as
the consistent use of the same supporters using the same language in a particular podcast, which suggests
that advertisers paid for blocks of time, similar to purchasing advertising time in other media. Also, the shared
sponsorship from Visa Signature on both NPR podcasts further reinforced the idea that advertisers bought
pieces of advertising time from the original radio broadcasting station, which was in this case, National Public
Radio. Lastly, given the consistent sponsorship of Lindamood-Bell, The John S. and James L. Knight Founda-
tion, and The George Lucas Educational Foundation, perhaps a trend is emerging where educational founda-
tions and services support podcasters and advertise the fact that they are underwriters on podcasts.
This information will be useful for advertisers who are interested in advertising in podcasts. If, in fact,
 The Unexplored New Medium: Podcast Advertising by Molly McGowan — 101

there is a trend in which educational sponsors support podcasts, the above research can be utilized by other
educational foundations that are looking to advertise their services in new media.

Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Elon University’s Dr. George Padgett for his supervision and Dr. Daniel
Haygood for his revision assistance, without which the article could not have been published.

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102 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Appendix

NPR: Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me

Podcast
Date Advertisements
Length
Angie’s List Progressive
(0:00-0:14) Insurance &
3/6/2010

“Support for Lending Tree

Week 1

47:52
this pod- (46:02-46:18) - -
min.
cast comes “Support for
from…” NPR comes
from…”
Angie’s List Lindamood-
(0:00-0:14) Bell,
“Support for Lending Tree,
3/13/2010
Week 2

47:12 this pod- Angie’s List

- -
min. cast comes (45:02-45:29)
from…” “Support for
NPR comes
from…”
Visa Sig- Lumber Liq- George MINI (Mini
nature uidators Lucas Cooper)
3/20/2010

(0:00-0:12) (45:23-45:32) Education (45:41-45:48)

Week 3

47:41
“Support for “Support for Foundation
min.
this pod- NPR comes (45:33-45:40)
cast comes from…”
from…”
Visa Sig- Lending Tree Avis Family Avis Family
nature (45:36-45:44) Foundation Foundation
3/27/2010

(0:00-0:12) “Support for (45:45-45:49) (45:45-45:49)

Week 4

47:25
“Support for NPR comes
min.
this pod- from…”
cast comes
from…”
Visa Sig- National The Avis Lending Tree
nature Association Family Foun- (45:03-45:11)
4/3/2010

(0:00-0:12) of Realtors dation (44:58-

Week 5

47:07
“Support for (44:52-57) 45:02)
min.
this pod- “Support for
cast comes NPR comes
from…” from…”
 The Unexplored New Medium: Podcast Advertising by Molly McGowan — 103

Angie’s List Lumber Liq- The John National

(0:00-0:14) uidators S. & James Association
4/10/2010
Week 6
47:32 “Support for (45:53-45:59) L. Knight of Realtors
min. this pod- “Support for Foundation (46:05-46:11)
cast comes NPR comes (46:00-46:04)
from…” from…”

NPR Fresh Air Broadcast

Podcast
Date Advertisements
Length
Visa Sig-
nature
3/9/2010

(0:00-0:12)
Week 1

45:24
“Support for - - -
min.
this pod-
cast comes
from…”
Visa Sig-
nature
3/17/2010

(0:00-0:12)
Week 2

43:50
“Support for - - -
min.
this pod-
cast comes
from…”
Visa Sig-
nature
3/23/2010

(0:00-0:12)
Week 3

44:34
“Support for - - -
min.
this pod-
cast comes
from…”
Visa Sig-
nature
3/30/2010

(0:00-0:12)
Week 4

43:42
“Support for - - -
min.
this pod-
cast comes
from…”
104 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Allied Bank
4/8/2010 (0:00-0:13)
Week 5

53:07 “Support for

- - -
min. this pod-
cast comes
from…”
Angie’s List
(0:00-0:14)
4/12/2010
Week 6

45:26 “Support for

- - -
min. this pod-
cast comes
from…”

This American Life

Podcast
Date Advertisements
Length
Week 1

59:21
- - - -
min.

Audible.com Kohler
(0:00-0:14) (58:18-58:32)
3/14/2010

“This podcast “Support for

Week 2

59:01
of ‘This Ameri- This American - -
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can Life’ is Life comes
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by…”
Kohler
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3/21/2010
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58:34 “Support for

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(1:00:02-
3/28/2010

1:00:18)
Week 4

1:01:02
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this American
life comes
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 The Unexplored New Medium: Podcast Advertising by Molly McGowan — 105

Kohler
(1:00:02-
4/4/2010
1:00:18)
Week 5
58:34
“Support for - - -
min.
this American
life comes
from…”
Kohler
(59:05-59:18)
4/11/2010
Week 6

59:55 “Support for

- - -
min. This American
Life comes
from…”

Freakonomics Radio
Podcast
Date Advertisements
Length
U. of Chi-
cago Booth
School of
2/25/2010

Business
Week 1

21:21
(0:00 -0:12) - - -
min.
“Support for
Freakonomics
Radio comes
from…”
3/17/2010
Week 2

3:17
- - - -
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Audible.com U. of Chicago
(0:00-0:19) Booth School
“This podcast of Business
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21:05 is brought to (7:37-7:50)

- -
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106 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Week4
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Business
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7:18
(0:00 -0:12) - - -
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“Support for
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Radio comes
from…”
Audible.com Audible.com
4/12/2010

(0:00-0:19) (9:56-10:07)
Week 6

20:34 “This podcast - -

min. is brought to
you by…”

Stuff You Should Know

Podcast
Date Advertisements
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32:45
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3/18/2010
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31:23
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29:24
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3/30/2010
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25:56
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 The Unexplored New Medium: Podcast Advertising by Molly McGowan — 107

4/8/2010
Week 5 26:34
- - - -
4/13/2010 min.
Week 6

30:37
- - - -
min.

Stuff You Missed In History Class

Podcast
Date Advertisements
Length
3/10/2010
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19:02
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18:22
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22:51
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3/31;2010
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21:28
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4/7/2010
Week 5

14:48
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108 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

4/12/2010
Week 6
26:37
- - - -
min.

WNYC’s Radiolab
Podcast
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Length
Austria Self-sup- National Sci- Self-sup-
(0:00-0:12) port ad ence Founda- port ad
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“WNYC is sup- (0:13-0:37) tion & Sloan (9:25-943)

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listeners to (9:02-9:15) listeners to
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(0:00-0:12) ad ence Founda- port ad
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“WNYC is sup- (0:13-0:37) tion & Sloan (14:06-14:21)

Week 3

14:21
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listeners to (13:50-14:00) listeners to
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Week 4

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ad port ad
(0:03-0:28) (1:02:44-
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1:03:01 Encourages 1:03:01)

- -
min. listeners to Encourages
click “support” listeners to
button online click “support”
button online
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Week 6
NO PODCAST

The Nerdist
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Date Advertisements
Length
Week 1

1:02:33
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min.
3/16/2010
Week 2

1:08:07
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Week 3

1:12:06
- - - -
min.
3/30/2010
Week 4

1:04:13
- - - -
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4/6/2010
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1:04:25
- - - -
min.
4/13/2010
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1:47:00
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110 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

The Adam Carolla Podcast

Podcast
Date Advertisements
Length
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59:52
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min.
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49:21
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min.
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Week 3

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4/1/2010
Week 4

1:00:43
- - - -
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4/9/2010
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1:00:58
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4/14/2010
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1:19:19
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Tell ‘Em Steve-Dave

Podcast
Date Advertisements
Length
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1:01:45
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min.
3/19/2010
Week 2

55:17
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min.
3/26/2010
Week 3

1:01:01
- - - -
min.
4/2/2010
Week 4

1:06:00
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min.
4/9/2010
Week 5

52:06
- - - -
min.
4/16/2010
Week 6

55:53
- - - -
min.
112 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Music in the Digital Age:

The Emergence of Digital Music and
Its Repercussions on the Music Industry

Sadie A. Stafford*

Senior Majoring in Broadcast and New Media

Elon University

Abstract
The clearly ubiquitous evolution of digital music has created an apparent and drastic shift in the way
consumers and producers view and use the music industry. The presence of these music files that have been
digitally compressed, thus making them easily attainable to all for a small fee or illegally downloaded for free,
has made the music industry reevaluate how they are to make a profit off their art form. Social media web
sites have also created a visible demand from consumers for artists to maintain a consumer-artist digital re-
lationship, making the Internet not only a promotional vehicle for artists, but also a necessity for profit. These
new means of music distributing and marketing have not only pushed the music industry to new levels, but
has created a whirlwind of changes as record labels are losing control, with artists and consumers having the
upper hand.

I. Introduction
The inspirational Bob Marley once said, “One good thing about music, is that when it hits you, you
feel no pain.” But in our current state of being in a digital age, it is the music and the people who create this
music that seem to be feeling all the pain. As the digital age encroaches on our lives, consumers are demand-
ing the music industry to keep up with these changes, which in turn, has led to financially devastating con-
sequences for this industry. In a world that is full of conflict, economic despair, war and constant turbulence
among nations, there is only one entity that few can say they genuinely hate and that is music. Music is an
integral part of our society as well as a part of societies throughout the world. It is art that strives to feed the
soul and paint a canopy of emotions through song. With this being said, it is important to note that we have
reached a time when music has become so easily attainable that anyone who has a computer can potentially
become an overnight phenomenon. Much of this shift can be attributed to the digital age and its undeniable
presence in the music world. According to Rick Carnes, president of the Songwriters Guild of America, “Digital
music has become the ubiquitous soundtrack of American life”(DiMA, 2008). This rapid emergence of new
technologies � has caused huge alterations in what was once a straightforward business model for success in
the music industry, causing many industry leaders to take a second look at how to tackle their art form.
Is the digital age causing the creation and distribution of music to be so simple that the value is
diminishing? Does our obsessive Internet usage lend itself towards a shrinking level of respect for music art-
* Keywords: Digital Age, Music Industry, Social Networking, Interactive Music Marketing, Music Pirating and
Sampling
Email: [email protected]
 Music in the Digital Age by Sadie Stafford — 113

ists because practically anyone can become a music star? The digital age has created both a luxury and a
monster for consumers and producers alike because it has come upon us so rapidly that at times, it seems to
get ahead of what we know how to handle. This article will look to analyze the introduction of new technolo-
gies in regards to music production through a literature review and expert interviews, as well as investigate
the inventive marketing tools artists are now using to promote their music. But the true goal of this research
is to see what repercussions this technology has on music artists and their labels and of course, what we can
expect for the future of the music industry.
As technology and new media advance and improve, so do the means for marketing and promoting of
anything and everything. The music industry is no exception to this ever-changing whirlwind that has scooped
up artists and their music and has moved them to an entirely different level of sharing, purchasing, marketing
and distributing. The pressure consumers have placed on the music industry to keep up with their demands is
enormous. It is expected that record companies and independent artists develop new means of communica-
tion and distribution of their music as the Internet and online databases explode with popularity. In this digital
age, labels are losing much of their importance and artists are more capable of promoting themselves, grant-
ing them more ownership over their own work (Halonen-Akatwijuka and Regner, 2004).

II. Music Pirating and MP3’s

The real growth in emerging technologies began in 1998 with the evolution of the MP3 player. This
allowed for a new type of audio-compression that was at the time, a revolutionary means for listening to mu-
sic. What the creators of MP3 files and music industry experts didn’t know was that this technology that they
thought would help them, would actually hurt them in the long run. By developing a type of music file that is so
compressed it takes up less space yet maintains the integrity of the audio quality, music personnel predicted
that this technology would make it much easier to distribute and enjoy music across many outlets (computers,
iPods, MP3 players, etc.). But this creation actually led to the development of the infamous online file sharing
sites such as Napster and KaZaa, inspiring the birth of peer-to-peer (P2P) transfers of music free of charge.
From the introduction of these file-sharing sites, pirated music (or music downloaded illegally) skyrocketed.
In attempts to combat this music “stealing”, this inadvertently led to the development of online music stores
such as iTunes in 2000 (Gopal, Lertwachara, Marsden & Telang, 2007). Because of these rising technologies,
not only are record labels looking at new means of music distribution, but artists are also looking at innovative
and original ways to market themselves online.
Before all this though, it is important to look into how the digital world has made a splash in the lives
of musicians and labels in terms of P2P file sharing. The main concern is not “how we play the music, but
where it comes from and what we do with it.” (What’s the Controversy, whatsthedownload.com). According to
Jeffery Valisno of Business World, many believe that, “online music has led to illegal sharing of music files to
the detriment of the industry” (Valisno, 2009). These technologies have led to a decline in cost of music for
consumers as well as an increase in their knowledge of artists, which are two of the reasons why this P2P
file sharing has blossomed so quickly (Gopal, Lertwachara, Marsden & Telang, 2007). So although services
such as iTunes are completely legal and actually promoted, it is what happens to the music after it lands in
the hands of the purchaser that music aficionados are worried about. Once that music leaves the hand of its
owner in the form of a burned CD, on an iPod player or through a flash drive, it is considered stolen music
and the artist will not receive a cent of profit. The individuals downloading these music files are many times re-
ferred to as “free-riders”, who are “individuals who consume a public good without actually paying for it [which
can] undermine the market efficiencies” (Gopal and Bhattacharjee, 2006).
This illegal file sharing is not a minute problem, it is one that presents an incredible concern to many
musicians and labels alike. According to the Digital Music Report 2009, “40 billion music files were illegally
shared worldwide last year” (Valisno, 2009). This number is of course astounding, but when one looks at the
financial backlash of these downloads, it is even more devastating to the music industry. According to the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), two kinds of losses were attributed to piracy, “losses from
street piracy- the manufacture and sale of counterfeit CDs- and losses from online piracy” (RIAA Web Site
FAQ). RIAA also obtained a report from the Institute for Policy Innovation that does a breakdown of how dras-
tic the economic losses have been from these forms of piracy. According to the site:
Global music piracy causes $12.5 billion of economic losses every year, 71,060 U.S. jobs
114 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

lost, a loss of $2.7 billion in workers’ earnings, and a loss of $422 million in tax revenues,
$291 million in personal income tax and $131 million in lost corporate income and production
taxes (RIAA Web Site FAQ).

III. The Power of Music Sampling and Sharing

Due to music pirating, record companies are losing money and many artists believe that this is indi-
rectly forcing record companies to be more hesitant to take on new talent, preferring to stick with the talent
they have to dodge their losses (Valisno, 2009). Research done in the Chicago Journal titled Do Artists Ben-
efit from Online Music Sharing concluded that “consumers are more likely to sample first rather than directly
purchase” (Gopal and Bhattacharjee, 2006). This implies that sampling is the future to music sales and can
be used as a “truth-revelation mechanism” to determine how a consumer values a piece of music. It was
found that the more the consumer valued the artist, the more beneficial music sampling of that artist becomes
for them. If the consumer has relatively little vested interest in the artist though, that sampling can turn into
decreased revenues for that particular artist and label because of pirating.
The gravity of this music stealing has forced the authorities to become involved in attempts to bring a
stop to this uncontrollable theft. Organizations like the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the
Digital Media Association (DiMA) and the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) are actively search-
ing for ways to combat this threat to the music industry. For example, in the RIAA mission statement they
mention that they “work to protect intellectual property rights worldwide and the First Amendment rights of art-
ists” (DiMA Press Release, 2008). In attempts to act upon their promises, RIAA has begun to initiate lawsuits
against people that are illegally downloading music. The association stresses the fact that if you steal music
online, you might as well just go to the store and steal and actual CD because the difference between these
two choices is nonexistent.
Another interesting aspect of music sharing and illegal downloading is how it has affected a songs
survival time on the music charts. A study done by four college professors called The Effect of Digital Shar-
ing Technologies on Music Markets looked into this very topic. They predicted that with the emergence of file
sharing, well-known artists would decrease in popularity (which they refer to as “the dilution of the superstar
effect”) and newer artists would emerge from below to produce chart hits. What they found was slightly differ-
ent than what they expected. The study showed that sharing has relatively little effect on top albums and their
survival on the charts. Smaller, lesser-known artists on the other hand, are hurt from this sharing and experi-
ence less sales than before P2P sharing was developed. Because of this, minor labels are looking for ways to
use file sharing as a beneficial tool to “popularize their albums” as opposed to hurt their sales with pirated mu-
sic downloads (Gopal, Lertwachara, Marsden and Telang 2007). This love-hate relationship, along with artists
desire to enhance their “digital relationships” with consumers is all part of the new age of music, something
that is just on the verge of being explored.

IV. What the Musicians Think

Speaking of artists, it is interesting to note where they stand on this issue of illegal digital download-
ing because it is them who are inevitably the ones affected by this issue. Obviously, a majority of the artists
are opposed to this form of music listening because, “the more illegal downloading is taking off, the more the
record companies are suffering, the more that they’re only concentrating on the big artists” (Artist Buzz, www.
whatsthedownload.com). Bigger artists like John Legend believe that many people illegally download because
consumers feel that artists as successful as Legend, Madonna or the Beatles don’t need more money so they
don’t see the big deal in downloading a few of their songs free of charge. But Legend points out that “there’s a
whole industry that thrives off of those 99 cents you pay for your download” (Artist Buzz, www.whatsthedown-
load.com).
Before all of this digital music existed, it was pretty common for children and young people to make
mix tapes for their friends, but as Sarah McLachlan puts it, “It’s one thing when we were kids and we made
tapes for our friends of songs. But it went to five people and now it goes to an infinite amount of people”
 Music in the Digital Age by Sadie Stafford — 115

(Artist Buzz, www.whatsthedownload.com). So the concern is not that people are sharing one song with a
few people; the problem is that once music files get online, there are an endless number of people who can
access them, which is just what people do. The RIAA clearly states on their Web site that, “we have embraced
the technological advances that have allowed millions upon millions of people around the world to enjoy the
music we create. We want fans to enjoy their iPods, CD burners, and other devices, but we want them to do
so responsibly, respectfully, and within the law.”
Surprisingly enough, there are also artists who feel that this illegal downloading is somewhat of a
good thing and are completely supportive of the digital era of music. Piracy acts as promotion for an artist be-
cause once the consumer has downloaded an unknown song, it is said that they are more likely to purchase
something from that artist in the future (Gopal and Bhattacharjee, 2006). The Black Eyed Peas for example
believe that downloading music is a good way for newer artists to get their music out there if they don’t have
a big record company backing them. The band feels that if people download a portion of an unknown bands
music and enjoy it, they will eventually purchase the whole CD or download their music legally to further enjoy
it. Jason Mraz also shares this same appreciation for illegal downloading in the sense that he can see some
of the benefits it serves. “I can’t yet complain about downloading because of my fan base,” says Mraz. “I
would probably say half of my fan base that comes to our concerts, heard about me because of illegal down-
loading” (Artist Buzz, www.whatsthedownload.com).

V. The Digital Epidemic

It is also interesting to note who the most frequent perpetrators of music piracy are because once
those individuals and motives behind why people steal music are discovered, it makes the industry that much
closer to putting an end to this epidemic. The Chicago Journal did an in-depth study of online music sharing
and looked into these statistics. They found that the people least likely to illegally download music are fe-
males, older people and “individuals with an ethical predisposition toward legal justice” (Gopal and Bhattacha-
rjee, 2006). It was also found that an individual’s income has a relatively insignificant effect on whether they
decide to illegally download music. Many believed that a lower income individual would be more likely to steal
music than one more well off because they lacked the superfluous funds for purchasing that particular song
or CD. But according to research, it suggested that the true value of the music is solely established by the
listener and how much loyalty they have to that artist. In turn, this directly affects how much money they are
willing to spend on that artist. This is beneficial research because now the industries are charged with ways to
target those specific demographics when looking for ways to encourage legal music purchasing.
The goal of the music industry is to simply “make buying music easier than stealing music” (Go-
pal and Bhattacharjee, 2006), which is something that is far from solved. The only hypothesis that industry
experts have is that if music sample costs are lowered, then more people will be inclined to buy that music
as well as subsequent music from an artist. “This has major implications for the music industry, in that the in-
dustry can potentially reverse the effects of online audio piracy by providing more legal and efficient sampling
techniques that consumers could use” (Gopal and Bhattacharjee, 2006). The Internet can be a wonderful tool
if the music industry could just learn how to maximize their profits via music sampling because that is where
the bulk of music is now being obtained. As of 2008, Atlantic Records was the first major record company
to have over half of their income attributed to digital sales (51% of sales). This was a huge milestone for the
company, which is owned by Warner Music Group, because it made them realize that the digital world is
rapidly taking over the familiar world of CDs. This is something that newspapers and television stations have
already noticed in the sense that much of their viewers look at their content via the Web, as opposed to on
TV or in the papers. Now the music industry is realizing that they are no exception to this digital transition. It
was originally believed that when digital sales surpassed the sale of CDs, that revenue would make up for lost
revenue in stores. But according to Forrester Research, music sales are expected to fall from $10.1 billion
in 2008 to $9.2 billion in 2013, implying that digital sales will be incapable of making up for this deficit in CD
sales (Arango, 2008).
116 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

VI. Social Networking Influences and the Role of Music Labels

Music piracy and illegal downloading are not the only challenges that the digital age has brought upon
music artists and their labels. The explosive popularity of social networking sites has made a huge splash in
the lives of musicians and has greatly altered the way marketing teams work towards promoting artists. In a
time where terms like Facebook and MySpace are everyday lingo, social media and online marketing have
never been so vital. Livia Tortella, the Executive Vice President of Marketing at Atlantic Records says that
although they once viewed the Internet as a “promotional vehicle to highlight new artists and albums, they
now see artist sites as a way to generate online advertising revenues and sell tickets, t-shirts and even music”
(Holahan, 2008). The online pre-sale of music is becoming a huge source of revenue for companies like At-
lantic Records because fans know now to go straight to the artists personal Web page to get their music first,
sometimes before it is even out in stores.
The success of an artist is no longer measured in how much money they make on their albums or
during a tour. Today, artists are expected to have not only a presence in the real world but in the online world
as well. Fans are now demanding relationships with their favorite bands because of these social networking
sites. The goal that labels and artists now have in tackling the new means of marketing “is embracing the use
of technologies to brand and reach out to potential customers” (Shih Ray Ku, 2002). Today, labels are begin-
ning to lose their importance, as artists are able to promote themselves online. Because of this increased
artist power, “there is reduced ownership of music copyrights by labels and more by the artists themselves”
(Halonen-Akatwijuka and Regner, 2004).
The old model for the music industry was to allow the artists to make the music and then pass that
music off to their respective label to promote them and distribute their work to the masses. But as artists
become more technologically savvy and recording studios can be purchased for a small fee via your Mac
computer, are labels really going to be necessary in the future? Before the development of social media
sites, there were really only a few different ways to discover new artists as well as follow artists that you were
already a fan of. Music was discovered through the radio, through television such as MTV and VH1, or your
friends and family would inform you of a new band or artist they thought you might like and you could then
borrow a CD or pick up a copy of your own at the nearest Best Buy. But now with social media sites, discover-
ing new music is easier than ever.
There are four basic ways in which music can be discovered and artists and labels alike are begin-
ning to realize the potential these methods of artist promotion could have in the future of their success. One
way consumers are discovering an artist is through simply browsing on the Internet and finding artists through
links or genre categories that sort out popular artists. Then there is the “stumble-upon” method of discover-
ing an artist, which simply means you accidently encounter an artist you like via the Internet and the sites you
visit. Of course there is also the peer-to-peer way of discovering music in which a friend can send you music
suggestions that they perhaps received through other friends. And lastly, there are the social media and net-
working sites that open up endless possibilities for sharing, blogging and promoting of favorite artists or bands
to anyone and everyone on the Web.
These four different options for discovering music provide countless opportunities for artists to capital-
ize on if they are intelligent and know how to use the Internet to their advantage. What artists and labels are
beginning to see as the most beneficial means of promotion is in establishing a community around the artist
through drawing in listeners and fans via popular social media sites (Peters, 2008). With sites like upcoming.
org, last.fm, MySpace.com and Facebook.com, artists have an unlimited number of fans they can reach out
to and pull in without ever leaving their computers for a performance. The ease that these networks have
created for artists to share their music with anyone who is willing to listen is incredible. Not only are the artists
and labels promoting their music, but fans are also promoting artists through user-generated content. Once
a fan posts a link to a video on their Facebook page, blog, MySpace, or whatever social media site they
choose, that automatically generates content and directly promotes the artist without that artist or label spend-
ing a penny.
There is also the creation of sites such as MySpace Music, which was created in 2008 in partner-
ship with three of the top labels, Sony BMG, Universal Music Group, and Warner Music Group as a new way
to combine music labels with social media sites. The goals of this partnership was to create an outlet for the
artists represented by these labels as well as generate ad revenue on the artist’s home page. This makes
it a win-win situation for MySpace and the labels that are both capitalizing on the deal. “The idea behind
 Music in the Digital Age by Sadie Stafford — 117

MySpace Music is that it can help generate revenue for artists everyday, not just around an album’s release”
(Holahan, 2008). But although this revenue is expected to help the continuing deficit of CD sales by bringing
in an estimated $1 billion in revenue by 2012, the anticipated monetary loss from CD sales at that point is ex-
pected to be at $3 billion a year. This means that although digital sales will help the revenue generated from
music sales, they still won’t make up for the revenue lost from the CD sale deficit.
This ease in marketing and promotion does not come without a cost. Because it is now so easy to put
your work out there for millions to see, the competition in the music industry is tougher than ever. Although la-
bels are beginning to lose their importance, they haven’t disappeared quite yet because once you are signed
to that label, the chances of your band “making it” generally increases greatly. The financial backing and
publicity you receive through a label deal are still highly valuable in this cut-throat market and will continue to
be until someone comes up with an alternative way to make yourself known to the public.

VII. Interactive Music Marketing

With that being said, it is not too far from the time when other artists will act as a type of “label” for
newer, up and coming artists. We are already seeing this type of promotional model with mentors and third
party promoters forming a partnership. This means that an “established, already famous artist can provide the
newcomer with exposure and funds” (Halonen-Akatwijuka and Regner, 2004). In doing this, there is no record
company that owns the copyright privileges to the newer artist and the more established artist is like a sort of
“venture capitalist” investing in an artist they believe in. There are also services such as the one developed
by Clear Channel Radio and Front Line Management called artist personal experience radio or a.p.e. This
service allows individual artists to create a radio channel that features close to 1,000 songs of their choice,
which are then mixed with their commentary and personal stories. This type of radio station is intended to be
a marketing tool for both the artist themselves and the music that they are in a way, endorsing by putting on
their personal playlists (Reuters, 2009).
These types of marketing are only the beginning of what we are starting to see in attempts to get
coverage of an artist. Through an interview with Rob Beatty, Product Development Coordinator in the Digi-
tal Media Department at Atlantic Records, Online presence is key in the digital age. Artist placement on the
Internet is a cornerstone to their success in the music industry. For example, blog placement is a major factor
in online marketing of artists as well as the different viral placements of contests and competitions that exist
online for each artist. Consumers will register for contest after contest to get entered in a chance to win free
concert tickets, backstage passes, t-shirts and anything else you can imagine. Once they enter that contest,
the record company or marketing department has that individuals email address and will begin sending them
email after email promoting that artist, or any other similar artists for that matter. So labels and artists use
these contests to promote their music and draw in more listeners to their fan base.
The newest forefront of music in the digital age is interactive music. We have all heard of interactive
media and seen the rapid growth of this form of marketing in the past few years, but music is just now becom-
ing a part of this interactivity. Music was always an art form that was created by the artist and then enjoyed by
the listener. But now we are beginning to see the listener becoming involved in the actual music because of
interactive technologies such as Romplr. This cell phone application allows listeners to rearrange their favorite
songs by taking certain parts of the song apart and then rearranging those pieces to their liking to create a
whole new piece of music. Then they are able to share their new creation with friends, inadvertently stirring up
publicity and promotion for that band. “Fans can now connect to artists’ music in a whole new personal way by
creating their own versions of a song and being part of the creative process”(Biotech Business Week, 2009).
Bands such as Radiohead are aggressively tackling this type of interactivity and are being recognized
for it throughout the media, giving them even more publicity. What Radiohead did was similar to Romplr in that
they created a remix competition with their single “Nude”. They began by selling five different parts of “Nude”
on iTunes for .99 cents, vocals, guitar, bass, strings/fx and drums. Then listeners could mix each part of that
song however they wanted to create their own remix of the song via radioheadremix.com. After their personal
mix was created and uploaded, other users could then listen to those remixes and vote for their favorite one,
which in turn, allowed fans to be involved with their music on a whole other level. What this did was give
listeners a greater appreciation for the music production process, which is thought to possibly reduce levels of
piracy and encourage fans to purchase their music instead of stealing it. Radiohead is also flourishing in the
118 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

digital age because they released their most recent album on iTunes with a “pay what you want” deal, as well
as allowed fans to create a music video from a song of their choice and then submit it for a competition. All
of these new media approaches are things that are just being explored by labels and artists together. But at
times, the inventiveness of each new outlet is overwhelming for producers who cling to the old music busi-
ness model.

VIII. Conclusions
It is quite apparent that we live in a society that cherishes their new technology, constantly searching
for and stumbling upon new and improved ways to do even the simplest things. We also are a culture that
values our music and are surrounded by this medium in our everyday lives. The challenge that we now face
is how to combine these two deep loves in a way that compliments one another as opposed to hampering the
success of each other. This is a difficult forefront that music artists and record labels must aggressively tackle,
because if they ignore these technological advances, the music industry could end up in a detrimental place.
Unfortunately, our culture is one that values one thing above all else and that thing is money. Although many
say that money is not the end all and be all, it cannot be argued that money plays a huge role in the deci-
sions that corporate America as well as all other people of this nation make. Because of this, it is important
to understand how technology is affecting the music world so we can continue to allow this art form to thrive
financially. Without money, artists can no longer produce their genius and without the artists, there would be
no music. Bottom line, there exists a constant battle between consumer and producer; the consumer wants
their purchase to be cheap but the producer needs to make a profit. So this tug-a-war creates the very familiar
cycle that we see on a daily basis, all of which goes back to the basic principle of capitalism.
So what will music do next? Will we reach an age where live concerts no longer exist because we can
simply watch a live feed of them on our computers while we have a discussion board open on our screen?
Will CDs be the equivalent to vinyl records in that they are a collector’s item because they are an item of the
past? And where will the bulk of an artist’s revenue come from five, ten years down the road? These are all
questions that both the small and large record labels are asking themselves right now because they know that
if they do not acknowledge and adapt to these changes, they too may one day become obsolete. So although
I do not have all the answers, I can say one thing: the only thing record labels, artists, music publishers and
consumers can do is embrace the new technologies and allow the digital age to work to the advantage of
everyone with hopes that the wonderful art which we call music, keeps its integrity for all of eternity.

“Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music”

- Sergei Rachmaninov.

Acknowledgments
The author would like to extend thanks to Dr. Copeland at Elon University for his supervision and ad-
vice, without which this article could not be published. The author also appreciates the assistance of numer-
ous reviewers in the communications department at Elon University who have helped revise this article.

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 Public Relations Framing and Ethics through 2010 Ticketmaster-Live Nation Merger by Anna Davis — 121

Merging Through Media:

Analyzing Public Relations Framing and Ethics through
the 2010 Ticketmaster-Live Nation Merger

Anna Davis*

Corporate Communications
Elon University

Abstract
This research article analyzes the 2010 Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger, evaluating the companies’
public relations tactics during the merger, the merger’s ethical implications, and the impact on the music
industry. Through a content analysis comparison of language from both company-generated and major news
publication writings about the merger, this research highlights the contradiction between the companies’
framed message and public perception of the merger. While the companies’ writings portray the merger as in-
novative, beneficial, visionary, and fan focused, news outlets write in themes of domination, worrisome predic-
tions, and monopoly, with limited positivity. This paper concludes that the public relations tactics employed by
Ticketmaster and Live Nation during the merger did not influence public opinion. The merger will have a major
impact on the concert industry, possibly trampling independent promoters and continuing to raise ticket prices
by cornering the market on major concert venues, tickets, and performers.

I. Introduction
As modern businesses continue to streamline services to boost stock and cut back on resources,
mergers have become common and powerful in America. Within the concert industry, two giants have struck
a deal and engaged in a vertical merger. Ticketmaster, the world’s largest entertainment ticketing and market-
ing company, is joining forces as of February of 2010 with Live Nation, the world’s top producer of live con-
certs. This collaboration is now known as Live Nation Entertainment Inc., “the world’s first artist-to-fan verti-
cally integrated live entertainment platform… improving the fan experience and driving major innovations in
ticketing technology, marketing and service” (Live Nation). But Bruce Springsteen is claiming, “the one thing
that would make the current ticket situation even worse for the fan than it is now would be Ticketmaster and
Live Nation coming up with a single system, thereby returning us to a near monopoly situation in music ticket-
ing” (“Bruce”). Although the Department of Justice has approved this merger, some are crying, “Monopoly!”
This paper will examine the Live Nation Ticketmaster merger’s communications tactics. Not only how
the companies’ frame the merger, but also how it aligns with the media response. While exploring the tactics
of these giants, this paper will also uncover the ethical implications of this merger and its public portrayal in
the media.

* Keywords: Live Nation, Ticketmaster, corporate merger communications, public relations framing, music
industry
Email: [email protected]
122 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

II. Literature Review

The Literature Review explores the basic topics of the study including the process of content analy-
sis, methodology, public relations framing, and the current status of the concert industry. Due to the unique-
ness of this study, there are few similar studies to review, but the study can be established by building a
foundation with these topics.

Content Analysis
Content Analysis is a unique research method that allows researchers to take qualitative information
and break it down into a categorized and measurable group of data. By selecting a topic of study and con-
ducting background research, the researcher can develop hypotheses for the analysis. From these hypoth-
eses, the researcher can decide how to categorize information based on the specific information in question
(Berelson). Finally, in preparation the researcher must select the population to code. This collection of materi-
als should be reliable and relevant (Higgins). By collecting the materials selected for analysis, the researcher
will be prepared to begin coding (Berelson). Coding must be precise and reliable. Each instance of coding
must be consistent with the other instances in order to have steadfast results (Higgins). Finally, the data must
be fully analyzed and compiled to understand the implications.
Although there are benefits to this form of research, challenges come with content analysis methodol-
ogy. Because content analysis is more abstract than an experiment or a census, results can often be inter-
preted in different ways, making the report subjective (Higgins). This is why specific and consistent coding is
important, to maintain objective and applicable results. Another disadvantage to content analysis research is
that while informative, this type of research can not prove cause and effect. Content analysis will provide an
overall message from a population, but it will not explain that message’s effect on its recipients (Higgins).

Public Relations
One of the first lessons of public relations is framing a topic. By establishing a specific frame that the
desired audience will see, the gatekeeper can interpret the message for the audience. All public relations tac-
tics take on a specific frame, shaping each message to fit a specific point and accomplishing an exact task.
Framing is what gives public relations professionals power to change opinions, mould ideas, and sometimes
even deceive readers. In Kirk Hallahan’s study of the Seven Models of Framing, he discusses structures that
develop specific frames. Tools like semantic framing, thematic structure, rhetorical structure, valence fram-
ing, and story framing. Semantic frames utilize phrasing to direct a message in the preferred direction for the
audience. Thematic structures insert words like “because, “ “since,” and “so” to explain a relationship. Similes,
metaphors and illustrations can be considered rhetorical structures to aid in framing a topic. When wanting
to omit or highlight information, valence framing is to shed light on the topic within the preferred frame. Story
framing draws the audience into a narrative that encompasses an overall theme (Hallahan). These subtle
practices can greatly influence one’s interpretation of media. With this power to control a message, framing
becomes a stronghold for any public relations objective.

Music Industry
The music industry has become a major commodity in America. With new technology, music is more
widespread and diverse than any other time in history. Although the music industry is so influential and profit-
able, it has become quite concentrated. The two sectors of the music industry have become the recording
industry and the concert industry. While each has its own entities, giants in each realm have risen and taken
over. Due to multiple factors, the music industry has seen a shift in profits in recent years. Before 1996, the
recording industry was where most artists made more money, which kept concert prices low in order to hope-
fully attract more fans to buy recorded music. But with the steady decline of the recording industry, concert
ticket prices have sky rocketed to compensate (Kruger). With the concert industry becoming a power player in
the music industry overall, concert promoters, ticketing, and venues are becoming more powerful.
Alan Kruger’s study of ticket price increase reveals startling ticket inflation. He reports that “[f]rom
1996 to 2003, for example, the average concert price increased by 82%, while the Consumer Price Index
increased by 17%.” He hypothesizes that this could be caused by multiple factors including the “crowding out
of the secondary ticket market” and “increased concentration of promoters” (Kruger). Part of this reasoning
 Public Relations Framing and Ethics through 2010 Ticketmaster-Live Nation Merger by Anna Davis — 123

comes from the Clear Channel dominance in the music industry; owning over 1,200 radio stations, amphithe-
aters, billboards, TV stations, and SFX Entertainment. Kruger states, “Many critics have accused Clear Chan-
nel of using its vertical and horizontal concentration to monopolize the concert industry.” This one example of
a possible monopoly could lead to more in the concentrated concert industry.
By using content analysis to evaluate the public relations framing utilized by Ticketmaster and Live
Nation, this study will discuss the communications tactics of a major merger and its ethical implications in
the concert business. The concert industry has been changing dramatically over the past ten years, but it is
about to transform due to the Ticketmaster Live Nation merger. In order to better understand the impact of this
union, it is important to discuss the companies’ histories.

III. Background
In order to fully understand the context of this analysis, it is important to understand the history of Live
Nation, Ticketmaster, the recent merger between the two, and the public opposition to the merger. These brief
histories will explain the company services, prominence, and success as well as the details and conditions of
the merger and the public response.

Live Nation
In 2005, Live Nation was spawned from Clear Channel Communications as a live event promotion
company. Live Nation promotes and produces major events on an international scale including concerts,
comedians, theatrical performances, and festivals. Live Nation is present in over 50 countries and owns and
operates over 100 venues including House of Blues and Fillmore locations. In addition to their live perfor-
mance prevalence, Live Nation also has signed artists such as Madonna, Nickelback, and Jay-Z to the Live
Nation Artists division, managing album releases, merchandise, touring, and sponsorship. Live Nation reports
that in 2009 it “sold 140 million tickets, promoted 21,000 concerts, partnered with 850 sponsors and aver-
aged 25 million unique monthly users of its e-commerce sites” (Live Nation). In 2008 Live Nation discussed
the possibility of starting a record label that would outsource to an established infrastructure for marketing
and distribution, allowing Live Nation to maintain license privileges without building full service label. The
label has not been established yet. In 2009, the company reported 4,181 billion dollars in revenue. The CEO
of ten years was reported by Forbes to have received $8,504,881.00 in overall compensation for the year of
2008 (“Profile”). The Live Nation giant is considered the biggest concert promoter in the business worldwide,
practically eliminating the competition for concert promoters that can promote on the same level. In addition
to its domination of the promotion industry, Live Nation has grown to become multifaceted, combining many
services that could be considered monopolistic.

Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc.

Ticketmaster is a ticketing sales and distribution company that was formed in 1976 in New Mexico.
Ticketmaster quickly grew to sign major clients spanning from event venues, professional sports teams, and
performers internationally. In its first ten years of existence, Ticketmaster established offices in London, To-
ronto, and Australia. In the 1990’s, Ticketmaster introduced concert industry innovations on a large scale such
as barcode ticketing, ticket scanning systems and online ticket sales, quickly making it the biggest ticket sales
company worldwide. In the 2000’s, Ticketmaster began auctioning tickets on their TicketsNow website for high
demand events, reselling tickets for upwards of triple the face value with additional service fees. These tickets
are sold on the resale website by individuals as well as ticket brokers. Ticketmaster is now present in over 15
countries making profit from service fees and exclusive ticket sales contracts with primarily high profile ven-
ues and sports teams (“Ticketmaster”). Ticket service fees can be anywhere between ten to fifty percent of the
ticket value. Due to its high service fees and ticket sales industry dominance, Ticketmaster has become the
victim of criticism and several lawsuits accusing the company of monopolistic practices (Segal). In addition to
the ticket market, Ticketmaster also owns an artist management group called Front Line Management. Front
Line has over 200 clients including the Miley Cyrus and the Eagles. This is just one more way that Ticketmas-
ter has grown into an entertainment heavyweight.
124 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

2010 Ticketmaster Live Nation

In February of 2009, Live Nation and Ticketmaster revealed to the public that the two concert indus-
try leaders would be entering into a merger. The proposal projected that the vertical integration would result
in one company, Live Nation Entertainment. The mega company would then own “more than 140 concert
venues globally, sell around 140 million tickets a year and promote 22,000 concerts annually. This concert
industry dream collaboration not only combines two great forces, but it streamlines concert services into one
company providing concert promotion and venue operations, sponsorship, ticketing solutions, e-commerce
and artist management. This proposal sought approval in the UK first. Although the United Kingdom’s Com-
petition Commission originally rejected the proposed merger, in December of 2009 the merger was passed.
In the United States the Department of Justice passed the merger in January of 2010 with the companies’
agreement to specific conditions. Ticketmaster has provided the license for its ticketing software to AEG Live,
Live Nation’s primary competitor. In addition to aiding the growth of AEG Live’s ticket sales software, Tick-
etmaster agreed to sell its Paciolan Inc. ticketing unit, which provides venues with infrastructure needed to
ticket large events. A sports and entertainment company, Comcast Spectacor, has purchased the ticketing
unit (Margolies). These stipulations were put in place by the Department of Justice to adhere to anti-trust laws
and maintain a competitive live event market. Even with these conditions in place, many still believe that this
merger is a monopoly.
The merger is facing harsh criticism from consumer rights groups, celebrities, and peer music indus-
try professionals who expect higher prices and a limited market for competitors. “Now that [Live Nation is]
united with Ticketmaster, the sky will be the limit when it comes to fees,” Sally Greenberg, executive director
of the National Consumers League commented. “It’s not enough to say ‘If you don’t like the high prices, don’t
go to the show.’ We need a concert market that has real and robust competition” (Segal). Others agree with
Springsteen’s accusation and spoke out during the United States Department of Justice investigation. Jam
Productions co-founder Jerry Mickelson testified against the merger calling it a “vertical integration on ste-
roids.” Mickelson pointed out that the first anti-trust ruling in the Paramount Pictures U.S. Supreme Court case
of 1948, demanded that Paramount disband its theatres. Mickelson suggested that Ticketmaster should have
had to sell Frontline Management because it gives the merger too much industry power. Bloggers, music
industry news, and columnists continue to discuss the impact that is to come from this massive merger.

IV. Findings and Discussion

In order to better understand the use of framing in the public relations writing during a merger, this
study chose five merger related, company generated writings as a sample for content analysis. During the
coding of these documents, the language was categorized into framing themes. The company-generated
themes include innovation, beneficial, visionary, and fan focused. After recognizing themes in the company’s
language, analysis was conducted to compare the company-generated language to the language of the
media coverage. Five merger related articles were selected from major publications. The articles were coded
for language that expressed support of opposition to the merger to gain a perspective on media generated
themes. The media generated themes include: domination, prediction, monopoly, and positivity.

Public Relations Framing

The documents that were analyzed in the company produced public relations sample included a letter
to stockholders about the proposed merger, a press release about the stockholders approval of the merger,
a press release about the UK Competition Commission granting clearance for the merger, a press release
about the U.S. Department of Justice granting clearance for the merger, and the “About Us” information from
Live Nation Entertainment Inc.’s website. These documents had over-arching themes that presented a strong,
confident, and unified front from both Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The writing was primarily targeted to-
wards investors, focusing on the financial benefits of the merger for stockholders and the future of the corpo-
ration.
The most prevalent theme that this study found was Visionary language, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.
(32 percent, 19 out of 60 occurrences). By utilizing visionary language such as “paving the way” and “ultimate
concert destination,” Live Nation Entertainment Inc. conveys a sense of luxury with its company. The merger
 Public Relations Framing and Ethics through 2010 Ticketmaster-Live Nation Merger by Anna Davis — 125

promises to produce a concert experience of the highest standards.

Relative to this
category is the Innovative
language theme, which was
expressed in 14 instances
(23%). The writings exces-
sively described how the
merger would be the first
of its kind, an “innovation,”
the “industry’s first ever,” a
“multi-dimensional” partner-
ship. These terms estab-
lished an air of notoriety,
framing the merger to seem
like an ingenious creation.
To guarantee that
the merger would be seen
as favorable for both com-
panies, the writings highlight
the benefits of the merger
through descriptive language in 18
instances (30%). Using vague, promis-
ing words like “optimistic,” “successful,”
“meaningful,” and “improvement,” the
explanation was offered of the specific
benefits of the merger, but emitted a
positive outlook.
Finally, the last framing theme
in the study of public relations docu-
ments from the merger is Fan-Focused
language (15%). For any other busi-
ness, a company would address its
clients or consumers, but Live Nation
Entertainment Inc. addresses its public
as “fans.” By creating a specific audi-
ence persona, the “fan” gains recogni-
tion as an entertainment connoisseur,
rather than just a generic participant. This theme, while less common, gave the merger a direct beneficiary.
The other themes of vision, innovation, and benefits are directed toward enhancing the fan’s Live Nation En-
tertainment Inc. experience. These themes ultimately empowered the merger, highlighting its successful steps
to becoming a “high-profile,” “word-class” company.
One element of the study that was not factored into the categories of language themes, was the
framing technique of downplaying topics. PR Doc 1 in Figure 1 did not contain any of the themes previously
discussed, but did have repetitive language about the awaited “regulatory” approvals from the Department of
Justice. The Department of Justice evaluated the mergers merit based on anti-trust laws, and only granted
clearance with the agreement of concessions from the companies. While the documents mentioned the ap-
proval and the review, the writings never used the words “anti-trust” or “investigation.” The words that were
commonly used were “regulatory” and “customary,” politely dismissing the review as a simple part of the
process.
These framing themes could be applied to any merger communications campaign. The Ticketmaster-
Live Nation merger showcased the benefits of the innovative merger and its unique vision that would enhance
the target audience’s relationship with the product. Finally, by using simple language to mention, but not
elaborate on possibly negative events, the merger’s successes can shine over the logistics.
126 — The Elon Journal of Undergraduate Research in Communications • Vol. 1, No. 2 • Fall 2010

Media Response
In order to assess
the merger’s public relations
framing, the study analyzed the
language used in five articles
about the merger from major
publications. This analysis re-
vealed very different language
used in association with the
merger. The four major themes
that surfaced were Dominant,
Predictive, Monopolistic, and
Positive. The articles, aside for
instances under a minor cat-
egory of Positive, presented
the merger in a negative light.
As shown in Figures 3
and 4, an overwhelming pres-
ence of Dominant language
(30% of 40 instances) crowed the articles
using words like “dominate,” “giant,” and
“juggernaut.” These words emphasized
the magnitude of the merger and its
power.
But other writers went as far as to
point out not only the colossal merger, but
the “monopolistic” merger. This category,
Monopolistic,was the largest group of
media responses to the merger (32.5%).
Many of the writings suggested that the
Department of Justice was too easy on
the music tycoons and should have taken
it to court or enforces greater conces-
sions. One article recalled when Pearl
Jam attempted to boycott Ticketmaster,
failing to do so because too many venues
had long term, exclusive contracts with
Ticketmaster, making it impossible to avoid using their services.
Because this is the first corporation of its kind in the music industry, many articles (22.5%) relayed
predictions of the giant’s reign over the concert industry. These instances utilized language such as “worry,”
“worrisome,” and “leap of faith.” Some quoted individuals predicted that the merger “won’t help consumers,”
“put competitors out of business at every level of the music industry and lead to increased ticket prices for
consumers.”
The last, less frequently used category was Positive (15%). These instances pointed out the success
of the merger passing through the Department of Justice, claiming it was a “victory” and could be seen as
“revolutionary.” While these sentiments are true, the other categories shed light on major issues that the com-
pany generated writings never discussed. The visionary company that hoped to innovate the music industry is
being accused by the press of potentially tearing it apart.
Other observations that did not fit into the merger language were some reflections about the com-
panies prior to the merger. One article noted that, “For years, neither promoter nor ticketer has considered
fans as the first priority” (Segal). This explanation contradicts the fan-focused language that was found in the
public relations writings. This two-sided story that is developed in public relations is common but should be
consistent if possible. These inconsistencies give witness to the controversial nature of this merger and its
future in the music industry.
 Public Relations Framing and Ethics through 2010 Ticketmaster-Live Nation Merger by Anna Davis — 127

Limitations
This study had several limitations because of its narrow sample and timing. The sample size was
small due to the consolidation of press releases on behalf of Ticketmaster and Live Nation. Shortly after my
selection of a study subject, Ticketmaster closed its investor relations information including press releases on
www.ticketmaster.com, directing any investor relations inquiries to www.livenation.com. These press releases
and documents about the merger were few, but still very informative. Also, due to the timeliness of this study,
there are few statistics or writings that can assess the ethical practice of this merger. While some news ar-
ticles raised contradictory concerns that the public relations writings exempted, the concerns are still projec-
tions. As the time passes, there will be more data to assess whether Live Nation Entertainment Inc. has kept
its initial merger promises to favor fans and maintain reasonable ticket prices.

V. Conclusion
In conclusion, the study revealed that the Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger used public relations fram-
ing to instill a sense of beneficial innovation associated with the merger into its shareholders, while exempting
the possible negative influence it would have on the music industry. On the other hand, major media sources
primarily focused on the overpowering, monopolistic characteristics of the merger, barely mentioning in their
coverage the innovation that Live Nation Entertainment Inc. promised. This contradiction between the com-
pany generated documents and the general media coverage proves that the press release effort to frame the
situation did not affect the media coverage. Although the press releases are targeted toward stockholders,
the press releases are also meant to carry the message into the general media coverage. But more impor-
tantly, the contradictions in media raise ethical questions about the Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger and the
Department of Justice’s ruling on the matter. Anti-trust law is being challenged with vertical integration and
bundling major services to wipe out the more focused competition. This merger could have set standards
for future mergers, maintaining fair commerce in the music industry, but many feel the merger was passed
too easily with too few concessions. This merger could result in a monopoly of the music industry that raises
ticket prices, grows into a recording company, controls high-demand artists through exclusive contracts, and
proceeds to crush the independent music industry professionals on a global level.

Acknowledgements
The author would like to extend thanks to Professor David Copeland at Elon University and Jeffery
Weaver for their guidance, inspiration and advice, all of which the article could not be published. The author is
also thankful to Steven Seagal for the inspiration to conduct this research.

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