Masters Thesis

U.S. newspapers' coverage of the 2008 financial crisis and recession

The purpose of the thesis is to examine how the U.S. newspapers cover the 2008 financial crisis and recession and how the coverage may set tone on public view about the economy. A total 493 stories were selected between September and December 2008 in four newspapers which represent all geographical areas within the U.S. and are in the list of top 50 U.S. newspapers by circulation that year. A content analysis of the chosen stories was conducted. Results suggested the newspapers used �recession� and �financial crisis� much more frequently than �credit squeeze,� �credit crunch,� and �Great Depression� over the period, which indicates a financial crisis and a recession may be made salient in public mind. Results also revealed that October saw the biggest number of negatively framed stories, the highest investors� fear since at least 1990 and the worst performance of the Dow Jones Industrial Average since its creation in 1896. That number of stories with negative tones outpaced that of stories with either positive or neutral tones in all newspapers may make the public pessimistic and fearful about the economy. Early recession headline or deckline stories may also influence consumer confidence.

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