Big Box Living Wage Ordinance Media Analysis

Submitted by eric on November 12, 2009 - 10:49am
in
Media Box Out Community in Living Wage Debate, a media study released by the Grassroots Collaborative, highlights how mainstream media mostly ignored community voices in the discussion of the Big Box Living Wage Ordinance.  Without all voices being represented, major media denied the public objective and fair news. 

The study analyzed articles and media coverage from major Chicago print news organizations.

Recommendations:

  • Coverage should include the voices and opinions of ordinary people who are affected by the issue.
  • Coverage should not rely only on he-said/she-said back and forth of officials when other sectors of the community have a stake in the debate and are participating in public discussion about the merits of any policy issue.
  • Coverage of an ongoing news story should include an examination of substantive issues of cause and effect as well as costs and benefits from a variety of perspectives, especially in cases that highlight historically difficult or controversial issues like race and poverty.
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BBLW Media Study 2009.pdf893.56 KB