Abstract
Purpose:
To describe media coverage and framing of Oakland, California’s, sugar-sweetened beverage tax.
Design:
Media content analysis.
Sample:
Media documents (n = 90), published January 1, 2016-August 31, 2019, were retrieved from Oakland news outlets and ProQuest, NexusUni, EBSCO, and Google.
Analysis:
Documents were coded using constant comparative analysis in Atlas.ti v8; with descriptive analyses conducted using Stata/SE v. 15.1.
Results:
Documents were published evenly between pre- and post-ballot periods (n = 45); the majority (n = 47) provided neutral framing. Protax documents (n = 33) highlighted SSB consumption and health associations and countered antitax messaging; antitax documents (n = 10) focused on misinformation and sowing public confusion.
Conclusion:
Neutral media educates and raises awareness. Published prior to a vote, the media may help influence public opinion regarding SSB taxes. SSB tax media advocacy campaigns, giving particular attention to timing and perspective-based framing, may help to secure adoption and support implementation.
Keywords
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