Agenda-Setting Effects among the Media,the Public,and Congress,1946–2004

Abstract

This paper examines the longitudinal evolution of correspondences among the issue agendas of the mass media, Congress, and the public from 1946 to 2004. The time unit is one year. Data are derived from the New York Times coverage, Gallup's Most Important Problem series, and Congressional hearings. The evolutions of, as well as the causal relationship among, the three agendas and their agenda-setting effects are analyzed and discussed.