“Problematic” Situations in Press Coverage of the 1988 U.S. and French Elections

Abstract

This study uses newspapers and magazines to find some support for Alex Edelstein's theory of the problematic approach to media content. Although 55% of the 1988 U.S. election issues were defined as problematic — especially in terms of individual or social losses of value — about half the stories were not presented in any problem context. Three-fourths of the stories from the French sample presented stories in a problem context. About one-fourth of the stories from both U.S. and French samples emphasized the horse race aspect of elections.