This article explores cinematic and journalistic treatments of issues, focusing on the movie Blood Diamond (2006, dir. Edward Zwick) and news coverage of conflict diamonds. First, the author examines Hollywood’s impact on news, highlighting central ideas of agenda-setting theory and framing as well as the potential for synergistic influences on news due to concentration of media ownership. Second, she discusses the themes and narrative techniques of Blood Diamond, as well as its messages about the diamond trade, American consumerism, and journalistic norms and responsibilities. Third, she assesses print and broadcast news regarding conflict diamonds in the wake of the movie’s release. Finally, she suggests areas for research into linkages between film and news as industries and forms of mass communication.
ABC News (13December2006a) Comparing diamonds: Is there a difference between Tiffany, Costco diamonds?Good Morning America (television broadcast), transcript available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
2.
ABC News (13December2006b) Inside the mines: The currency of conflict?Nightline (television broadcast), transcript available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
3.
AmodioJV (2007) Cool 2 wear: ‘Green’ gems; The ring (re)cycle: Consumers are looking for jewelry they can buy with a clear conscience. Newsday, 4June: B02. Available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
4.
AnkerE (2005) Villains, victims, and heroes: Melodrama, media, and September 11. Journal of Communication55(1): 22–37.
5.
BennettWL (2001) News: The Politics of Illusion, 4th edn.New York: Addison Wesley.
6.
Blood Diamond (2006) (film), dir. Edward Zwick. Warner Bros. Pictures.
7.
CampbellR (2005) TV news in the corporate era. Television Quarterly35: 10–20.
8.
CBS Evening News (11December2006) Blood Diamond sheds light on violent side of gem trading. CBS News transcript available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 8 July 2007).
9.
CNN News (17December2006) This Week at War. Encore presentation: Week’s war activities recounted television broadcast) transcript available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 8 July 2007).
10.
GlaserJ (1998) Coming distractions: ABC goes to the movies. Columbia Journalism Review, September/October (online). Available at: http://backissues.cjrarchives.org/year/98/5/abc.asp (accessed 4 July 2007).
11.
Global Witness (1998) A Rough Trade: The Role of Companies and Governments in the Angolan Conflict. Available at: www.globalwitness.org/library/rough-trade (accessed 12 February 2012).
12.
GrantJATaylorI (2004) Global governance and conflict diamonds: The Kimberley process and the quest for clean gems. The Round Table93(375): 385–401.
13.
GrossmanLK (2000) Shilling for prime time: Can CBS News survive Survivor?Columbia Journalism Review, September/October: 70–71.
HuxfordJ (2000) Framing the future: Science fiction frames and the press coverage of cloning. Continuum: Journal of Media & Cultural Studies14(2): 187–199.
16.
JohnstonA (1990) Trends in political communication: A selective review of research in the 1980s. In SwansonDLNimmoD (eds) New Directions in Political Communication: A Resource Book. Newbury Park, CA: Sage, 329–362.
17.
JosipovicI (2003) Conflict diamonds not so clear-cut. Harvard International Review25: 10–12.
18.
LawrenceRGBirklandTA (2004) Guns, Hollywood, and school safety: Defining the school-shooting problem across public arenas. Social Science Quarterly85(5): 1193–1207.
19.
Le BillonP (2001) The political ecology of war: Natural resources and armed conflicts. Political Geography20(5): 561–584.
20.
Le BillonP (2006) Fatal transactions: Conflict diamonds and the (anti)terrorist consumer. Antipode38(4): 778–801.
21.
Le BillonP (2008) Diamond wars? Conflict diamonds and geographies of resource wars. Annals of the Association of American Geographers98(2): 345–372.
22.
LippmanW (1922) Public Opinion. New York: Free Press.
23.
LujalaPGleditschNPGilmoreE (2005) A diamond curse? Civil war and a lootable resource. Journal of Conflict Resolution49(4): 538–562.
24.
MachillMKöhlerSWaldhauserM (2007) The use of narrative structures in television news: An experiment in innovative forms of journalistic presentation. European Journal of Communication22(2): 185–205.
25.
McCombsM (2005) A look at agenda-setting: Past, present, and future. Journalism Studies6(4): 543–557.
26.
McCombsMReynoldsA (2002) News influence on our pictures of the world. In: BryantJZillmanD (eds) Media Effects: Advances in Theory and Research. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1–18.
27.
McLeodDMKosickiGMMcLeodJM (2002) Resurveying the boundaries of political communication effects. In: BryantJZillmanD (eds) Media Effects: Advances in Theory and Research. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 215–267.
28.
McManusJ (1992) Serving the public and serving the market: A conflict of interest?Journal of Mass Media Ethics7(4): 196–208.
29.
MurrayS (2007) Blood & bling; Catherine Zeta-Jones, Oprah and countless others relish diamonds. But some ‘iced-out’ hip-hop artists have looked deeper into the trade and are rethinking how they measure success by the carat. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 22February: 1E. Available from LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
30.
NBC Nightly News (9December2006) NBC news transcript.of diamond industry concerned over movieBlood Diamond. Available at: LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 8 July 2007).
31.
NdumbeJA (2001) Diamonds, ethnicity, and power: The case of Sierra Leone. Mediterranean Quarterly12(4): 90–105.
32.
NelsonJS (2005) Horror films face political evils in everyday life. Political Communication22(3): 381–386.
33.
NiblockS (2007) Movie journalists: Hello Hollywood. British Journalism Review18(1): 69–75.
34.
O’ConnorC (2007) Get your green on: Everyone wants to wear the eco mantle, but when will they really embrace the change?The Denver Post, 1April: L-01. Available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
35.
OppenheimerN (2008) Diamonds, development, and democracy. World Policy Journal25: 211–217.
36.
ParentiM (1993) Inventing Reality: The Politics of News Media, 2nd edn.New York: St. Martin’s Press.
37.
ReddySGHenryDOppongJR (2005) Conflict, diamonds, and the political economy of instability in Africa. African Geographical Review24: 51–70.
38.
RyanJWentworthWM (1999) Media and Society: The Production of Culture in the Mass Media. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
39.
ScheufeleDATewksburyD (2007) Framing, agenda setting, and priming: The evolution of three media effects models. Journal of Communication57(1): 9–20.
40.
SemuelsA (2007) Jewelry companies look for values in valuables: Retailers appeal to caring consumers with items mined free of conflict and pollution. Los Angeles Times, 14February: 1. Available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
41.
ShaheenJG (1985) Media coverage of the Middle East: Perception and foreign policy. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science482(1): 160–175.
42.
ShawC (2003) TV news: Why more is less. British Journalism Review14(2): 58–64.
43.
SmillieIGberieLHazletonR (2000) The heart of the matter: Sierra Leone, diamonds and human security. Available at Partnership Africa Canada website: www.pacweb.org/…KP/heart_of_the_matter-full-2000-01-eng.pdf (accessed 12 February 2012).
44.
SmithLD (1992) How the dialectical imperative shapes network news content: The case of CNN vs. the entertainment networks. Communication Quarterly40: 338–349.
45.
SmithRM (2006) The diamond dealer: A fourth-generation director of DeBeers talks about youth, unions and a controversial new movie. Newsweek, 18December: E07. Available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 8 July 2007).
46.
SuretteROttoC (2002) A test of a crime and justice infotainment measure. Journal of Criminal Justice30(5): 443–453.
47.
TilsonDJ (2003) Public relations and Hollywood: A fistful of publicity. Public Relations Quarterly48(1): 10–13.
48.
TripathiS (2005) International regulation of multinational corporations. Oxford Development Studies33(1): 117–131.
49.
United Nations (2001) Conflict diamonds sanctions and war: General Assembly adopts resolution on ‘conflict diamonds’. Available at: www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html (accessed 11 November 2010).
50.
WardO (2007) UN seeks to cut deadly abuse of natural resources: Links soaring poppy crops, blood diamonds to pain and suffering. The Toronto Star, 27June: A02. Available at: LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
51.
WeaverDMcCombsMShawDL (2004) Agenda-setting research: Issues, attributes, and influences. In KaidLL (ed.) Handbook of Political Communication Research. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 257–282.
52.
WeiskelTC (2005) From sidekick to sideshow – celebrity, entertainment, and the politics of distraction: Why Americans are ‘sleepwalking toward the end of the Earth’. American Behavioral Scientist49: 393–409.
53.
WhiteD (2007) Hollywood’s flirtation with Africa: The cliché continues. The Financial Times, 17February: 11. Available at LexisNexis Academic database: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnacademic (accessed 5 July 2007).
54.
WhiteDM (1950) The ‘Gate Keeper’: A case study in the selection of news. Journalism Quarterly27: 383–390.
