2013 Newspaper Coverage of the Oklahoma Horse Slaughter Bill: a Content Analysis

Abstract

The topic of horse slaughter has been a controversial issue in the United States (GAO, 2011). Newspapers play an important role in the issue, as they are responsible for influencing public opinion through the information they do or do not present, as explained by the agenda-setting theory (ansolabehere, Behr & Iyengar, 1993). The objectives of this study were to a) identify all news articles about the horse slaughter bill published by the two highest-circulating Oklahoma newspapers, The Oklahoman and the Tulsa World, while the bill was under consideration; b) conduct a content analysis of identified articles; and c) describe the differences in article content by source. A total of 30 articles were identified and coded, using the Hayakawa-Lowry content analysis methodology. As the bill neared signing by the governor articles were published more frequently. Overall, the distribution of judgment and report sentences was fairly even, and a limited number of inferences were identified. However, a lack of attribution was used in judgment sentences, and a notably higher percentage of judgment/unattributed/unfavorable sentences compared to judgment/unattributed/favorable sentences, indicating biased reporting of the issue. The lack of attribution to judgment sentences further indicated journalists placed infotainment value as more important than unbiased reporting, which is of concern because further investigation found the articles were subject to the attribute agenda-setting communication theory. When comparing the two selected papers, The Oklahoman presented information regarding the horse slaughter legislation in a more favorable manner than the Tulsa World. A need exists for more focus on the importance of attribution and unbiased reporting in university curriculum. Further research should be conducted on how horse slaughter was portrayed through other communication media.