ARGUMENTATIVE THEMES IN CIVIL DEFENSE: (1) A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES
Abstract
The report provides the communication researcher or the public affairs specialist with a category scheme for describing the materials to be found in the civil defense field. It also provides an appendix which attempts to reconcile two divergent reports on civil defense materials. One report, entitled Argumentative Themes in Civil Defense, is compared with Civil Defense and Society by Jeri Nehnevajsa and his colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh. The comparison indicates that the two reports are not incompatible, although the category schemes used in the two seem quite different. The report suggests that there are sixteen general areas into which civil defense materials can be placed. The categories are only relatively independent, but certainly serve to distinguish various positions in the civil defense dialogue. The report also offers the following tentative conclusions regarding the frequency of materials appearing in the New York Times for the period cited: (1) the greatest percentage (39.4%) of all arguments identified referred to fallout shelters; and (2) the largest percentage of all stories (48.2%) were found to be favorable to OCD policies, and, when the neutral articles are removed from consideration, the percentage rises to 69.9%.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 15, 1964
- Accession Number
- AD0613608
Entities
People
- Erwin P. Bettinghaus
Organizations
- Michigan State University