Why Might the News Media Miss "Significant" Stories
A wide range of factors can influence the selection and production of news. How do journalists (and others involved in the production of news) decide that one bit of information is news while others are not? What 'filters' do the bits of information pass through on their way to becoming news? We use the metaphor of a 'filter' because it creates an image of semi-permeable barriers through which potential news, all those bits of information, may pass. Because PCC researches the omissions, the gaps, in news reporting, we're most interested in understanding why some of the bits don't become news. What happens at various stages of news production that may keep a story from receiving the news attention it may deserve? To mix the metaphor a little, we're not just interested in how the wheat is separated from the chaff, but also in how those involved know what to discard.Why does news look the way it does? Some people argue that daily pressures faced by the harried journalist most significantly influence the production of news. Others suggest that the ideological context in which news is produced shapes its content. Still others argue that the 'commercial imperative,' the mere fact that news is a product that must appeal to a market (and to the advertisers for whom that market exists), provides the driving force behind its production. In this section we provide a brief overview of possible filters in the production of news as a point of departure for readers interested in exploring the sociology of news in further detail.
Conclusion
Of course, other factors influence which of the bits of information become part of the daily newspaper or nightly newscast. Institutional and organizational pressures affect how journalists do their job and consequently what news we receive. In this section we have attempted to provide a brief and preliminary mapping of some of the significant potential news filters, but it should be considered only as a preliminary mapping, something to be filled out in the coming year of our work at PCC.