Lab Report: Media Representation of Youth

The media plays a key role in determining how society perceives youth. Studies show that negative articles regarding the youth were predominant mainly for young males. This study seeks to challenge the idea that the media contributes to how society perceives youth through media representation. This study focused on how newspapers in Denmark from 1953-2003 represented the youth. Previous studies that were conducted in countries such as Britain and the United States show that the media plays a key role in how society perceives the youth. However, these results cannot be applied to all societies, therefore, need to conduct another study in Denmark. 

Introduction  

The media plays an important role in determining how society perceives youths. Over the years, the youth have been represented and framed negatively by the media. The media is one of the largest contributors to negative stereotypes and stigmatization in society. The media output that affects the youth is based on three media models: the Polarized Pluralist Model, the Democratic Corporatist Model, and the Liberal Model. The Liberal Model has carried out most of the internationally published analyses of youth representation in media. This model is characterized by tabloidization and sensationalism. Tabloidization attributes to high levels of negative portrayals among young people. 

Previous research shows that media coverage affects society and vice versa. According to (Gamson and Modiglianii 1989, Donovan and Leivers 1993, Hurtz and Durkin 2004, Wyn 2005, Paterson 2006, Slater 2007, Bleakney et al. 2008), there is a connection between our private and public behavior and the formation of opinion. Another study shows that people may change their behavior according to the output that the media gives regarding that group of people (Hacking, 2004). When the media continuously describes a group of people in a certain manner, they tend to change their behavior. The youth, therefore, tend to be more violent if the main description of them involves crime and violence. Another study by Kite & Wagner (2002), shows that stereotypes influence how groups of people behave. Lippmann (1991) describes stereotypes as the pictures that are already in our head about something or someone. By representing images about the youth, the media invokes ideas that are already in the minds of the audience. Conducting research on media representation of the youth is therefore important as it will provide us with important information on its impact on culture. 

This study was conducted in order to determine whether news media in Denmark represents the youth negatively. The research employs a dynamic perspective by analyzing how representations of youth change over time. The research used newspapers published between 1953 and 2003. The paper has two rationales: firstly, previous research on this matter is very little. Secondly, this research tries to show that the idea of negative bias in media coverage of young people is false. 

Methods  

The research employed both quantitative and qualitative techniques for analyzing newspaper items. However, the research focuses on quantitative analyses as the main aim of this article is to give an idea of trends in media representation of youth. The researchers decided to use newspapers as it is the main supplier of information. Additionally, newspapers are readily available on microfilm or in full-text newspaper databases. The newspapers are very credible and have a good reputation all over Denmark. We chose to use the years 1965-2015 as papers printed during this period were available and were consistently filed over the years. These years also represent eras which experienced varying carrying cultural changes such as the youth Reva solution of the 1960s and 1970s. 

Participants  

Five varying newspapers were selected to represent the media landscape in Denmark. The newspapers that were selected are one national, quality broadsheet newspaper (Politiken), one national tabloid (BT), one regional newspaper (Fyens Stiftisidende), a local newspaper 

(Næstved Tidende), and lastly a religious newspaper,(Kristeligt Dagblad). From each of these newspapers, all issues from the 46 th week every 10 years from 1953-2003 were selected. The total amount of newspapers was 210. These newspapers provided a complete foundation for investigating the trends in this period. Three research assistants identified all the articles regarding young people. 

Procedures  

Two criteria of selection were used in the process: they began with the United Nation’s description of youth. They selected all the articles that mentioned the ages of people between 14 and 24 years. However, this criterion was not comprehensive as not all articles mention people’s ages. The research assistants, therefore, used second criteria which involved selecting articles that mentioned terms such as ‘youth,’ ‘adolescence,’ ‘youngsters,’ and ‘kids’. The articles that were selected were about both ordinary and celebrity youths. The research assistants collected a total of 1174 items that were later coded for a variety of variables including date of publication, length, subject, and use of sources. The researchers coded positive and negative bias in news articles by creating three categories: news articles that described the youth as good people, as resources and as engaged in societal development. News articles that did not portray and negative or positive bias were identified as ‘neutral’. The coding process was carried out by three research assistants. The inter-coder reliability test proved that the assistants’ coding was reliable. 

Measures  

The researchers ensured that the data were collected as stratified random samples over a period of 50 years. Every stratum covered a one week period. For this reason, there was a possibility that random changes in some of these weeks affected the results. The researchers, therefore, emphasized on very important trends observed over the entire period instead of changes between the strata. 

Results  

This section shows the results of the research as listed in the various tables. 

Table 1 

This table provides an overview of the number of articles, their representation across newspapers and the years they were selected from. As seen in this table, the years 1973 and 2003 had more articles concerning the youth. The Fyns Stiftstidende regional newspaper had the most youth articles. Apart from the religious newspaper, KrSelig Dagblad, all newspaper had approximately the same number of articles regarding the youth. 

Table 2 

News items from 13 varying subject areas can be seen in table 2. 22% of the news items in Danish newspapers were about crime while 16% of the news items are about culture. This category includes sub-sections such as music, media, and literature. Sports and education attribute to 12% and 11%. Data from this table shows that the representation of youth is more positive as compared to the neutral and negative representation of youths. However, these statistics have been declining steadily since 1973. We can also observe that negative representations of the youth slightly increased in the same period. This table does not display any clear longitudinal trends. 

Table 3 

Table 3 represents the amount of negative, positive and neutral representations of the youth across the period. Neutral was the most coded, followed by negative and then positive. The regional newspaper (Fyens Stiftsidende) contained most of the negative representation of the youth year 1995 was characterized by the lowest amount of positive articles compared to 2015 which had the highest. The year 1973 had the highest number of negative articles while 1953 had the lowest. Regarding neutral articles, the year 2003 had the most while 1953 had the lowest. The table shows that there was a trend toward decreases in negative articles and a rise in positive articles. 

Table 4 

This table shows whether the news articles were about individuals or groups of young people. The table shows that there was a rise in the number of articles that identified youths as individuals and a decrease in the number of articles that described young people as groups. 25-30% of the articles depicted youths as members of gangs. No clear the longitudinal trend was established. 

Table 5 

Table 5 is coded according to whether young people are quoted in the news items. The table shows that only 18% of the articles quoted young people. However, the number of articles that quoted young people gradually increased from 5% to 26%. The highest number of quotes from young people were recorded in 1995 while the lowest was recorded in 1975. No clear cut trends were identified in this table. 

Table 6 

Table 6 shows whether the articles were about a specific gender or whether the gender was not mentioned. Most of the articles were about both genders then followed by not mentioned, then women. No clear cut trends can be identified for this table. 

Table 7 

This table shows whether the representations of both genders were positive or negative. There was a relatively even distribution of positive, neutral and negative representation when both sexes were mentioned. However, this observation changes when no gender is mentioned as there is a relatively neutral representation, and then a slightly higher negative than positive representation. When the articles are about men only, 23.8% of them were coded as positive compared to women who recorded 31% positive articles. This table did not portray any longitudinal trends. 

Discussion  

The results of the research show that some of the newspapers wrote more articles regarding the youth compared to those about elderly people. The Fyns Stiftsidende had the most news articles that were about young people. The religious newspaper, Kristeligt recorded the lowest number of articles about young people. The results further show that 22% of the articles were related to crime while 16% were related to culture. Sports and education attributed to 12% and 11% of the items. The news articles were mostly neutral. They were followed by negative and then positive articles. The lowest amounts of positive articles were recorded in 1995 while the highest was recorded in 2015. Similarly, the year 1973 had the highest number of negative articles compared to 1953 which had the lowest. The number of articles that recognized young people as individuals steadily increased while those that identified youths as groups decreased. Only 18% of the articles that were chosen quoted young people. This number grew steadily between 1953 and 2003 from 5% to 26%. Additionally, the research shows that there was a relatively even distribution of positive, neutral and negative representation when both genders were discussed. However, this result was different when the genders were mentioned individually. 23.8% of the articles were coded as positive compared to women who recorded 31% positive articles. These results supported the hypothesis in such a way that they show some newspapers in Denmark portray the youth negatively. 

Implications and Interpretations 

The results of this research are consistent with other studies conducted by scholars from different countries. In the United States, Stensaas (1961) found that most of the articles about youths in American newspapers portrayed them negatively. Stanley Cohen’s study ‘Folk Devils and Moral Panics’ shows how the media influenced how an entire generation was perceived by the society. This research is consistent with our study which showed that 22% of the articles about the youth were related to crime. Such articles exacerbate the stereotype that the youth are violent. According to (Pearson, 1983), young people are subjected to labeling mechanisms which portray them as dangerous to the community. In his study of juvenile hooliganism, he analyzes how the youth are viewed as an object of concern. 

Porteous & Colston (1980), analyze how the British press portrays the youth. The research showed that articles about the youth were mainly about sports and crime. The results of our research are similar to Porteous & Colston’s findings as crime and sports attributed to 22% and 12% of the articles. Additionally, this research shows that newspapers now quote young people more often. This change has been brought about by the professionalization of journalism. The change can also be attributed to the youth revolution of 1960’s and 1970’s which brought about a new public perception of the youth. Furthermore, the research identified that the media portrays young males differently from females. More males were associated with crime than women through the whole period. The longitudinal frameworks identified in this research are important as we are able to understand how the media has been portraying the youths over a certain period of time. 

Limitations and Suggestions for Future Research 

Data used for this research were collected as stratified random samples over a period of 50 years. The stratum covered only two weeks which is a short period of time. The results were therefore prone to random fluctuations due to events in some of the weeks. Most of the previous researches conducted in this area collected data over short periods of time therefore making it difficult to illustrate possible changes in the methods of representation. The research used only newspapers as other modes of conveying information were not reliable. Only newspapers printed between the years the research was conducted were available. The research design involved 22 coders and therefore increased the risk of misinterpretation of data. This longitudinal study was led to a methodological limitation as we cannot preserve an analytical constant over a long period of time. A study that explains the impact that the social media has on representation of the youth should be conducted urgently. Of special interest would be a research that analyzes the input and thoughts that the youth have regarding their representation by the media. 

References  

Gamson, W.A. and Modigliani, A., 1989. Media discourse and public opinion on nuclear power: a constructionists approach. The American journal of sociology, 95 (1), 1-37. 

Hacking, I., 2004. Between Michel Foucault and Erving Goffman: between discourse in the abstract and face-to-face interaction. Economy and society, 33 (3), 277-302. 

Kite, M.E. and Wagner, L.S., 2002. Attitudes toward older adults. In: T.D. Nelson, Ed. 

Ageism: stereotyping and prejudice against older persons. Cambridge: MIT Press, 129-161. 

Lippmann, W., 1991 [1922]. Public opinion. New Brunswick: Transaction. 

Porteous, M.A. and Colston, N.J., 1980. How adolescents are reported in the British Press. 

Journal of adolescence, 3 (3), 197-207. 

Stensaas, H.S., 1961. The front page teenager: how 111 dailies treat him. Journalism quarterly, 

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