{"id":90275,"date":"2008-11-20T00:00:01","date_gmt":"2008-11-20T05:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/2008\/11\/20\/methodology-10-6\/"},"modified":"2024-04-14T04:16:23","modified_gmt":"2024-04-14T09:16:23","slug":"methodology-10-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/2008\/11\/20\/methodology-10-6\/","title":{"rendered":"Methodology"},"content":{"rendered":"

This report is based on additional analysis of content aggregated and coded for PEJ\u2019s weekly News Coverage Index (NCI). <\/p>\n\n

The NCI is designed to provide news consumers, journalists and researchers with hard data about what stories and topics the media are covering, the trajectories of major stories and differences among news platforms. It examines the news agenda of 48 different outlets in five media sectors, including newspapers, online, network TV, cable TV and radio. The findings are released in a weekly NCI report. All coding is conducted in-house by PEJ\u2019s staff of researchers continuously throughout the year. The complete methodology of the weekly NCI can be found at https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/journalism\/about_news_index\/methodology.<\/a> <\/p>\n\n

Main Universe of Stories: <\/strong>This report is based on NCI coding from June 1, 2008, through October 15, 2008. All stories in which religious issues were a significant factor were isolated and further analyzed to locate the role of religion in campaign coverage in four and a half months of news \u2013 spanning the time the general election formally commenced to the date of the final presidential debate. <\/p>\n\n

This resulted in a total of 7,592 stories focused on the presidential campaign out of a total of 26,113 stories coded for this period: 584 newspaper stories; 567 online stories; 1,592 network television stories; 3,726 stories on cable news; and 1,123 stories from radio programs. <\/p>\n\n

To ensure that all relevant stories were identified and captured, PEJ researchers began by identifying all stories that were primarily about \u201cpresidential bids for 2008,\u201d as labeled in the \u201cbig story\u201d category. Big stories are particular events in the news that extend over a period of time and are featured in multiple news outlets during the time period under study. For the 4.5-month time period studied, this resulted in 7,592 stories. <\/p>\n\n

Then, to narrow that universe down to stories specifically addressing religion and the campaign, the study took an additional step. All campaign storylines\u2014termed \u201csub-storylines\u201d\u2014which were focused on religious issues in the campaign (a total of 16 in all) were extracted for more in-depth analysis. <\/p>\n\n

These sub-storylines included: \u201cObama Muslim Rumors,\u201d \u201cSarah Palin Family\/Personal Issues,\u201d \u201cRick Warren Civil Forum,\u201d \u201cAbortion as an Issue,\u201d \u201cCandidates Reach Out to Religious Voters,\u201d \u201cJames Dobson\u2019s Obama Comments,\u201d \u201cObama Leaves Trinity Church,\u201d \u201cJohn McCain\u2019s Relationship with John Hagee,\u201d \u201cRev. Michael Pfleger Comments,\u201d \u201cObama\u2019s Relationship with Jeremiah Wright,\u201d and \u201cPastors Preach Politics from the Pulpit,\u201d \u201cNew Yorker Cover Controversy,\u201d \u201cSame-Sex Marriage as an Issue,\u201d \u201cStem-Cell Research as an Issue,\u201d \u201cObama\u2019s \u2018Bitter\u2019 Comment,\u201d and \u201cDali Lama Meets with McCain.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

This process resulted in a total of 283 stories: 23 newspaper stories; 26 online stories; 46 network television stories; 124 stories on cable news; and 64 stories from radio programs. <\/p>\n\n

A previous report,<\/a> which analyzed religion coverage in the primaries by assessing how stories were framed using the \u201cbroad story topic\u201d and \u201cpresidential campaign topic\u201d variables, indicated that a focus on the political process made up 81% of coverage. The rest comprised myriad substantive issues, including religion, which made up only 2%. <\/p>\n\n

Although the current study uses a different variable as its chief measure, \u201csub-storyline,\u201d the \u201cbroad story topic\u201d and \u201cpresidential campaign topic\u201d variables yield the following results: 67% of the coverage focused on the political process between June 1 and October 15, including the horse race. Stories framed as religion received 2% of the coverage. <\/p>\n\n

Finally, in an effort to analyze the ways in which individual candidates received different religion coverage, the lead newsmaker variable was used. If 50% or more of a given story is about one person, that individual is credited as the lead newsmaker. <\/p>\n\n

As a result, the study included stories devoted primarily to religion and the campaign: <\/p>\n\n