jfairbanks obama vs. mccain

8/9/2019 JFairbanks Obama vs. McCain

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Abstract

Presidential candidates often depend on news media to reach the general public. Since

there is a medium between the public and the candidates, their messages can get

construed and even overshadowed by the news sources own message. Media framing,

agenda setting, and media bias are often brought up in studies when the mass media is

involved. A bad picture of a candidate can be seen by millions and remembered more

easily sometimes than what was said in a speech. Past studies done on pictures of

presidential candidates have had various results. In this research study, I performed a

content analysis of positive, negative and neutral attributes from ten news and political

magazines and three covers from each that portrayed the 2008 presidential candidates,

Barack Obama and John McCain. Obama pulled ahead of McCain in terms of positive

attribute occurrences but the results were not significant.


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Media Image Framing: Obama versus McCain

Often times we glance at magazines or newspapers while standing in line at the

grocery store or passing by a stand selling them on the street. Unless we decide to stop

and buy the magazine or newspaper, usually we only get a passing glimpse of the front

cover. Those covers are produced in ways that hope to capture peoples attention and

entice them into buying the product (Bucy& Grabe, 2007; 2008; Fahmy, Kelly, & Kim,

2007; Taranto, 2008). Big, bold lettering and large pictures are meant to draw interest

and make you a potential customer. A face you are familiar with like a celebrity or recent

newsmaker might be presented in a picture to pique your curiosity even more.

During presidential campaigns, its not abnormal to see a candidate on the cover

of a magazine or a newspaper. Many people receive information about politics through

the media and often its the only opportunity for them to get to know candidates. In our

day, more than ever before, candidates go before the people through the mass media

rather than in person. The information in the mass media becomes the only contact many

have with politics (McCombs & Shaw, 1972, p. 176). Although this may hamper

communication between voters and candidates in many ways, which will be discussed

later on, this benefits the media source because they might get more sales or have more

information to add to voters knowledge of the candidates. It also can benefit the

candidate because it is giving them publicity (Fahmy, Kelly, & Kim, 2007).

For those people who do not frequently stop and buy the newspapers or news

magazines, that passing glimpse of the front cover featuring a picture of a candidate

might be the only impression they get of what the article or news clip is about. These

pictures may leave people with more of an impression of a candidate than a full-text


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article. Therefore it is important to look at the kind of pictures of presidential candidates

news magazines and newspapers are using in order grab peoples attention.

The issue becomes even more important when taking into consideration the

possibility of media bias toward one candidate or the other. Media infiltrate our everyday

lives and their importance become obvious when looking at the various technologies we

use to access media content:

Cable television provides viewers with a growing number of channels to choose

from; videotapes provide easy access to films; and the Internet, newspapers, and

24-hour news radio and television programs provide round-the-clock coverage of

current events. In their many forms, media have the potential to educate, raise

consciousness, and shape public attitudes. (Bullock, Wyche, & Williams, 2001, p.

229)

If the writers and editors of one newspaper favor a candidate over the other, there is a

chance that newspaper may feature the preferred candidate in a better light (Bucy &

Grabe, 2007; Coleman & Banning, 2006; Druckman, 2005; Jones, 2008; Waldman &

Devitt, 1998; Wizda, 2001). Biases exposed to us through media have the opportunity to

influence our own opinions or point of views.

There are many ways in which these biases might occur. They could show their

bias through the types of articles published, having more negative comments or stories

about the candidate they do not favor. A news source may also show partiality towards a

candidate by using better pictures of them than their opponent(s). The better picture

would be one that has more positive attributes than negative in terms of facial expression,

setting, and gestures.


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During the 2008 presidential campaigns, there were several instances in which

John McCains Vice Presidential-elect Sarah Palin, Alaskas Governor, made accusations

toward the media for being biased. Palin felt the media were not being fair to her and the

Conservatives. Conservative channels like Fox News and others joined in and made

claims that Obama got hardly any scrutiny from other news sources. Rarely has a

political season seen such biased reporting from the drive-by media, and rarely has the

public been so aware of it (Regnery, 2008, p. 6). Some journalists made refutations

against these claims though and believed they were just doing their job. Worse than

mischaracterizing her role was her refusal to scrap the storyline even after it was

discredited. News organizations, to their credit, pointed that out. That's not "bashing,"

that's public service reporting (Rieder, 2008, p. 4). The unresolved claims from both

sides presented an issue that needed further examination.

This study focuses on the printed pictures political and news magazines used for

their covers during the 2008 presidential election campaign of candidates Barack Obama,

Democrat, and John McCain, Republican. It examines if biases towards or against the

two candidates in terms of positive and negative attributes were prevalent from the

selection of magazine covers. Pictures can portray an array of messages to prospective

voters and it is valuable to look at the potential communication that was presented.

Literature Review

The Importance of Pictures

While the internet and television have become major outlets from which people

receive their news from due to the accessibility and speed, printed pictures still stimulate


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our visual senses and are present in our everyday lives. Biologically, visual stimulation is

the quickest and more prevalent way we learn and comprehend information (Bucy &

Grabe, 2007; Coleman & Banning, 2006; Fahmy, Gibbons, 2007; Kelly, & Kim, 2007).

Multiple studies have been done on visual nonverbal communication and have found

nonverbal communication is especially adept at communicating affective information

(Coleman & Banning, 2006, p. 313). Photographs themselves are able to project

numerous messages to viewers which can be intepreted in various ways, depending on

individual perception (Bucy & Grabe, 2007; Fahmy, Kelly, & Kim, 2007; Rodgers,

Kenix, & Thorson, 2007). While written words on a sheet of paper or relayed through

the voice of a news anchor can be mostly informational and direct in meaning, pictures

have more room to flex and communicate characteristics. One must keep in mind that

photos are meant to illustrate stories (Waldman & Devitt, 1998, p. 310). These

messages or stories told by these photos are often able to be retained more easily than

textual information (Coleman & Banning, 2006; Druckman, 2005).

Newspapers and news magazines seem well aware that images grab peoples

attention quicker and relay messages that are easily digested (Do Visual Images Sway

Voters More Than Words?, 2008; Fahmy, Kelly, & Kim, 2007). News magazines try to

inform a potential customer about their feature article and exhibit why its important to

read. Newspapers front pages also display information and pictures that they consider to

be the most important:

A key consideration in visual framing analysis is how the news photograph is

presented to the audience. That newspapers front pages contain the most

important information on any given day is now common wisdom. Newspapers


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routinely publish the most important images so that they visually dominate the

front-page space. Overall, the literature on photographic dominance suggests that

editors would select to run the most important images of the day on the front

pages. These images would attract attention and have a strong impact on readers.

(Fahmy, Kelly, & Kim, 2007, p. 550)

The fact that editors would choose to produce their front pages this way makes sense

since the front page or cover is the first thing people see. As stated previously as well, it

is also sometimes the only thing they see if they choose not to purchase the newspaper or

news magazine.

The role that pictures can play in politics is important to look at as well because

people gain opinions and make judgments about candidates not only through hearing

their rhetoric but also seeing characteristics brought out in pictures. Photographs,

however, play a vital role in the formation of impressions of candidatesOver the course

of a campaign, voters will be exposed to hundreds of photographs of each candidate in

various media (Waldman & Devitt, 1998, p. 302). The pictures that people are exposed

allow them to make assessments about the candidates without having to get to know them

personally. The importance of nonverbal communication becomes apparent in these

instances and goes back to the significance of visuals. As stated in an article by Erik

Bucy and Maria Grabe, we get to know and develop relationships through nonverbal

communication via the visual channel. When forming impressions of others, in social

settings or more formal contexts such as election contests, individuals tend to rely heavily

on information gathered through the visual channel (2007, p. 656). Pictures are a part of

this visual channel and communicate messages that hold just as much, if not more in


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some cases, weight than verbal expressions (Bucy & Grabe, 2007; Coleman & Banning,

2006; Waldman & Devitt, 1998; Wizda, 2001). If an image of a presidential candidate is

able to communicate a message to a voter that would sway them away or toward that

candidate, then analyzing this subject would benefit both fields of communication and

politics.

Media Framing, Agenda Setting, and Media Bias

Pictures and visual stimulation are not only important because of the range of

messages they can communicate, but also because of the impact they may have on the

public. Visual frames can activate certain constructs at the expense of others, thereby

directly influencing what enters the minds of news consumers (Rodgers, Kenix, &

Thorson, 2007, p. 122). When looking at how people are receiving these pictures, the

way they are framed becomes significant. Media framing for pictures can range from the

angle at which the picture was taken to which picture was chosen and which was not.

Framing refers to selecting and emphasizing certain aspects of experiences or ideas over

others (Miller, Andsager, & Riechert, 1998, p. 313). In news media, the way a story is

brought forth to audiences is framed for various reasons and can have effects on viewers

judgments. It is based on the assumption that how an issue is characterized in news

reports can have an influence on how it is understood by audiences, (Scheufele &

Tewksbury, 2007, p. 11). Often times the way in which a story or picture is being framed

by the media is not obvious because frames are unavoidable and can vary depending on a

persons own experiences or view:

Frames live in those interstitial spaces between immediate context and culture;

they exist partly in the head. Frames can be fully present, as when all elements of


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a pattern are in place, or can be suggested by one or more key features. Multiple

frames generally structure any given argument and can be either verbal or visual.

(Gibbons, 2007, p.180)

Unless a voter is able to receive information first hand, most of what is gathered

about candidates is going to be framed in some way. Even hearing it firsthand does not

guarantee its without a frame because candidates often use speech writers or fine-tune

their messages for specific audiences. As Gibbons points out:

Although framing certainly can be a technique, it also can play a broader and

more pervasive role; it is a fundamental aspect of the situatedness of any visual

argument. In other words, no visual argument stands unframed, although some

frames guide, or constrain, more than others. (2007, p. 180)

Scheufele and Tewksbury warn that even though framing is unavoidable, not all of it is

done with ill-intentions and that it is a necessary tool to reduce the complexity of an

issue, given the constraints of their respective media related to news holes and airtime,

(2007, p. 12).

Another important theory to look at is agenda setting. This theory looks at what

the mass media deem as news and what consumers then perceive as important.

Agenda setting refers to the idea that there is a strong correlation between the

emphasis that mass media place on certain issues (e.g., based on relative

placement or amount of coverage) and the importance attributed to these issues by

mass audiences. (Scheufele & Tewksbury, 2007, p. 11)

McCombs and Shaws 1972 study, The Agenda-Setting Function of Mass Media,

found that a large amount of campaign news focused on analysis of the campaigns rather


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than the political issues (pp. 179-180). They also found that media seemed to influence

voter opinion of what the important issues were. The media appear to have exerted a

considerable impact on voters judgments of what they considered the major issues of the

campaign (McCombs & Shaw, 1972, p. 180). What the media talk about during an

election campaign may very well be the only issues voters get to hear about if they do not

make an effort to seek out other information by themselves. If the media set the agenda

and decide what is imperative for voters to know, then a closer examination of what the

mass media are talking about should give researchers greater knowledge of kinds of

limitations that are in effect. Newsrooms often follow a similar code that includes factors

like timeliness, proximity, and prominence to decide what it newsworthy or not (Tuggle,

Carr, & Huffman, 2007). Although there is no explicit, commonly agreed-upon

definition of news, there is a professional norm regarding major new stories from day to

day (McCombs & Shaw, 1972, p. 184). This professional norm can leave room for

scrutiny of news media outlets.

The objectivity of journalists is often called into examination when studies are

looking at elections and the ways in which voters can be swayed (Bucy & Grabe, 2007;

Coleman & Banning, 2006; D'Angelo & Lombard, 2008; Farhi, 2008; Jones, 2008;

Miller, Andsager, & Riechert, 1998; Taranto, 2008; Waldman & Devitt, 1998; Wizda,

2001). It is probably impossible for any human to completely put aside their own

preconceptions and judgments. While American media place great emphasis on

neutrality, there are plenty of ways in which a journalists personal favoritism or

prejudices can emerge. In modern times, journalists are becoming less detached from the

subjects they are covering and have shows or columns in which they can analyze news


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events. Bias may not have the same negative connotations in todays journalism era, and

as some articles suggest, may be more acceptable:

Perceptions of journalistic bias are as much a part of the fabric of the business as

deadlines, but they are particularly intense during presidential campaigns, when

the focus on the horse race transforms much news coverage into a start

juxtaposition of winners and losers. (Wizda, 2001, p. 36).

Credibility and neutrality habitually often went hand-in-hand within the journalism

world. When one was affected, the other would be affected as well. If a news source

was seen as unfair or biased, their reliability went down in the publics opinion. One

article however suggests that both of these factors have been going down in recent years

(Farhi, 2008). By 1984, only 38 percent said newspapers were usually fair only 29

percent said this of television reporting. Were fast approaching zero credibility (Farhi,

2008, p. 30). It is vaulable though to look at bias in media if there is a chance it could

influence something as significant as the way people vote in a presidential election.

Other Factors

Since unbiased reporting is what journalists are usually taught to revere and strive

for, taking into question their impartiality can put them on the defense. Numerous

articles, mainly by Journalists themselves, mentioned other rationalizations for peoples

claims of the apparent facade of biases or agenda-setting (Farhi, 2008; Miller, Andsager,

& Riechert, 1998; Ponnuru, 2008; Rieder, 2008; Taranto, 2008; Wizda, 2001).

One alternative explanation offered is that people do not like to hear news from an

angle that is not in agreement with their own personal perceptive. In short, individuals

tend to see bias in any coverage that presents a picture of the political world at odds with


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their own (Waldman & Devitt, 1998, p. 302). For example, a report that features

positive aspects of the Conservative politicans may cause a Liberal viewer to think the

news source is being bias and vice versa.

One article pointed out a factor that could greatly hinder news medias ability to

be as unbiased as possible. The question of bias isnt just about politics, though. Our

newsrooms are heavily middle-class, largely white and still primarily male (although the

gender gap is narrowing). Isnt this likely to have a major impact on how news is

presented? (Wizda, 2001, p. 36). The article dates back to 2001 but if the newsrooms

have remained made up of a group of largely middle-class white journalists then the news

magazine or newspapers ability to produce a greater range of perception and judgments

on what is news and how to present it to the public.

Several articles pointed to candidates using media bias as an excuse for slipping

in polls. Despite their dependency on the news media, the candidates themselves

sometimes complain about journalists approach to covering the elections (Miller,

Andsager, & Riechert, 1998, p. 313). The news is sometimes blamed for focuses too

much and too harshly on mistakes by the campaign being scrutinized. A candidate

encounters a rough patch, the news media report on it, often extensively, and the true

believers are outraged by the prejudiced reporting (Wizda, 2001, p. 38). The study

done by Waldman and Devitt mentioned how Bob Dole had accused the media of being

bias when he was considered to be losing the race:

In the final stages of the 1996 presidential campaign, Republican candidate Bob

Dole began to complain that the press, and particularly the New York Times, was


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treating him unfairlyDoles complaint was an echo of that made by numerous

losing candidates in the past. (Waldman & Devitt, 1998, p. 302)

Despite the fact that there are reasonable concerns for news sources playing favorites in

political campaigns, it is acceptable to take in to consideration the advantages accusing

the media may have for the candidate. Blaming the media for unfair coverage has

become a standard tactic in the modern campaign playbook (Jones, 2008, p. 7).

Journalists and candidates would probably be on opposing sides of this argument.

Research on Previous Elections

Finding a good amount of studies that had examined the same subject this article

is striving for was limited. Yet, the ones that were found offered great insight into the

results of past elections. One article studied the 1996 presidential election between

Republican Bob Dole and Democrat Bill Clinton. Another looked at the 2000

presidential election between Al Gore, Democrat, and George W. Bush, Republican. A

third article studied the 1984 presidential campaigns of Democrat candidate Ronald

Reagan, and the Republican candidate Walter Mondale.

The study of the 2000 election, done by Renita Coleman and Stephen Banning

found that within their sample of video images, Gore had more positive results. Gore

exhibited more positive nonverbal expressions; Bush expressed more negative nonverbal

behavior. Survey respondents felt significantly more positive about Gore than about

Bush (2006, p. 320). Even though they found that Gore was held in a more positive

light and showed more positive nonverbal communication, Bush still won the election.

An additional article looked at for this study however cited that for the same election, a

photo of Bush appeared on The Providence Journals Election Day cover displayed Bush


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outlined by backlighting which gave him a halo effect and Gore sweating (Wizda, 2001,

p. 35).

The second similar study of the 1996 presidential election found the two

candidates total scores covaried though and there was only one week in which their

scored did not follow this trend:

With the exception of the third week in September, the total scores of the two

candidates moved together. Despite the fact that Clintons scores were always

higher than Doles, their scores covaried: when one candidates scores rose, so did

the others; when one candidates scores fell, so did the others. (Waldman &

Devitt, 1998, p. 306)

The researchers looked for possible answers for the break in trend and offered one that

seems very plausible:

During that week, Clinton did hold a number of well-attended public ralies which

produced complimentary photos. In addition, Dole took his memorable fall off a

stage in Chico, California, on 18September, producing numerous shots of him

grimacing on the ground. (Waldman & Devitt, 1998, p. 306)

The study by Paul Waldman and James Devitt concluded that Clinton had been portrayed

more positively in pictures than Dole and led in polls for the duration of his campaign.

Clinton did go on to become the 42nd

President of the United States.

Sandra E. Moriarty and Gina M. Garramones 1984 presidential election

campaign study of news magazine photographs found that the total index indicated that

Reagan was represented significantly more favorably than Mondale (1986, p. 732).

However, they also acknowledged that Reagans behaviorwas represented by news


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magazine pictures more favorably early on in the campaign but by the end of the

campaign, Mondales behavior was represented more favorably (Moriarty & Garramone,

1986, p. 732). The varying results of these three studies could be explained by their

differences in methodology and specific issue of interest.

Lack of Research

Several of the studies looked for this article mentioned a lack of research for the

specific subject of news images of political candidates. Bucy and Grabe attend to this in

their article by confirming the visual aspect of news remains underresearched (2007, p.

658). Politicians, especially those running for President, pay a high degree of focus on

their image and the way they present themselves to the public as well as the media. News

sources certainly pick up on the intentional and unintentional characteristics put on

display by the candidates. However, news sources may have their own agenda apart from

the candidates and could possibly portray them in pictures that they feel are closer to who

they really are as people or lawmakers. Images are the lingua fanca of politics; yet, they

remain among the least scrutinized and least understood aspects of political news (Bucy

& Grabe, 2007, p. 668). It has already been mentioned how important nonverbal

communication and visual stimulation is when constructing judgments about other

people. By ignoring the images used of candidates by news sources, you are leaving out

an essential aspect of the way impressions are made. News images of political

candidates are vastly underapperciated as a source of information and play a centeral role

in shaping voter impressions of presidential candidates (Do Visual Images Sway Voters

More Than Words?, 2008, p. 16). As long as the printed pictures news and political

magazines select of candidates goes underresearched and less scrutinized that other


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mediums, then research on the way voters develop impressions of candidates will not be

complete.

The literature I have studied and the lack of research done on the specific subject

of bias in printed photographs of presidential candidates by print news media sets forth a

purpose for my research question that allowed my inquiries to be studied in a more in

extensive way.

RQ: How did major news sources frame print photos of Barack Obama and

John McCain in terms of positive and negative attributes?

Methodology

For this study, a content analysis of printed news and political magazine covers

featuring Barack Obama and/or John McCain was performed in attempt to answer the

research question. Content analysis often deals with qualitative research to examine

substance within a subject because it deals with qualities of messages and because it can

be applied to interpret individual cases in an intensive manner (Reinard, 2008, p. 302).

This study was meant to be both a qualitative and quanitative study in order to better

analyze each particular picture for positive or negative atributes seperately before looking

at the collection and totals as a whole. Using a content analysis method enabled

catagorations to be produced from certain aspect of the pictures. These catagories formed

the units of analysis and were then rated as either positive or negative and described in

order to be applied toward the research questions for explanation or description. Since

not every attribute is able to be placed within a positve or negative category, the creation

of a neutral option was needed. Content analysis often takes the form of describing


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communication phenomena so that other sorts of analyses may follow, (Reinard, 2008,

p. 304). Analysis of the positive, negative, and neutral attributes found within the

magazine cover pictures led to some insight about how John McCain and Barack Obama

were framed. Since the research dealt primarily with images and the words that went

along with the picture on the covers, a content analysis was a reasonable method to use

when evaluating the sample.

Definition and selection of major news magazines

Keeping the concentration on printed news sources was a step taken to reduce the

amount of content available. Politics and political campaigns or races are often covered

heavily by news resources so focusing on printed news and political media was a natural

step instead of including sources that were more likely to focus on movies, music, or

other hobbies and special interests. Magazines devote more space on their covers to

pictures, which is the main focus of the literature review and research question. Since

magazines often do hold larger pictures and fewer words on their front pages than

newspapers, the exclusion of newspapers from this study was meant to help narrow down

the amount of content and to also keep the amount of available content for examination at

an average volume. Also the amount of space dedicated to words is usually a minimum

amount and meant to enhance or go along with the picture. Newspapers front pages

however usually contain numerous stories, pictures and articles which would lead to

more content than needed or necessary for this study. In addition, news and political

magazines are more widely available and have the potential to reach an audience on a

national or even global scale than newspapers which usually are sold to smaller regions.

Sample


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After narrowing the category of content to political and news magazines, an

examination of magazines produced primarily in English with a focus on politics and

news, was done to determine which ones to include in the study. Keeping the magazines

written in the English language enabled assurance that I would be able to read and

analyze the messages of the text. Taken into consideration was name recognition and

mainstream status. Also taken into consideration was high circulation and subscriptions

based on information found on the Audit Bureau of Circulations website.

The resulting list of news and political magazines that were included in this study

are as follows (in no particular order): U.S. News & World Report, The New Yorker, The

Progressive, The Nation, Newsweek, Time, The American Conservative, The Economist,

The Week, and The National Review (See Appendix C). The titles of most of these

magazines also indicate that theyre primary focus is current news and politics which

helps indicate to potential readers the purposes of these magazines.

From these ten news and political magazines, three covers that featured Barack

Obama, John McCain, or both were selected. Having three covers from each magazine

selected gave me total of thirty covers to analyze which is a sufficient amount for a

qualitative content analysis study of this level. Only issues printed between January 1st

and November 3rd during the year 2008 were included because it was the year of the

presidential vote and issues that were featured after Barack Obama won the election held

the possibility of skewing the results. Issues before January 1, 2008 were not included

due to time constraints and the need to keep the date under control.

Units of analysis


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The images of the candidates were analyzed as well as the text that went along

with the image and previews the larger article about them inside. Using previous similar

studies as guides, categories of the different photographic aspects were formed and

became the units of analysis. These were as follows: facial expression, lighting, activity,

environment, camera angle, body position, and other (in addition to the category of text).

Since the data needed to be coded in terms of positive, negative and neutral attributes,

descriptions were made for each unit of analysis. Each unit of analysis had three

descriptions: negative description, positive description, and neutral description. For

example, the camera angle unit of analysis described positive as shots that were taken

from below since it makes the person in the picture appear bigger and taller. Camera

angles that were from below were coded as negative since they make the person in the

picture look smaller and give the feeling of looking down on them. Neutral camera

angles were eye level or drawings because they did not significantly add or deduct from

the viewers perspective. An addition of an other category helped to code things that

did not fall into specific units of analysis and to code the overall message of the cover.

Sorting the information

After selecting and describing the units of analysis, each magazine cover was

then analyzed and coded in terms of positive, negative and neutral attributes on an

individual table for each cover (See Appendix A). This table (See Figure 1, Appendix A)

enabled me to describe each attribute as well as code and rate it. A rating system of -1

for negative, zero for neutral, and one for positive was used in order to add up totals and

too keep the numbers manageable. Covers that featured both Barack Obama and John

McCain were coded twice, one time for each candidate individually. At the end of the


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study I had 35 tables due the addition of the multiple codings. The second table (See

Figure 2, Appendix A) was used to count the amount of positive, negative, and neutral

attributes that were found for Obama and McCain. An additional table was added to look

at totals from each individual magazine and their covers together (See Appendix B).

Method of Analysis

From the tables put together, looking at the various categories found and the

amount of content coded within positive, negative and neutral attributes enabled further

examination to be done.

The tables will helped to separate and gather content into different sections and to

keep track of which magazine it was found in and of which candidate. The set up of the

study was in order to point out the types of negative, neutral and positive attributes used

by each magazine as well as which candidate received the highest number positive,

neutral, and negative attribute occurrences on the covers.

Results

TABLE 1

Barack Obama Positive, Negative, & Neutral Attribute Occurrences

Unit of analysis Positive attribute

occurrences

Negative attribute

occurrences

Neutral attribute

occurrences

Text 5 7 8

Facial expression 9 5 6

Lighting 8 1 11

Activity 6 3 11

Environment 4 5 11

Camera angle 6 0 15

Body position 6 2 12

Other 9 4 7

Totals: 53 27 81


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TABLE 2

John McCain Positive, Negative, & Neutral Attribute Occurrences

Unit of analysis Positive attribute

occurrences

Negative attribute

occurrences

Neutral attribute

occurrences

Text 1 9 5

Facial expression 5 6 4

Lighting 3 3 9

Activity 4 6 5

Environment 2 5 8

Camera angle 4 1 10

Body position 6 3 6

Other 1 8 6

Totals: 26 41 53

Positive, Negative, and Neutral Attribute Occurrences

Overall attributes. In this study, Barack Obama had a higher total of positive

attributes shown within the political and news magazine covers than McCain. Obama

had higher totals of positive attribute occurrences in each unit of analysis. Table 1

displays the number of positive, negative and neutral attributes that were found for each

unit of analysis for both Obama and Table 2 does the same for McCain. Adding up the

number of occurrences for each unit of analysis showed differences between the two

candidates in terms of positive and negative. Obama had a total of 53 positive attribute

occurrences while McCain had 26. Obamas positive attribute occurrences nearly

doubled the amount McCain received. For negative attribute occurrences, McCain had a

total of 41 while Obamas total was 27. This difference between the negative attribute

occurrences is lower than the difference between the positive attribute occurrences.

However, McCain did receive a higher number of occurrences for negative attributes than


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Obama. Both candidates had higher numbers of neutral attributes than positive or

negative attributes. Neutral attributes for McCain occurred 53 times which was not a

significant amount compared to the negative attribute occurrences. Obama though had

81 neutral attribute occurrences which is one occurrence higher than his negative and

positive attributes combined.

Attributes in text. Barack Obama had more negative and neutral attribute

occurrences for text than he did positive. Although his results for text were fairly spread

out between the three categories, the fact that he received a total number of eight

occurrences of neutral attributes, higher than the positive and negative, shows some

objectivity from the news and political magazine covers. John McCain received a total of

only one positive attribute within the category of text. The amount of negative attributes

that occurred were not more than half of the neutral attribute occurrences, but the total

was still higher for negative than neutral.

Neither candidate had a high total of positive attribute occurrences but McCain

did especiallypoor in this category. A lot of the text featured on McCains magazine

covers questioned his strategies and authenticity. Examples of the negative attributes in

text found are Bring back the real McCain from the August 30, 2008 issue ofThe

Economistand Invade the World, Invite the World: The Trouble with John McCain

from their February 11, 2008 issue ofThe American Conservative. The first one from

The Economistis questioning his authenticity within the campaign since the cover is

making a call for the real McCain, or the personality and characteristics the public was

used to seeing from him, to be presented instead of the McCain being offered. The


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Obama vs. McCain 23

second one from The American Conservative is being critical of his strategies and

represents them as being hypocritical.

Several magazine covers featuring Obama had mockery-type remarks for text but

most of the negative attributes occurred on covers that featured both Obama and McCain.

This is the reason Obama had more negative than positive or neutral. For the covers that

featured only Obama, he had a higher number of neutral text attributes which reiterates

my previous statement of the cover text showing objectivity towards Obama.

Attributes in facial expression. The number of attributes for McCain in terms of

positive, negative, and neutral in the facial expression unit of analysis was divided

somewhat equally. McCains ratings in expression showed no significant difference

between positive, negative, or neutral though the higher number belonged to the negative

section. Positive attributes occurred more in expression for Obama than negative

attributes. Obama also had more positive and neutral attribute occurrences than McCain

and less negative attribute occurrences than McCain. Nearly 80% of Obamas covers that

were coded with positive text attributes showed him smiling. The lacking in neutrality

for facial expression for Obama and McCain will be examined closer later on in this

paper.

Attributes in lighting. Neither candidate had particularly high totals in negative

attributes for lighting. However, Obama had only one negative attribute occurrence in

this category whereas McCains numbers were even for positive and negative

occurrencesboth having three occurrences each.

Both McCain and Obama received a higher amount of neutral attributes in

lighting than in positive or negative. This was because most of the magazine cover


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Obama vs. McCain 24

pictures featured natural lighting, mostly from the sun, which shed an even amount of

light throughout the picture. A few of Obamas covers had lighting from the sun that

created a glowing effect near his head or around his head. These were the March 10,

2008 issue ofTime and the June 2, 2008 issue ofNewsweek. There was also a group of

covers that were coded for neutral lighting because they were either drawings or

graphically designed pictures with no lighting.

Attributes in activity. Activity presented virtually opposite results for the two

candidates. McCain had four total positive attributes and six negative while Obama had

six positive and three negative attribute occurrences. Obama also had a higher total of

neutral attributes than positive or negative. McCain though had more negative attribute

occurrences than positive and neutral.

Unlike past studies, none of the pictures used in this study featured candidates

interacting with supporters or speaking to a visible crowd. Obama received a greater

amount of neutral occurrences because most of his covers were either posed for or were a

tight shot of him from his head to his shoulders. McCain had more covers that featured

other people like Sarah Palin or were caricatures that had him doing negative actions.

One example of this The New YorkerNovember 3, 2008 cover which shows a caricature

of a child dressed like McCain trick-or-treating with a child dressed like Sarah Palin, both

wearing masks of the two, and the other trick-or-treaters are running away from them

frightened.

Attributes in environment. Both McCain and Obama had a total of five negative

attributes in the environment unit of analysis. Both also had a higher number of neutral


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Obama vs. McCain 25

attribute occurrences than positive with Obama having a total of 11 and McCain having a

total of eight.

The results from this unit of analysis have a direct correlation to the activity unit

of analysis. Just like the activity was hard to determine due to the tightness or closeness

of the picture shot, the environment was usually also hard to establish because of this

reason. The background frequently appeared blurred or was a generally solid color.

Negative attributes for environment appeared in drawings, caricatures, or graphically

designed pictures. The June 23-30, 2008 issue ofU.S. News & World Reporthad both

candidates pictures places on top of a chaotic bombing scene.

Attributes in camera angle. Obama had a higher total of positive attribute

occurrences for camera angles than McCain. However, neither candidate had high

numbers of negative attribute occurrences. Obama had zero negative attribute

occurrences and McCain received only one occurrence. More than half of McCains total

covers showed him at eye level, which was coded as a neutral attribute. Obama had a

total of 15 neutral covers which also showed him at eyelevel. This was his highest total

in any category. This could tie into the fact that a large number of the covers were close-

range shots of the candidates that were cropped to appear eye level. Obama also had

more staged or posed pictures than McCain which allowed for more intimate and direct

interactions between Obama and the camera.

Attributes in body position. Body position for McCain did not reveal significant

differences between positive and neutral attribute occurrences since they had equal totals.

The negative attribute occurrences were low for each candidate but McCain still had one

more than Obama. The neutral attribute occurrences are Obamas second highest total in


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Obama vs. McCain 26

a unit of analysis. Obamas highest total appeared in the neutral unit of analysis mostly

because 70% of Obamas covers did not have him facing forward, which would have

been coded as positive. Further examination of this will be done later on. McCains

covers had him facing sideways as many times as they had him facing forward.

Attributions in other units of analysis. For this alternative category, McCain

received only one positive attribute which was from the October 2008 issue of The

Progressive. This cover was a drawing but had McCain dressed very professionally and

wearing patriotic colors. Obama had four negative attribute occurrences but had nine

positive attribute occurrences. Most of these were due to the overall message the cover

communicated to the consumer which combined all the categories to produce a positive

leaning. A good example of this comes from The National Reviews June 30, 2008

cover. The picture is of Obama with this suit jacket off, sleeves rolled up and standing in

front of a sign that recruits voters with text below saying The Organizer: Barack Obama

in Chicago. The overall message is saying Obama is willing to roll his sleeves up and

get things done and has done so in Chicago. However, the difference between Obamas

positive attribute occurrences and neutral attribute occurrences is not significant. The

difference between McCains six neutral attribute occurrences and Obamas seven neutral

attribute occurrences is not significant either. Since journalists usually strive for

objectivity, a similar result in neutral attribute occurrences for both Obama and McCain

could be explained by this attempt.

Comparing Totals

After adding up all positive, negative, and neutral attributes for each category for

a unit of analysis total, the differences between John McCain and Barack Obama was


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Obama vs. McCain 27

significant. Obamas total attribute score was 29 while the total of McCains attributes

added up to -15. This difference of 44 between the two overall totals shows that McCain

had lower scores that added up to a negative number. Obama had a higher score that

added up to a positive number. Table 3 shows the score totals for both McCain and

Obama in each unit of analysis. Taken as a whole, it displays Obama has having higher

total scores than McCain.

TABLE 3

Totals for Each Unit of Analysis

Text Facial

expression

Lighting Activity Environment Camera

angle

Body

position

Other

Obama 0 4 7 3 0 6 4 5

McCain -8 -1 0 -2 -3 3 3 -7

While more than half of John McCains totals did fall into the negatives, Obamas

never went below a total of zero. McCains lowest score came from text unit of analysis

and his highest scores were tied between body position and camera angle. This finding

was not surprising since he had relatively high numbers of positive attribute occurrences

within those units of analysis. However, his scores do not succeed beyond the total of

three.

When the positive, negative, and neutral attribute ratings are added up together for

the other category, it sets Obama at a total of 5 and McCain at a total of -7. This unit of

analysis had a difference of 14 which was the higher than the rest. The overall messages

for Obama covers were reasonably positive while McCains caricatures brought down


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Obama vs. McCain 28

this total for him since they exaggerated his facial expressions and physical features and

communicated sarcastic messages.

Difference by Magazine

Since I collected the magazine covers via convenience sample, I was not able to

get an equal amount of covers that featured either candidate. I had a total of 15 covers

for Obama and 10 for McCain. I expected to find to covers that featured both candidates

though which helped to balance out the difference. Five magazine covers featured both

candidates and I was able to code each candidate separately. Still, it was difficult to find

covers that featured John McCain. I was only able to get covers of Barack Obama for

certain magazines because they did not have covers of McCain or they were not available

to me. This difference, although slight, still could have skewed my results.

The differences between each magazine however gave some interesting results.

U.S. News & World Reportwas the only magazine who had higher rating for McCain

than Obama. The American Conservative and The New Yorkerresulted in totals that had

both candidates end up with negative ratings. The magazine that showed the highest

difference between Obama and McCain wasNewsweek.

Discussion

Expectations versus Findings

Going back to my original research question, I found that the political and news

magazines covers used in this study did have a higher number of positive attributes

toward Barack Obama than John McCain. In every unit of analysis, Obama had higher

numbers of positive attribute occurrences. These magazine covers that were looked at

varied for Obama and McCain in the number of negative attribute occurrences for each


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Obama vs. McCain 29

unit of analysis. McCain had high numbers of negative attribute occurrences in seven out

of the eight units of analysis while Obamas negative attributes only occurred more than

the positive attributes in two units of analysis.

I wanted to know how print photos were framed in terms of positive and negative

attributes but the addition of the neutral category could have taken away from the two

opposing themes and complicated my findings a bit more than intended. Still, coding

neutral attributes proved to be useful and was a necessity for achieving a larger amount of

data.

After including neutral attributes into my coding method, I expected to find most

of the attributes landing in that range. There is an expectancy for journalism and mass

media to be fair and objective about the stories and people they are covering in order for

people to form their own opinions (Tuggle, Carr, & Huffman, 2007). Yet, neutral

attributes did not always outnumber the positive or negative attribute occurrences which

means the magazine covers did not always present unbiased representations of the

candidates. This may be a result of journalism shifting away from un-opinionated

coverage as the literature review showed. If images used by the mass media during

campaigns have as much sway on voters as the literature review suggests, then the

magazine covers analyzed for this research project would have probably influenced

voters to view John McCain in a negative way. This is because my findings show half of

the units of analysis displayed more negative attributes than neutral or positive. Of

course, I did not take into consideration the political leanings of the magazines and did

not expect to have so many of the covers turn out to be what I considered as mocking

caricatures.


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Obama vs. McCain 30

One finding that I did not expect was facial expression to have such low neutral

attribute occurrences. After some analyzing though, it is apparent the reason for this is

that magazine covers need to be visually stimulating and they do not want to see a

dispassionate, boring looking candidate gracing the front cover. Magazine distributors

know they have a limited window of opportunity to catch consumers attentions and the

best way to do that is to communicate messages through the visual channel (Bucy &

Grabe, 2007; Coleman & Banning, 2006; Waldman & Devitt, 1998). Covers will either

feature a candidate smiling, happy and confident or they will be scowling, worried and

mad because it piques interest quicker than distracted or meditative expressions because

of the lack of emotion.

I did expect to find more covers that featured Barack Obama with a neutral

expression since during the campaign he was known for being a very calm and

collected person. The covers that were coded as positive for facial expression

attributes did show him smiling or looking confident, which turned out to have a higher

total of positive expressions than neutral.

Also, after looking at previous studies, I thought I would have covers that featured

pictures of candidates and large crowds of potential voters and/or supporters. None of

the covers displayed pictures like this though. The covers had tightly cropped shots of

McCain and Obama that usually did not go below the shoulder. With the exception of

drawings, caricatures, and staged photos, I hardly ever knew the conditions under which

the pictures were taken and what the candidate was doing at the moment. However,

considering the fact that most of the covers featuring live pictures showed the candidates

facing sideways or at a slight angle, I would suggest these pictures were taken by a


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Obama vs. McCain 31

photographer at a convention or rally. If the magazine was not able to get the candidates

to pose for each and every cover, they most likely sent a photographer out to snap some

pictures while Obama or McCain was at a public event during the campaign. Covers like

the May 10, 2008 issue ofThe Economistthat show Barack Obama in profile were most

likely taken during a speech he was giving to a crowd. Factors like body position, camera

angle, environment, and activity were influenced by the magazines use ofpictures that

were easy for them to obtain.

Limitations and Recommendations

Since this is a pilot study, I recognize there were limitations to my methods and

acknowledge they were not perfect. A lack of experience with the content analysis

method and time constrained helped to hinder the possibilities of this project. If had

more time to implement the study and collect the data, I would have wanted a larger

sample size of not only different political and news magazines but also in the number of

covers from each magazine. A larger and more equally divided sample size would have

given me more data to work with and a better chance of finding solid results. For future

research I would recommend having a longer period of time to carry out and complete the

project so that a larger sample size may be possible. I would also suggest using every

news and political magazine cover that featured Barack Obama and/or John McCain to

get a better sense of who was favored on covers. To have clearer insight to the

differences between magazines, a research may consider using a smaller range of

magazines and use every cover from those few selected magazines that featured John

McCain and/or Barack Obama.


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Obama vs. McCain 32

As stated before, since the sample used within this study was a convenience

sample, I did not get the magazines I originally set out to get. After going to a few local

libraries to find certain magazines, I found their resources were usually limited or they

did not have a wide variety of news and political magazines. I then had to search online

for the remaining amount of covers I needed. Looking online lead to problems with the

magazine websites wanting me to subscribe to either their online magazine or their print

magazines. Certain websites were also not willing to provide me with images of their

back-issue covers without a subscription. I suggest that future researches take this into

consideration ahead of time if looking at back-issues or archived magazines. I was not

willing to pay for subscriptions to ten different magazines but another research might be

willing to or find funding to do so.

Another factor of limitation was that I was the only person coding the news and

political magazine covers. By having only myself to rate and code the covers, my

observation of what counts as a positive, negative or neutral attribute is the only

perspective presented. Future research should have coders trained so that ratings can be

compared between each one to find the most accurate results.

Conclusion

While this study cannot prove or disprove claims of biased attitudes from the

mass media in the 2008 election, it would be worthy to consider how consumers and

voters would have reacted to seeing the covers used here while they were still on the

newsstands. A magazine cover that had one or two negative attribute occurrences did not

necessarily make the entire cover negative, but those aspects of the cover could have


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Obama vs. McCain 33

stood out to people like a negative expression. The same can be said for magazine

coversthat a few positive attributes occurrences did not make the overall cover positive

but could have caught a persons attention. If Obama really was shown more often on

news and political magazine covers with higher positive attribute occurrences then people

who saw those covers could have felt more inclined to vote for him because of that

exposure. Media have more influence and impact on our daily lives than we sometimes

realize. Having one realm of mass media like news and political magazines back up a

certain candidate brings about the question of who is really picking the new president; the

voters or the agenda-setters.


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Obama vs. McCain 34

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Appendix A

FIGURE 1

Individual Magazine Cover Coding Sheet

Magazine title Date of issue Candidate (O=Obama; M=McCain)

Rating (-1, 0, 1) Text Description

Rating F. expression Description

Rating Lighting Description

Rating Activity Description

Rating Environment Description

Rating C. angle Description

Rating B. position Description

Rating Other Description

FIGURE 2

Collective Table of all Coded Attributes for each Candidate

JOHN MCCAIN

Unit of

Analysis

Positive attribute

occurrences

Negative attribute

occurrences

Neutral attribute

occurrences

Text ( example: 1 9 5 )

F. expression

Lighting

Activity

Environment

C. angle

B. position

Other


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Obama vs. McCain 37

Appendix C

Magazine covers used in study

(2008, February 11). The American Conservative , Cover.

(2008, February 25). The American Conservative , Cover.

(2008, November 3). The American Conservative , Cover.

(2008, May 10-16). The Economist, Cover.

(2008, August 23-29). The Economist, Cover.

(2008, August 30-September 5). The Economist, Cover.

(2008, April 21). The Nation , Cover.

(2008, September 1). The Nation , Cover.

(2008, September 29). The Nation , Cover.

(2008, April 17). The National Review , Cover.

(2008, June 30). The National Review , Cover.

(2008, September 1). The National Review , Cover.

(2008, June 2).Newsweek, Cover.

(2008, July 21).Newsweek, Cover.

(2008, October 6).Newsweek, Cover.

(2008, July 21). The New Yorker.

(2008, October 27). The New Yorker, Cover.

(2008, November 3). The New Yorker, Cover.

(2008, May). The Progressive , Cover.

(2008, June). The Progressive , Cover.

(2008, October). The Progressive , Cover.


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(2008, February 4). Time , Cover.

(2008, March 10). Time , Cover.

(2008, May 19). Time , Cover.

(2008, February 18). U.S. News & World Report, Cover.

(2008, February 25-March 3). U.S. News & World Report, Cover.

(2008, June 23-30). U.S. News & World Report, Cover.

(2008, August). The Week, Cover.

(2008, September). The Week, Cover.

(2008, October). The Week, Cover.

jfairbanks obama vs. mccain

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