Affiliation:
1. Center for Journalism and Communication Research, School of Journalism, University of Texas at Austin, USA
Abstract
This study’s author surveyed news producers about their desire to attract young television viewers to local news. Producers of local late evening “shared” newscasts were asked how much they valued viewers of different ages. Not one producer cited viewers older than 50 as their most important audience, despite their role as the most loyal news viewers. There were clear correlations between the age and experience of producers and their motivation to attract young viewers. Producers crafted newscasts for people like themselves, establishing peer consonance as a fertile area to explore within gatekeeping.
Subject
Communication,Information Systems