Covering Conflict: A Structural-Pluralist Analysis of how a Small-Town and a Big-City Newspaper Reported an Environmental Controversy

Abstract

Structural-pluralism theory pertaining to differences in how metropolitan and small-town news media cover the news is used to frame a comparative analysis of source-quotation patterns by a small-town and a nearby big-city newspaper covering the same environmental conflict. Results suggest that some aspects of structural-pluralist theory may merit re-examination as the social structure of small towns undergoes change, meaning some community papers may perform more like their big-city counterparts for sustained periods of time.