Media Orientation and Television News Viewing

Abstract

Based on a survey of 364 households in a small northeastern city, this study used factor analysis to compare the surveillance role and communication utility of television and newspapers. The study, reflecting a uses and gratifications approach, defines surveillance as meeting readers'/viewers' need to know about community and world events, and communicatory utility as providing readers/viewers with information to use in social interaction with others. The study finds much variance explained by these two uses, plus finds those who seek hard news on television also seek hard news in newspapers. News information-seeking behavior held across television and newspapers.