The Public's View of Newspaper Accountability

Abstract

How does a newspaper audience that is regularly exposed to an ombudsman program and a news criticism column perceive the newspapers' accountability? A cross-sectional telephone survey was conducted with 393 respondents in Louisville, Ky, where newspapers have both features. The findings supported the expectation that those with higher awareness of the ombudsman have higher perceptions of newspaper accountability. There was no support for the idea that more frequent column readership would be linked to higher perceptions of accountability. The findings may be connected to the promotion of the ombudsman program by the newspapers.