Doo-Hun Choi

Food nanotechnology in the news. Coverage patterns and thematic emphases during the last decade.

For novel issues like food nanotechnology, media can play an important role in shaping the awareness and mental associations that underlie public opinion. Seeking to complement recent research exploring public opinion formation about food nanotechnology, this study tracks the evolution of U.S. newspaper coverage of food nanotechnology, identifying the descriptive and thematic traits that have characterized this coverage over time. We use a rigorous methodology to examine the levels of coverage, authorship patterns, and thematic emphases exhibited in the American journalistic narrative about this burgeoning application of nanoscience. Our findings indicate that U.S. newspaper coverage of food nanotechnology is relatively modest in terms of how often it has been covered, its thematic diversity, and the level of journalistic expertise from which it was produced. To our knowledge, this is the first study to empirically assess journalistic coverage of food nanotechnology.

Coverage of emerging technologies: A comparison between print and online media

This study explores differences in volume of coverage and thematic content between US print news and online media coverage for an emerging technology – nanotechnology. We found that while American print news media and Google News coverage of this emerging technology has peaked and started to decline, Google Blog Search coverage of nanotechnology is still growing. Additionally, our data show discrepancies in thematic content of online and print news coverage. Specifically, online users are more likely to encounter environmentally themed content relating to nanotechnology than are users of American print newspapers. Differences in the amount of coverage of nanotechnology in print news and online media as well as thematic content suggest that public discourse on related issues will be shaped, in part, by media consumers’ preferred information platform.

Attribute agenda setting, priming and the media’s influence on how to think about a controversial issue

Using a controversial issue in South Korea, a government plan to relocate the administrative capital, this study examines attribute agenda setting. Linking survey data to an analysis of news coverage, more specifically, the article explores how television news has influenced the way the public evaluates the plan and its various attributes, i.e. potential benefits and problems of the relocation. Findings support the idea that the media could increase public salience of certain attributes by placing them more prominently in news coverage. An important outcome of attribute agenda setting was its priming effect. Issue attributes emphasized in the media were functioning as important standards by which the audience evaluated the plan. These findings, taken together, enhance the intercultural validity of attribute agenda setting by demonstrating that the theory can be applied to South Korea, a country with a unique cultural tradition.

Deliberation in Spite of Controversy? News Media and the Public's Evaluation of a Controversial Issue in South Korea

Using a controversial issue in South Korea—a government plan to relocate the administrative capital—this study examines the role of news media use in facilitating informed issue evaluation, a form of deliberative decision making, where citizens carefully evaluate different attributes of an issue. Survey data indicated that respondents who used news media often were more able to articulate a specific reason why relocation would be a good or a bad idea. Heavy users of news media were also more firmly opinionated on key issue attributes and tended to think about the issue more carefully.

News Media Use, Informed Issue Evaluation, and South Koreans' Support for Genetically Modified Foods

Analyzing survey data on the issue of genetically modified foods in South Korea, this study explores the role of news media in facilitating informed issue evaluation. Respondents who read a newspaper more often were more knowledgeable about the issue. Also, heavy newspaper readers were more able than light readers to hold consistent views on different aspects of the issue. When it comes to television news, heavy viewers held stronger opinions than light viewers on the key issue attributes. News media use seems to allow the audience to engage in greater cognitive elaboration, helping them to make an informed and deliberate issue evaluation.

U.S. News Coverage of Neuroscience Nanotechnology: How U.S. Newspapers Have Covered Neuroscience Nanotechnology During the Last Decade

Nanotechnology has become one of the fastest-growing emerging technologies in the United States. President Bill Clinton established the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) to increase federal investment in nanotechnology research and development in 2001. In 2003, the U S Congress enacted the twenty-first Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act to evaluate and promote federal nanotechnology research, development, and other activities. This research and development in nanotechnology has led to the advancement of nanotechnology applications and products. For example, consumers can find over 1,000 nanotechnology applications on the market, ranging from tennis rackets to skin care products (Scheufele and Dudo 2010). The social penetration of nanotechnology has raised concerns as an important social issue associated with its potential benefits and risks (Scheufele and Lewenstein 2005). News media have been covering nanotechnology issues for decades, helping to shape how the public understand and perceive the new technology, and whether they support the technology or not (Scheufele and Lewenstein 2005; Weaver et al. 2009).