Kevin Rafter

Commercialism and Election Framing: A Content Analysis of Twelve Newspapers in the 2011 Irish General Election

The framing of elections represents the most overt instance of the media’s power to influence politics. We content analyzed twelve newspapers’ coverage of the 2011 general election in Ireland. Ireland’s newspaper market has some special advantages for social scientists, as it allows us to separate the newspaper types/formats (tabloid vs. broadsheet) from their commercial basis (vulnerability or otherwise to short-term sales and profits). Therefore, we are able to make a particular contribution to the long-standing debate about the interaction of free market capitalism and the media. Our results do not find a homogeneous general election frame in Ireland. The variation in framing across Irish newspapers was much greater than that between the five countries for which we can find strictly comparable results. The different commercial statuses of the newspapers do seem to be related to different dominant frames of election coverage, but only after we develop a new measure that takes account of the relative overall prominence of election coverage in the newspapers examined.

Voices in the crisis: The role of media elites in interpreting Ireland’s banking collapse

This article focuses on the experts chosen as sources in radio news coverage at the start of Ireland’s financial crisis in 2008. The study examines which source categories were afforded opportunities to discuss this major international news story at the start of the European financial crisis. Access to these news programmes allows guests to shape public discourse, while the range of voices influences the character of wider policy debate. We find an elite-orientated coverage with official sources having strongest access in the 3-month period after the announcement of the controversial bank guarantee. While there was a marked business elite focus in sources selected, we also find strong evidence of ‘interpretative journalism’ in the presence of reporters as programme guests. There was a very clear gender bias. The results raise important issues about the nature of democratic debate in a mediated political environment as the selection of a narrow range of voices limits alternative perspectives in public debate.

Redefining the Irish Presidency: The Politics of a ‘Non-political’ Office, 1973–1990

This article examines the presidencies of Erskine Childers, Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh and Patrick Hillery during the period 1973–1990. Each of the presidential terms is examined in terms of the background of the incumbent, the circumstances of his nomination as president and his role in office. Commencing with the election of Erskine Childers, the role assumed a higher public profile, with national engagements and international travel, and this activity has become a defining feature of all subsequent presidencies. Nonetheless, each of the presidents covered in this article adopted a narrow interpretation of the role, sought to avoid conflict with the government of the day and was strongly guided by governmental definition of the role and its powers. Moreover, during the term of the Fine Gael–Labour coalition led by Liam Cosgrave (1973–1977) evidence was found of uncomfortable cohabitation between presidents and an administration from different political traditions, leading in one case to a presidential resignation, although cohabitation appears not to have been an issue during the later coalition led by Garret FitzGerald.

Leadership changes in Fine Gael and the Labour party, 2002

The start of 2002 offered great promise and understandable anxiety for the leaders of the two main opposition parties in Dáil Éireann. Michael Noonan and Ruairi Quinn were seasoned politicians with considerable ministerial experience. For each man, however, the imminent contest would be their first general election as leader of their respective party, Fine Gael and Labour. Noonan had taken over the helm of Fine Gael in January 2001, ousting former Taoiseach, John Bruton. He promised to revitalise the party with the electorate and return it to government, most likely in a coalition arrangement with Labour and, possibly, the Green Party. The Tipperary South by-election in June 2001 was the high point of Noonan’s tenure, although as the vacancy had been created by the death of a sitting Fine Gael Teachta Dála (TD), there was, in fact, no overall parliamentary gain. Noonan had been chosen by his party colleagues to turn around Fine Gael but the party’s opinion poll ratings remained disappointing. There was the added problem that Labour continued to spurn the idea of a pre-election policy arrangement or national transfer pact. While Noonan was a new leader heading into election 2002, Quinn had had a longer term as leader of his party. He replaced Dick Spring in the aftermath of Labour’s disastrous general and presidential elections in 1997. Over the following five years Labour won a number of Dáil byelections, although the party’s performance in the 1999 European and local elections was unimpressive. While Noonan was hoping to become Taoiseach in a coalition deal involving Quinn, the Labour leader had other ideas. He committed his party to keeping its options open on possible government partners until after the electorate had had their say.

Understanding the influence of journalists and politicians on content: A cross-longitudinal analysis of Chilean political news coverage

By means of a cross-longitudinal quantitative content analysis of the Chilean national press, this article analyses the changes in reporting styles and the framing of politics in news coverage between 2006 and 2011, exploring whether the features of political reporting found in studies of Western countries are evident in the case of Chile. According to the data, while politicians trigger the majority of political news stories, political coverage originates significantly more from events than from statements or issues. Likewise, although framing politics as a game is a dominant and significant characteristic of the Chilean press, there is a systematic increase in the public policy frame. The results also indicate low levels of interventionism in covering political news, showing the practice of journalism where politicians have a strong influence on news content. The research allows for discussion on how politicians are adapting to the needs of the media and presents a deeper understanding of the characteristics that define political journalism in new democracies.

Does commercial orientation matter for policy-game framing? A content analysis of television and radio news programmes on public and private stations

This article examines the relationship between different ownership types in broadcast news to determine the portrayal of election coverage as a strategic game against a focus on policy issues. Using a content analysis of six television and radio programmes during the 2011 Irish general election, we test hypotheses about differences in coverage provided by public service programming with equivalent private sector coverage. Our findings improve upon two key aspects of earlier research on game-policy frames. First, we show that commercial outlets can produce content that has democratic value, and suggest that before reaching definitive judgements not only it is necessary to distinguish between radio and television programmes but it is also advisable to study individual programming on each medium. Second, in a key market segment, we show that there is a clear distinction between editorial choices on policy content between public and private radio. These findings suggest that policy-orientated private programming may react to factors such as a culture of public service broadcasting as well as regulatory interventionism. We also suggest that there are cases where policy-rich private programming is driven by different editorial values from its public counterpart which can benefit the public.

Explaining Media Framing of Election Coverage: Bringing in the Political Context

Media coverage of elections in Europe and North America has increasingly focused on the horse-race and the campaign as a game rather than a policy debate. This is often explained by the changes in media pressures. It may also reflect the narrowing of policy space between left and right and the comparative prosperity enjoyed in Europe and North America. But the relevance of politics varies. The global economic crisis might have led to an increased interest in policy among voters and focus on it by media. Ireland experienced both extremes of boom and crisis between the late 1990s and 2011. The Irish case allows us to test the impact of the crisis on media framing of elections. This article uses original data from Ireland’s last three elections, with a research design that holds other pertinent variables constant. We find empirical support for the theoretical expectation that the context of the election affects the relative focus on campaign or horserace versus substantive policy issues.

The impact of the economic crisis on media framing: evidence from three elections in Ireland

Media coverage of elections in Europe and North America has increasingly focused on the campaign as a game rather than a policy debate. This is often explained by the changes in media pressures. It may also reflect the narrowing of policy space between left and right and the comparative prosperity enjoyed in Europe and North America. But the relevance of politics varies. The global economic crisis might have led to an increased interest in policy among voters and focus on it by media. Ireland experienced both extremes of boom and crisis between the late 1990s and 2011. The Irish case allows us to test the impact of the crisis on media framing of elections. This article uses original data from the three most recent national elections in Ireland, with a research design that holds other pertinent variables constant. We find empirical support for the theoretical expectation that the context of the election affects the relative focus on campaign or horserace versus substantive policy issues.

The President of Ireland: A Constitutional and Political Figurehead?

Two days after the 2011 presidential election, the Irish Times (29 October 2011) described the event as ‘an extraordinary campaign with an unprecedented seven candidates’, dominated by negative campaigning, and adding up to a ‘brutal experience’ for many of those who contested it. The tone of the campaign suggested a singleminded determination on the part of candidates to win this office; and media coverage of the event bore testimony to the great public interest in the outcome. Clearly, for the candidates and their supporters a successful outcome was worth fighting hard for; and for many in the general public the identity of Ireland’s next President genuinely mattered. Yet, as is well known, the Irish President is endowed with relatively few powers of any substance. Why, then, have elections to this position been contested with such intensity, especially since 1990? This is a theme that runs through this special issue, where the remaining articles cluster into three themes: the constitutional and political status of the office, the process by which presidents have been selected or elected, and the manner in which the presidential role has been shaped by changing historical realities and the force of the personalities that have filled this position. In this introductory article, we set the context for this discussion. We begin with an outline of the constitutional and political framework that defines the operation of the Irish presidency, the circumstances associated with its creation, and the manner in which it has evolved. We then look more explicitly at three aspects of this office that are discussed later in this issue: the role of the President of Ireland in comparative and historical perspective, the manner in which incumbents have shaped the

More European but more negative

Political parties and election candidates use posters and TV spots to present themselves to the electorate in the hope of interesting them in their goals and promises and securing their support in the ballot box. This chapter draws on a study of poster and video spot advertisements in the 2014 elections. In section one relevant findings on the posters included in the study are discussed before the results for video spot advertising is examined in section two. The following section specifically explores how the EU and wider European issues were represented in these posters and videos.