Event

Enlightening the Disinformed, Misinformed, and Uninformed: The Role of Local Television News in the United States

  • Speaker  Prof. Barbara Allen

  • Location

    Maison du Savoir, MSA Auditoire 3.370

    2, place de l'Université

    L-4365, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg

  • Topic(s)
    FHSE, Social Sciences
  • Type(s)
    In-person event, Lectures and seminars

For several decades, analysts have been concerned about the decline in local news media in the United States. Since 2000, 2,200 weekly newspapers have closed, and news staff have dropped by 57%. In broadcast TV, Sinclair Broadcast Group’s purchase of 294 local stations has raised concerns about the nationalization of local news content. These trends coincide with declining local political participation and support for federalism and democratic institutions. Barbara Allen (Guest Professor, University of Luxembourg) examines these trends and their implications, reporting on data with Daniel Stevens (University of Exeter) on local TV news in Minneapolis-St. Paul. Despite high voter participation and viewer loyalty, a content analysis of over 5,000 local TV election news stories from six US elections (2000 to 2024) reveals shallow coverage, a focus on presidential races, negativity, “horserace,” and conflict. Professor Allen contrasts this coverage with local, national, and cable news coverage of a local incident with global impact, the murder of George Floyd, in a study finding significant differences.

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