Reporting the News: An Organizational Analysis

Abstract

This study of reporters for 2 daily newspapers in "Southeast City" focuses on the key org'al processes of recruitment, soc'ization & control, esp as they relate to the problem of media bias. What emerges is a picture of recruitment & soc'ization as processes which perform the dual function of att promotion & myth maintenance. These processes are so structured that favorable att's among newsmen are assured without violation of the instit'al mythology. The recruit's application of pol'al criteria performs a winnowing function for the newspaper, effectively insuring that the reporter is favorably disposed toward newspaper policies; the newspaper's application of achievement criteria performs a legitimating function for the reporter, allowing him to retain his faith in the instit'al myths. Thus, biased news coverage is found to be the product of a series of org'al processes which are structured to avoid conflict between reporters & their superiors. The implications of this picture of the reporter-org relationship are briefly explored. Modified HA.