Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 1
The Millennium Development Goals and Agenda Setting:
A Review of Newspaper Articles in the US Media
Kathryn E. LeClair
A Capstone Project
Presented to the Faculty of the School of
Communication in Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree of Masters of Arts
In Public Communication
Supervisor: Prof. Lauren Feldman
April 21, 2011
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 2
COPYRIGHT
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 3
Kathryn LeClair
2011
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 4
Acknowledgments
First, I thank Professor Lauren Feldman for her guidance throughout the process of writing this
capstone project. Every step of the way, you were there for all of us to support our writing,
encourage our creativity, and denounce our belief that we were going crazy. No matter how
confused I might have been about my own paper, you could always clear it up for me in my
head.
Also, I thank my parents, David and Joyce. You have given me everything in life, including
unconditional love, support, and an excellent education. Without you two, I would not be
graduating with my master’s this year. Thank you for always being there to talk to when I
wanted to procrastinate writing this capstone just a little bit longer.
I thank my friends back home in Massachusetts who have always supported my decision to move
to DC and always welcome me back home with open arms. My thanks to Jarrett especially;
without you, I would have never had the courage to leave home and experience one of the best
years of my life.
Finally, I thank my new friends in the School of Communications graduate program for being
there to support me and each other through our endless amounts of work and for being there to
explore DC with. Because of you all, it’s going to be harder than I could have imagined leaving
graduate school. You’ve made DC my second home.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 5
ABSTRACT
With the deadline for reaching the Millennium Development Goals only four years away,
a more thorough approach to communications is needed to increase awareness and support.
Agenda setting theory is explored throughout the literature review to discuss results of content
and textual analysis of the MDGs. This capstone shows that the New York Times, the
Washington Post, and USA Today give limited space to coverage of the MDGs in their articles.
The Millennium Campaign, WHO, and UNICEF need to increase the frequency of press releases
in order to create more support for foreign aid. Articles and press releases should also be
mindful of covering events rather than the content of the entire MDGs in order to produce
newsworthiness and attention for their distribution of information.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 6
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………..6
II. Literature Review ……………………………………………………………………..10
a. Agenda Setting …………………………………………………………………10
b. International Agenda Setting …………………………………………………...11
c. International Aid Communications ……………………………………………..14
d. Media Outreach by Nonprofit Organizations …………………………………...15
e. US Media Coverage of the MDGs ……………………………………................16
III. Methodology …………………………………………………………………...............20
a. Media Outreach Analysis………………………………………………………...20
b. News Content Analysis…………………………………………………………..20
IV. Results ……………………………………………………………………….................22
a. Media Outreach Analysis………………………………………………………...22
i. Millennium Campaign …………………………………………………..22
ii. World Health Organization………………………………………………23
iii. United Nations Children’s Fund…………………………………………24
b. News Content Analysis…………………………………………………………..26
V. Discussion ……………………………………………………………………. ……….32
VI. Conclusion …………………………………………………………………….. ………37
VII. References ……………………………………………………………………………………...38
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 7
INTRODUCTION
The United Nations Millennium Summit of 2000 united 189 world governments for the
completion of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), representing an unprecedented
compact of global aid from the richest countries to the developing world. The UN coalition set
eight major goals which they claimed would be completed by 2015. These goals include halving
extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary education, promoting gender equality
and empowering women through education and employment, reducing child mortality by twothirds, reducing maternal mortality by three-quarters, combating HIV/AIDS, malaria,
tuberculosis and other diseases, ensuring environmental stability, and creating a global
partnership for development through non-discriminatory trading and finances. In order to
successfully implement the MDGs in the remaining four years of the project, a more extensive
communication outreach is necessary.
This study will look at the amount and quality of US media coverage of the Millennium
Development Goals and will overview the press attempts made by various organizations which
support the MDGs.
The most recent UN Summit to review the MDGs took place between September 20 and 22,
2010 in New York. The outcome document, entitled Keeping the Promise: United to Achieve
the Millennium Development Goals, displays the updated agenda created by world leaders to
ensure that goals are met by 2015. The most major advancement in the 2010 meeting for the
contribution of aid occurred for the health of women and children. Countries, both developing
and developed, international organizations, foundations, and other private sector supporters
pledged $40 billion in resources over the next five years to complete a global strategy for
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 8
women’s and children’s health (Donlon, Pascale, & Kanhema, 2010). Other increases in aid
occurred in each of the eight segments of the goals, including $3.5 billion from Japan for
education in developing countries and $1.4 billion from France for the Global Fund to Fight
AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (Donlon et al., 2010).
A look at the contributions of the United States compared to that of other countries shows the
lack of visible support for increased participation. While the US contributes the most bilaterally,
when compared to the size of the US economy, the US ranks low on aid volume. The Official
Development Assistance (ODA) stated that every country should give 0.7 percent of its Gross
National Income (GNI) towards foreign aid; in 2008, the US gave only 0.18 percent and has
made no commitment to the international ODA target while all European Union countries have
met, or plan to meet, this target by 2015(“What About the United States?,” 2010). In opinion
polls, the US public supports foreign aid and is in favor of maintaining or increasing current aid
levels, but grossly overestimates the amount of foreign aid the US actually contributes (“What
About the United States?,” 2010). While the population supports many of the efforts of the
MDGs, they are misinformed about the facts and this shows that more information could lead to
further support.
The purpose of this study is to show the lack of media coverage for the MDGs and how
improvement in media outreach and agenda setting for MDG organizations might help the US to
improve contributions to the achievement of the goals by 2015. In order to examine the amount
and quality of US media coverage of the MDGs, a content analysis of newspaper articles from
the New York Times, USA Today, and The Washington Post was conducted. The press attempts
made by various organizations which support the MDGs were also analyzed. Three
organizations were selected as the focus of this analysis, all of which are partners for the MDGs
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 9
and have the highest amount of media outreach: The Millennium Campaign, the World Health
Organization (WHO), and the United Nations’ Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
As the scope of this project is limited, the study automatically has limitations. For one,
only print media sources were examined because of the time constraints of the study.
Furthermore, only top news sources from the United States were examined for news references
to the MDGs. Finally, the constraints of this project only allow for an overview of the media
techniques of a few organizations involved with the MDGs, though many more exist and are
working to ensure that the goals are achieved. While the results of this study may not be fully
generalizable to the entire population of MDG news coverage and outreach, the study provides a
thorough examination of coverage from the leading US newspapers and the most visible MDG
partner organizations.
Despite these limitations, the study will be significant to non-profits, the US public, and
humanity. If non-profits do not look at the impact of their own media outreach programs, then
they cannot determine the impact of their entire campaign. Much of the United States public is
an untapped resource for the Millennium Campaign and, following from the tenets of agenda
setting theory (McCombs & Shaw, 1972), increasing the amount of media coverage will increase
awareness and support. The MDGs, which were created to have a positive impact on humanity,
will fail if successful media strategies and outreach are not achieved. This study is important for
the success of the worldwide program as well as the success of future global programs created to
implement change.
This study will first examine different aspects of the literature which refer to the
contributions of agenda setting used in US media and the use of agenda setting in the MDGs thus
far. An overview of three non-government organizations working towards the MDGs will be
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 10
examined for media techniques and success of media outreach. Then a complete explanation of
the methodology used in the content analysis and the textual analysis of organizational press
releases will be provided. An examination of the results as well as connections between
organizational media outreach and newspaper articles will be discussed. Finally, study
contributions as well as areas for further research will be presented.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 11
LITERATURE REVIEW
Agenda Setting
Agenda setting theory is the idea that the public uses the media to determine what issues are
of most importance based on the amount of coverage they receive (McCombs & Shaw, 1972).
McCombs and Shaw (1972) write, “The press may not be successful much of the time in telling
people what to think, but it is stunningly successful in telling its readers what to think about” (p.
177). Building on that concept, attribute agenda setting dictates that the media tells us not only
what to think about but how to think about it (Besova & Cooley, 2009).
McCombs and Shaw (1972) were the initial researchers to write about the agenda setting
theory. They conducted an experiment at Chapel Hill during the 1960 presidential campaign to
determine the correlation between what the public thought was most important during the
campaign and what the media talked about the most (McCombs & Shaw, 1972). The research
showed the strong correlation between the media and the public; the paper states, “The
information flowing in interpersonal communication channels is primarily relayed from, and
based upon, mass media news coverage” (McCombs & Shaw, 1972, p. 185).
Many communications researchers since have used the agenda setting model to determine
other factors dealing with public opinion (Besova & Cooley, 2009; Gilboa, 2005; Kiousis, Xu
Wu, 2008; Qiu & Cameron, 2006; Van Belle, 2003). Qiu and Cameron (2006) showed the
importance of creating a media agenda to promote prosocial causes. Through their research, they
found that, “by providing information subsidies to the media, public relations professionals not
only influence what issues the media concentrate on, but also how the issues are covered in terms
of cognitive information and affective tones” (Qiu & Cameron, 2006, p. 3).
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 12
In addition to the basic principles of agenda setting, more recent research has discovered
different aspects of agenda setting theory which can help a public relations professional increase
the receptiveness of an audience. Kiousis and Wu (2008) found that the public can be more
affected by agenda setting when topics are discussed with which they are not already familiar
versus those which have been on the public agenda for a longer period of time. In addition to
this, negative coverage has more agenda setting effects than neutral or positive coverage (Besova
& Cooley, 2009).
Finally, questions have been raised about the effect the media can have on government
decisions (Gilboa, 2005). Gilboa (2005) suggests that agenda setting may have an effect on
government policy decisions, but also outlines the confusion between cause and effect of media
coverage and government policy. While it is appealing to believe that media coverage sets the
agenda for the public and government, the ‘indexing hypothesis’ and ‘manufacturing consent’
suggest that media coverage only reflects government interests and opinions (Gilboa, 2005).
International Agenda Setting
Agenda setting theory can be applied to the international arena as well as to domestic
issues. The media shapes the way the US sees international affairs and other countries because it
is the most concrete link many citizens have to the rest of the world (Chang, Lau, & Xiaoming,
2000; Chang & Lee, 1992; Gilboa, 2005; Van Belle, 2003). The news coverage of foreign
nations can have strong agenda setting effects on public opinion (Kiousis, Xu Wu, 2008).
Because international news is unobtrusive, or includes facts that US individuals cannot
experience or verify by themselves, “according to agenda setting theory, it will have greater
effects on public opinion [than obtrusive stories]” (Besova & Cooley, 2009, p. 224).
It has been shown that media coverage in the US can significantly impact the public’s
opinion on certain countries (Besova & Cooley, 2009; Gilboa, 2005; Olsen, Carstensen, &
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 13
Høyen, 2003; Robinson, n.d.; Semetko, Brzinski, Weaver, & Willnat, 1992). Semetko et al.
(1992) show that “the more visible a country is in the US news media, the stronger the media
attention and exposure measures will be as predictors of public opinion about a country” (Besova
& Cooley, 2009, p. 223). Furthermore, Besova and Cooley (2009) expanded this research to
show the impact of negative or positive news coverage on the public opinion. They find that in
the US, countries receiving positive news coverage, such as Germany, Israel, and Russia, are
regarded as welcoming and warm countries by the US public (Besova & Cooley, 2009).
Countries receiving negative news coverage, like Iran and North Korea, received negative ratings
in US public opinion (Besova & Cooley, 2009). Because of the significant impact of certain
news coverage on the US opinion of foreign countries, a deeper look at international agenda
setting is necessary.
The first aspect of creating an agenda for international news is understanding how
certain international issues get covered over others. According to the world system’s theory,
there are three spheres of countries, the core, the semi-periphery, and the periphery, which
dictate the importance of news coverage. These descriptions depend on the economic, political,
social, and cultural relations among them (Chang et al., 2000). The research shows that “the
farther a country moves away from the center, the more difficult for it to be newsworthy at the
international level” (Chang et al., 2000, p. 518). The same research also found that “countries in
the semi-periphery and periphery do not carry as much import as individually in international
communication as they do collectively. Their best chance to become news is to be accompanied
by the core nations in a variety of settings” (Chang et al., 2000, p. 519).
While the world system’s theory shows the importance of certain countries over others in
international news coverage, newspaper editors also affect how often and who gets coverage in
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 14
the US media. The factors editors consider when covering a foreign news story include if it is a
threat to the US and world peace, if there is anticipated reader interest, the timeliness, and what
the US involvement is (Chang & Lee, 1992). Chang and Lee (1992) also look at the two types of
international news: content-oriented and context-oriented. Content oriented news “focuses more
on the characteristics inherent in the foreign event itself regardless of the external setting. It
follows the long standing definition of what is newsworthy: timeliness, impact or consequence,
human interest or conflict” (Chang & Lee, 1992, p. 556). Context oriented news “looks at the
origin of a foreign news event and its relationship with such contextual variables as trade
relations, cultural relevance, political involvement, and geographical proximity” (Chang & Lee,
1992, p. 555). The research shows that content oriented news is more important to US editors
than context oriented news and that relevance to US security is always the most important factor
(Chang & Lee, 1992).
The “CNN effect” is another aspect of international agenda setting. With the creation of
the Cable News Network in 1981 came the prospect of global news coverage and the ability of
international news to reach the US faster and with more relevance to the US public (Gilboa,
2005). Piers Robinson (1999) has looked extensively at the “CNN effect,” writing “the phrase
'CNN effect' encapsulated the idea that real time communications technology could provoke
major responses from domestic audiences and political elites to global events” (p. 301).
Robinson (1999) continues by admitting that the ‘CNN effect’ was accepted by both foreign
policy makers and humanitarian aid workers as a fact while the theory remained untested and
unsubstantiated. While many researchers have looked at the effect, a correlation between CNN
and the impact on favored government policy has not been concretely discovered. Gilboa (2005)
suggests that “Any progress in the study of the CNN effect required two interrelated comparative
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 15
analyses: (a) an assessment of global television’s impact on a specific foreign policy decision in
comparison to the relative impact of other factors and (b) application of this procedure to several
relevant cases” (p. 33). While extended research is needed on the CNN Effect, if it can be
proven, it would significantly impact the reach and importance of agenda-setting in international
news.
International Aid Communications
There is general support for the media promoting action in humanitarian crises (Minear,
C. Scott, & Weiss, 1996; Robinson, n.d.; Rothberg & Weiss, n.d.). There are a number of
factors, in addition to those listed above, that must be fulfilled for the US media to focus
intensely on a crisis (Olsen et al., 2003). The crisis must be:
News and the emergency situation has to provide the basis for producing dramatic and
emotive imagery […] has to compete with emergencies in other parts of the world […]
has to do with what is sometimes called the ‘news-attention cycle’ or the ‘issue-attention
cycle.’ These terms imply that some issues, particularly distant ones not directly
affecting people in donor countries, invariably receive attention only a cyclical basis.
(Olsen et al., 2003, p. 113)
While these preconditions focus on the event of a crisis, the specifications show the difficulty of
developing countries to share any of the US media coverage.
The more news coverage an event or country receives, the more aid the country will
receive (Lim & Barnett, 2007). According to Lim and Barnett (2007), the research finds that
“Recipient countries [of international aid] with a high level of news coverage receive more aid
and have more international relations than those with less coverage” (p. 16). The motives for
donor countries to give aid are referred to as the realist paradigm, which is in favor of the
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 16
political or strategic interests of the donor, the idealist paradigm, which favors humanitarian
motives, and globalist paradigm, which includes the economic interests of a donor country (Lim
& Barnett, 2007).
Similarly, Van Belle (2003) found that foreign aid allocations occur because of three
motives: strategic, which reflects the donor’s prestige, military security, and economic position;
economic, which occurs when core nations give money to keep the dependence of the periphery
countries; and humanitarian. The research suggests that even if the government is not affected
directly by the media coverage of an international event, it will react from the indirect pressures
of the public (Van Belle, 2003). The government’s response to the international news can also
be interpreted in different ways: “Providing too little aid to events that the public deems
important would raise effectiveness questions, while providing too much aid to disasters
considered trivial would raise accusations of wasteful spending” (Van Belle, 2003, p. 268). Not
only does the media have impact on where aid is given and how, but also on the public’s
perception of the government’s response.
Media Outreach by Nonprofit Organizations
The media’s relationship with nonprofit organizations is a deciding factor in what types
of stories get published and how the public will perceive them. Organizational aspects of a
nonprofit help to determine if the media will cover a story sent to them (Hale, 2007). The size of
the organization, the amount of paid staff on hand, how long the organization has been running
successfully for, and the organization’s budget contribute to its popularity in the media (Hale,
2007).
Fittingly, most journalists focus on well known organizations, like the Red Cross or The
Salvation Army, when covering nonprofits, and journalists may only focus on these
organizations during a time of crisis (Tempel & Brown, 2006).
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 17
Episodic crisis is what draws the media to nonprofits. The larger scale thematic parts of
an organization often go unnoticed because of the narrative detail needed to understand the
concepts (Hale, 2007). According to Deacon’s (1999) research, “Voluntary organizations were
far more likely to receive coverage for their deeds rather than their thoughts. There was twice as
much coverage of the actions of voluntary agencies (tending to people’s needs, fundraising,
doing ‘good works’, etc.) than their comments (raising topics, adjudicating upon the actions of
others, and providing information)” (p. 57). Nonprofits tend to treat journalists as if they were
an extension of their own public relations office, believing that the media will release a press
release unquestionably because of the ‘good works’(Tempel & Brown, 2006); however, the
media needs episodic versus thematic coverage to gain the attention of its readers.
While research shows that “the media generally portray nonprofits in a positive light,
they [more] often portray them out of the spotlight altogether” (Hale, 2007, p. 483). This hurts
the overall media coverage of nonprofits. Tempel and Brown (2006) have also shown that it
hurts the media, suggesting the following benefits for reporters if they use nonprofits more in
their reporting: “it increases self-interest and reader re-engagement, it emphasizes the media’s
responsibility to be independent monitors of power, it shows the media’s role as watchdog, and it
is the role of media to inform the public about needs and issues” (p.2). Changes in journalists’
perceptions of covering nonprofit organizations can increase the ability of nonprofits to gain
awareness through media and utilize the agenda setting power of the press.
US Media Coverage of the MDGs
There has been limited discussion of the role of US media coverage in the achievement of
the Millennium Development Goals. While conference papers have been delivered over the past
five years on the topic (S. Scott, 2007; Waisbord, 2006), the influence of US media coverage in
the achievement of the MDGs has received little to no consideration in the academic arena.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 18
Most academic research is focused on the lack of communications’ techniques within the
developing countries where the MDGs are being implemented, not in the donor countries.
However, a look at a few of the sources available begins to give a clear picture of the
shortcomings of the lack of coverage of the MDGs.
Very few people in donor countries know about the MDGs, revealing the lack of media
coverage which has already taken place. The research shows that, “In April 2004, researchers
for the OECD reported that early results from polls in Canada, Sweden, the UK, and the US
reveal that there is very little awareness about the existence of the MDGs” (Alexander, 2005, p.
130). Furthermore, UN seminars and conference papers reflect this sense of discontinuity
throughout the communications’ practices of the MDG organizations.
In his speech given to the UN during one of their summit meetings, Scott (2007) clearly
explains the lack of a communications strategy between the UN and the media about the MDGs
and the importance of solving the problem. He states, “In my view, we must first see the media
for what it is, which is the facilitating body for the educations of the world on the eight MDGs.
At the same time, we must also see the media as the main organ for fostering continued interest
and participation in the process of moving the MDGs forward” (p. 1). The implementation of a
comprehensive media strategy would help to move participation from donor countries further (S.
Scott, 2007).
In comments from another conference paper, Waisbord (2006) similarly emphasizes the
importance of communication. He recognizes that everyone working in development knows that
information matters, and that communication is the only method of disseminating any type of
information about the MDGs; however, “In a world of limited resources and professional
boundaries, they would rather prefer to earmark funds for programmatic components that they
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 19
are more familiar with” (Waisbord, 2006, p. 4). Since the use of communications techniques is
not explicitly stated in the MDGs, it is not seen as important to the stakeholders as using funds to
meet the goals themselves (S. Scott, 2007; Waisbord, 2006).
Reaching back to the successes and failures of other such communication challenges,
knowledge and experience can be gained moving forward with the MDGs. According to
Giffard, Cunningham, and Van Leuven (2006), “One lesson that has been learned from efforts to
promote development is the necessity of communication at all levels. This is true not only of
people and organizations directly involved in development projects, but also of wider
communities whose understanding and support is essential if global programs are to succeed”
(p.3).
In her brief examination of media coverage of the MDGs, Alexander (2005) sums up the
failures of the UN’s media outreach quite well, stating, “The media shapes how we see our world
and can influence how we act. Will the international community meet the development deadline
of 2015? Part of the answer will depend on whether media steps up to the communication
challenge” (p. 131).
The literature reviewed here shows a clear link between the US media’s agenda and the
importance of certain topics among the US public. Insight about international agenda setting and
agenda setting for aid have been given to demonstrate the influence which MDG organizations
could have on the American public’s awareness. Finally a brief and critical look at MDG
communication at the donor level was discussed to provide the foundation for the following
research.
Previous research suggests that media coverage of the MDGs is lacking in breadth and
depth. This study examines the media outreach activities of major MDG partners in order to
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 20
determine the extent of correspondence between the goals discussed in the organizations' press
releases and the goals given prominent coverage by the news media. Through a content analysis,
it also explores the volume and nature of news coverage of the MDGs, with particular focus on
the topics covered and specific goals discussed.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 21
METHODOLOGY
Media Outreach Analysis
First, a media outreach textual analysis was conducted from three of the Millennium
Development Goal partner organizations: the Millennium Campaign, the World Health
Organization (WHO), and the United Nations’ Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Each website was
examined to determine the size, history, and budget of the organization. The media and press
sections of each website were examined for media tools, press releases, and media contacts.
An analysis was conducted of the 2010 press releases from each organization. Each
website’s listing of press releases from 2010 was examined to find every mention of the MDGs.
This yielded 6 Millennium Campaign press releases, 7 WHO press releases, and 10 UNICEF
press releases (N=23). These press releases were coded for several key variables. First, the date
was recorded. Then, whichever specific MDGs were discussed in the press release were
recorded. The focus of each press release was determined by indicating the most commonly
discussed subject. There were five categories which the press release could fall under: MDG
(general), Global Aid, International Affairs, MDG (specific goal), or other. Finally, the intention
for the press release was recorded, distinguishing between whether the press release was written
about an event, a report, or another campaign outside of the MDGs. An “other” category was
included as well.
News Content Analysis
A sample of articles from the New York Times, the Washington Post, and USA Today was
collected through the search engine Lexis Nexis. The search terms used were “Millennium
Development Goals” OR “UN Millennium Campaign” OR “UN Millennium Project” OR “2005
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 22
World Summit” OR “Millennium Summit.” Each of these terms reflects either an event held by
the UN to discuss the MDGs or terms which the UN uses to identify the MDGs. This yielded
114 articles from The New York Times, 82 articles from the Washington Post, and 7 articles from
USA Today. The total sample was 203 articles.
Some articles were discarded from the original sample for a few reasons. First, some
articles were merely TV guide listings. Articles from prior to the year 2001 were discarded
because the concept of the MDGs was too new to be discussed. Instead, these articles focused
on other aspects of the Millennium Summit. This yielded 106 articles from The New York Times,
77 articles from the Washington Post, and 7 articles from USA Today. The final sample is 192.
A codebook was developed to guide the coding of each of the articles. Each of the final
articles was coded by an individual coder, following the rules in order to categorize the topics
discussed. A codebook was developed for the individual coder to apply. Each question was
tested for reliability through 10 articles before continuing into the complete content analysis.
The final codebook asked the date and newspaper from which the article was taken. Also
recorded was which specific MDGs were discussed in each article, both specifically and in
general. If the Millennium Campaign, the World Health Organization, the United Nations’
Children’s Fund or the United Nations was mentioned, this was recorded. Any mention of
foreign financial aid in the article was recorded. The type of article, whether newspaper article,
editorial, or letter to the editor, was recorded. The main focus of the article was determined by
which of the following five topics appeared as the main subject of the most paragraphs: MDGs
(general), Global Aid, International Affairs, MDGs (specific goals), or other.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 23
RESULTS
Media Outreach Analysis
Hale (2007) discussed the importance of an organization’s credibility in influencing a
newspapers decision to cover the organization’s activities. Below, the communications outreach
of each organization is examined as well as the factors which Hale (2007) describes as most
important when determining media impact: the size of the organization, the amount of paid staff,
how long the organization has been successful for, and the organization’s budget. This review
will help to better understand each organization’s outreach.
Millennium Campaign
The Millennium Campaign was created to implement the MDGs, indicating the relatively
short length of time for which the organization has been active. The organization lacks media
contacts or a list of paid staff members. The website does not include links to the organization’s
budget. Overall, the infancy of the Millennium Campaign and its inexperience in the nonprofit
arena are detrimental to the amount of media coverage which it could receive.
The Millennium Campaign includes a Press page, found from their homepage (“End
Poverty 2015,” 2011). This section is titled “For the Media.” The Press page includes lists of all
press releases, speeches, policy papers, and publications for the use of the media. There are links
to both the press releases section and media coverage sections. A contact email address,
info@endpoverty 2015.org, is included at the bottom of the boilerplate.
Media contacts are listed down the right side of the page. First, a global office address is
given and the main website’s link. A list follows with information for the African, Asian and
Pacific, Indian, European, Italian, German, Portuguese, and Spanish contacts. The information
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 24
varies from only the physical address given to a specific contact person, email addresses and
phone number.
The press release page includes a contact person, Mandy Kibel, who is to be contacted
for more information or to arrange interviews with a UN Millennium Campaign spokesperson in
Africa, Asia, Europe, or North America. The press releases can be searched by date and
category. The visible parts of the press releases on the main page include a headline, date, and
the first two paragraphs for the visitor to browse before selecting the PDF to read.
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization was formed in April of 1948 as the health branch of the
UN. WHO conducts reputable global health research regularly and is seen as a credible source
of health information. The organization lists about 30 paid communications contacts and has
multiple regional offices. WHO’s budget is listed and itemized by country and by project; the
numbers total millions of dollars. Overall, the experience of WHO and its connection with the
UN give credibility to the organization and indicate newspapers’ assumed impressions of the
organization.
The World Health Organization has a Media Centre for the media’s use. The Media
Centre includes news releases, statements, and notes for the media (“WHO | World Health
Organization,” 2011). The Media Centre homepage includes the three most recent press
releases. The Media Centre is broken down into subheadings across its homepage; these include
WHO News, Crises and Emergencies, Director-General, Upcoming Events, Resources, Virtual
Press Briefings, Photo Features, and Services. Down the left side of the home page, there is a
presentation of the news list, events list, fact sheets, multimedia and contacts.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 25
The contacts page lists a number of categories for which the contact person’s name,
phone number and email address are given. The categories include some of the topics involved
in the MDGs, including Child and Adolescent health, Gender and health, Health and the
environment, Maternal Health, and HIV/AIDS among a variety of other topics.
The press release page lists press releases by year. Each year lists press releases in
chronological order and displays the headline and one sentence preview on the homepage. There
is no easy search method in the WHO press release section, making it difficult to determine
which press releases are about certain topics, like the MDGs, without reading the press release in
its entirety.
United Nations’ Children’s Fund
The United Nations Children’s Fund was formed in 1946 as a branch of the UN to
address the famine and disease of children in post World War II Europe. UNICEF is comprised
of full time staff, Goodwill Ambassadors, and Young leaders. There are multiple offices
included in the UNICEF family, and there are 28 paid staff members for media contacts.
UNICEF lists its budget thoroughly and cites US$3.2 billion in voluntary contributions for 2009.
The breadth of contributions, programs, and employees of UNICEF, as well as its continued
connection with the UN, build its credibility in the press.
The United Nations’ Children’s Fund has a page, linked from its homepage, entitled
Press Centre (“UNICEF - UNICEF Home,” 2011). The Press Centre includes tools such as
pages entitled Facts on Children, Mission Statement, Leadership Bios and Photos, Receive
UNICEF Press Releases, Media Contacts, and Reporting Guidelines. Receive UNICEF Press
Releases is the most useful part of the website, allowing reporters to sign up for a service which
sends UNICEF press releases directly to them, without the need to look through the collection
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 26
for news. The Reporting Guidelines section is also useful for reporters looking into how much
information can be revealed about children on whom they are writing an article.
There is also a “Tools for Journalists” section of the Press Centre, which includes some
of the subsections included above, as well as an Archive, Calendar of Events, Video News
Packages, Audio Features, and About UNICEF Publications.
The UNICEF Press Centre includes multiple contacts for each of the different areas they
cover. The Press Centre gives a contact specifically for information on the Millennium
Development Goals, Janine Kandel, and her email address and phone number.
The press release page can be searched by date, by subject, or by region. The displayed
press releases are listed in chronological order and give the headline and first two lines of each
press release, as well as the city from which the news comes out. They are linked to the
complete press release for easy access.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 27
News Content Analysis
The content analysis revealed 192 articles to be sampled. These articles are spread out
over the ten years from January 2001 to January 2011. Figure 1 shows the frequency of articles
appearing in the newspapers for each month over this period.
Spikes in coverage occur in September of 2005 with 29 articles appearing and in
September of 2010 with 17 articles appearing. Many months throughout the period have 0
articles appearing in the three newspapers examined.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 28
Figure 1. Number of Articles Appearing in the New York Times, Washington Post, and USA
Today Mentioning the Millennium Development Goals
Number of Articles
Number of Articles
Jan-15
Sep-14
May-14
Jan-14
Sep-13
May-13
Jan-13
Sep-12
May-12
Jan-12
Sep-11
May-11
Jan-11
Sep-10
May-10
Jan-10
Sep-09
May-09
Jan-09
Sep-08
May-08
Jan-08
Sep-07
May-07
Jan-07
Sep-06
May-06
Jan-06
Sep-05
May-05
Jan-05
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
22
24
26
28
30
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 29
The literature review predicted that global aid would be the most common focus of news
coverage of the MDGs. The results shown in Table 1 indicate that global aid was, indeed, the
most common main subject, appearing in 28.1% of articles. A specific goal was the main subject
in 19.8% of the articles.
Table 1. Topic Frequency in Newspapers Coverage
Frequency
Percent
Topic
MDG
Global Aid
International Affairs
Subject
Other
32
54
32
16.7
28.1
16.7
38
36
19.8
18.8
N=192
Poverty is the MDG most frequently discussed in the news coverage. Table 2 shows that
“Goal 1: Eradicating Poverty” is the goal discussed most frequently in the collection of articles,
appearing in nearly 60% of the articles. “Goal 2: Guaranteeing Primary Education” is the second
most common goal and “Goal 8: Creating Global Partnerships” is the least discussed goal among
the articles coded.
Goal
Table 2. Frequency of Specific MDGs in Newspaper Coverage
Frequency
Percent
Poverty
Education
Gender Equality
Child Mortality
Maternal Health
Disease
Environmental Sustainability
Partnerships
No Goals
N=192
113
55
17
45
31
47
30
15
38
58.9
28.6
8.9
23.4
16.1
24.5
15.6
7.8
19.8
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 30
The coding of individual goals through the collection of newspaper articles leads to
insights of the research conducted through the literature review. Table 3 shows the frequency
with which the newspaper referred to one or multiple goals in each of its articles. Most
commonly, only one goal was discussed, which was the case in 33.3% of articles. Less than 7%
of articles discussed 5 or more goals, and no articles discussed all 8 goals.
Table 3. Number of Goals Discussed in Individual Articles
Number of Goals
Frequency
Percent
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
38
64
32
29
16
6
5
2
0
19.8
33.3
16.7
15.1
8.3
3.1
2.6
1.0
0
N=192
Table 4 presents the percentage of news stories within two coded subject areas that
contained financial information versus no financial information. A chi-square test revealed a
statistically significant association between topic and financial support information, χ2 (1, N =
70) = 9.22, p < .01. Specifically, stories that focused on MDG as a main topic were significantly
more likely to include financial support information than stories that focused on a specific goal.
A full 59% of stories focused on the MDGs in general included financial information, compared
to just 24% of stories focused on a specific goal.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 31
Table 4. Foreign Financial Aid in MDG Topic and Specific Goal Topic Articles
Specific Goal
MDGs
Total
Foreign Financial Aid
No Foreign Financial Aid
Total
9
29
38
19
13
32
28
42
70
N= 70
Finally, a quantitative comparison between the frequency with which each goal appeared
in the organizations’ press releases was compared to the frequency with which each goal
appeared in the newspaper articles from 2010. This comparison was an attempt to determine
whether there was correspondence between the priorities of the organizations and the
newspapers.
Figure 2 shows a pictorial comparison between the most prevalent goals mentioned in the
organization press releases and the 2010 newspaper articles. The newspaper articles discuss
“Goal 1: Eradicating Poverty” (55.2%) and “Goal 5: Improving Maternal Health” (55.2%) most
frequently while the organizations’ press releases discuss “Goal 4: Ending Child Mortality”
(73.9%) most often and “Goal 1: Eradicating Poverty” (60.9%) and “Goal 5: Improving Maternal
Health” (60.9%) as the second and third most often cited goals. “Goal 4: Ending Child
Mortality” is the only goal that offers a discrepancy between frequency of coverage. The press
releases cover Goal 4 73.9% of the time while the newspaper articles cover the goal in 41.4% of
their articles, leaving a 32.5% difference.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 32
Figure 2. Comparison of MDG Frequency in 2010 Newspaper Articles
and Organization Press Releases (In Percentages)
80
70
Newspaper Articles
60
Press Releases
50
40
30
20
10
0
Along with determining the frequency of goals mentioned, the number of press releases and
newspaper articles from 2010 is charted in Figure 3.
Figure 3. Number of MDG-Related Press Releases and Newspaper Articles in 2010
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Newspaper Articles
Press Releases
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 33
DISCUSSION
The main objective of this capstone was to examine multiple aspects of the media
coverage of the Millennium Development Goals, including the success of media outreach by
major MDG organizations and the frequency of MDG coverage in three major US newspapers.
The results of the content analysis indicate that media coverage of the MDGs is very limited.
The limited amount of coverage explains the research from Alexander (2005) on the public’s
limited awareness of the MDGs. The period of most coverage was during the 2005 UN Summit,
when all three newspapers covered the progress of the goals. The focus on a newsworthy event,
such as the UN Summit, reflects conclusions drawn through prior research on context versus
content oriented coverage (Chang & Lee, 1992). The UN Summit shows the timeliness,
consequence and human interest of a newsworthy content oriented story. The literature reviewed
in this paper sought to show that content oriented stories are more likely to be covered by the
media (Chang & Lee, 1992), and this was found to be true through this analysis.
The results indicate that media coverage for the MDGs is most often represented through
a larger narrative about global aid, instead of a focus on the MDGs as a singular project. This
again reflects Alexander’s (2005) findings on the public’s awareness. If the MDGs are only
mentioned in an article on the major issue of global aid, less notice will be taken of their
importance. This analysis echoes the principles behind attribute agenda setting theory. The
media is telling the public how to think about the MDGs, in the context of the larger problem of
global aid (Besova & Cooley, 2009). Thus, the public may simply not be aware of the MDGs
because they see it as merely a factor of global aid in general.
The quantitative analysis measures the mentions of foreign financial aid in each of the
articles of the three newspapers. Since the MDG organizations’ most important reason for
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 34
creating newsworthy stories for the media is to garner support and interest in the MDGs, it’s
important to see how often financial aid is referred to in the articles. Literature discussed in this
capstone indicates that the more coverage a country receives in the media will dictate the amount
of foreign aid that other countries will be willing to give (Lim & Barnett, 2007). The results
indicate that foreign aid is more likely to be referred to in an article about the MDGs as a whole,
rather than an article about a specific goal. However, for both categories, there is limited
discussion of foreign aid. This indicates that MDG organizations should include mention of
foreign aid in all press releases to ensure that the public realizes the importance of aid and the
limited resources which the US now contributes to the MDGs. The previous research suggests
that even if the government does not react to media coverage of foreign aid, the public will
pressure the government to contribute more, showing again the importance of the public’s
understanding (Van Belle, 2003).
More articles cover “Goal 1: Eradicating Poverty” than any other singular goal because it
contains the main principle behind the completion of the MDGs. The number of goals discussed
in each article varied, with the highest percentage of articles covering only one out of eight of the
goals. The media is more likely to cover a story about one goal than multiple goals. This result
also reiterates the point made by Hale (2007) that episodic events in nonprofits are more often
covered in the media versus thematic events. For organizations to successfully get more media
coverage, they should base press releases around individual events than the overarching concepts
of their global aid goals.
As stated previously, nonprofits often view the media as an extension of their public
relations department, not putting enough resources or effort into their communications to
actually achieve coverage (Tempel & Brown, 2006). The three websites analyzed for this
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 35
capstone show conflicting results. The Millennium Campaign’s website is representative of an
organization which relies on the media as an extension of its public relations office through its
lack of outreach and contacts. However, both WHO and UNICEF show a more complete
package of communications techniques. Both include multiple contacts and more in depth
outreach. The differences among these organizations are reflected in the history of the
organizations, the size of the paid staff, and the budgets. Unfortunately, the efforts of the limited
and the more comprehensive communications’ strategies both come up short in the outcome of
the analysis of the newspaper articles.
The correspondence between newspaper coverage and organizational output shows a lack
of follow through for any of the communications’ outreach tactics being used by the
organizations. The number one goal discussed throughout the newspaper articles is “Goal 1:
Eradicating Poverty”. The same pattern is seen through the newspaper articles only from the
year 2010. However, this does not correlate with the number one goal discussed throughout the
organizations’ press releases. Instead, the press releases are more likely to have “Goal 4: Ending
Child Mortality” as the main goal discussed. While there was correspondence between the top
two topics covered by the newspapers and the top three topics covered by the organizations, Goal
4 is an inconsistency between the newspaper coverage and organization press releases. This
could be explained by the focus of the organizations chosen for this project; WHO and UNICEF
are focused on health and children, respectively. The newspapers more often attempt to cover
the entire concept of the MDGs, therefore restricting their coverage to Goal 1.
While there is reason to compare organization press releases to the amount and content of
newspaper articles, it is also recognized that the results found in this capstone could be
influenced by other factors. Other organizations could have impact on the newspapers’
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 36
coverage. Journalists for the three newspapers could have sought out stories on their own,
without the aid of press releases. The organizations’ press releases may not exactly match each
news article written. However, with these influences taken into account, a flexible correlation
can still be determined.
The scope of this capstone is limited due to limited resources and time. The amount of
articles researched only cover three newspapers in the US. There are many other news outlets,
including TV broadcasts, and other newspapers, like The Wall Street Journal, which were not
covered. In addition, there are a number of MDG support organizations that were not examined
for their media outreach. The UN itself would be a body of work to examine as well as suborganizations, like the United Nations’ Development Program. Finally, more information can be
gathered through the coding of articles, including tone of the article or which countries are
mentioned most often, to shed more light on what attracts a news outlet to cover certain stories.
Future research should cover a wider range of newspapers and MDG organizations.
Survey research can also be used to discover the connection between news coverage and public
opinion, in order to determine the impact of agenda setting theory more thoroughly. Another
approach should include studying the impact of media coverage on the government’s decision to
spend more or less money on the MDGs, or on foreign aid in general. This research would better
reflect the “CNN effect” and give more credence to the theory.
Future research can use the information presented here to look at the frequency of news
stories in media outlets of the MDGs in order to compare this to both public opinion and
government input. The results from the content analysis also indicate the frequency with which
MDGs are written about most and can contribute to future research through a further analysis of
how individual topics impact media coverage over the wide ranging context oriented news of the
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 37
complete MDGs.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 38
CONCLUSION
The Millennium Development Goals are an ambitious global aid project to which
multiple countries, developed and developing, have committed. Thus far, the MDG
organizations have done limited work to increase their media agenda-setting abilities. If the
United Nations hopes to reach these goals by 2015, more communications efforts will have to be
made to garner support for increased foreign aid.
This study has shown that there is a need for more media outreach to lead to the success
of the MDGs. The US public is unaware of how much of an impact these goals will achieve in
their completion. By using newsworthy and timely subject matters, as well as using narrative to
emphasize individual stories and goals, MDG organizations can create a more thorough presence
in the US media and attract more support from the US public to its goals.
Millennium Development Goals in the US Media 39
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