“Eat Your Peas!
There are Starving
Children in Africa”*
A Content Analysis of U.S. Newsprint Coverage of
Agricultural Biotechnology in 2001 and 2002:
World Hunger as Theme and Critical Event
Dr. Joan Thomson, Professor
Laura M. Dininni, Masters student
Department of Agricultural and Extension Education
Penn State University
*Michael Pollan, The Great Yellow Hype, NYT, 3/4/01
Rationale
Awareness and Perceptions as a Result of Media Coverage
Role of Media
 Over 90% of American consumers receive information about food and
biotechnology primarily through the popular press and television (Hoban
& Kendall, 1993).
Framing Theory
An issue is framed …
 when certain aspects of a perceived reality are presented and made
more meaningful to the audience (Entman, 1993).
 through the selection and use of sources referenced in articles and the
presentation and assessment of their arguments (Whaley, 2002).
Role of Sources
 Parnell-Reichert (1996) found a significant relationship between the use
of issue stakeholders as news sources and the relative prominence of
their particular issue frame in popular press coverage.
 Sources bring the issue into focus through assessment of the issue,
defining the debate; what is to be emphasized about the issue, and what
is to be omitted
Methodology
Keyword Selection
Newspaper Selection
Code Development
Data Collection
Data Analysis
Keyword Selection
"ag biotech" OR "agricultural biotechnology" OR
"GMO" OR "gm crop" OR "gm food" OR
"genetically modified food" OR "GMF" OR
"genetically modified crop“ OR "genetically
modified organism“ OR
"ge crop“ OR "ge food" OR “genetically
engineered crop" OR "genetically engineered
food“ OR "genetically altered crop" OR
"genetically altered food"
Newspaper Selection
New York Times
‘the unofficial newspaper of
record’*
Washington Post
‘breakfast reading for
Congress’*
Wall Street Journal
‘subscribers are capitalism’s
brightest stars’**
*Ulrich’s Guide to Periodicals
**Wall Street Journal website
Code Development
Literature review
Prior biotechnology manual content
analysis codes
Reliability: index of agreement
Data Collection
Identified articles from the selected papers, indexed on
 Lexis-Nexis (NYT, Washington Post)
 Dow Jones Interactive/Factiva (Wall Street Journal)
Analyzed articles for
 6 Attention variables
 Frequency, format and placement
 18 Content Variables
 Frames
 Themes
 Sources and Actors
 Treatment of topic
 Tone, evaluation, aspect, angle
Coded information into excel data sheet
Cleaned and analyzed data using SPSS
Results
U.S. national newsprint
coverage of agricultural
biotechnology as it relates to
world hunger
Most Frequent Article Themes in
2001 and 2002
2001
N=210
2002
N=173
Theme 1
N
% of total
Theme 1
N
% of total
GMO Release
35
17%
Trade
27
16%
Legal Reg
33
16
World Hunger
23
13
Plant GM
21
10
GMO Release
21
12
Theme 2
Theme 2
Legal Reg
25
12%
Legal Reg
33
19%
Env Issues
22
10
Plant GM
15
9
Public Opin
20
10
Public Opin
14
8
World Hunger Theme Over Time
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
World Hunger
12
African Refusal
of GM Food Aid
10
Release of
U.N
Report
Frequency
Frequency
World Hunger
8
6
4
2
Jan
Fe b
Mar
Apr
M a y J une J ul y
Aug S e pt Oc t
Month
2001
Theme 1 N = 9
Theme 2 N = 7
N = 16 (8% of 210)
Nov
De c
0
Jan
F eb
M ar
Apr
M ay June July
A ug Sep t
Oct
Month
2002
Theme 1 N = 23
Theme 2 N = 4
N = 27 (16% of 173)
Nov
D ec
Framing of Articles with World
Hunger Theme
2001
2002
N=16 of 210(8%)
Frame
N=27 of 173(16%)
N
9
%
56%
N
2
%
7%
0
4
0
25
0
16
0
59
Runaway/Pandora
2
0
13
0
5
1
19
4
None
1
6
3
11
Sci Prog/Ec Prospect
Public Acct
Ethical
Globalization
THE DISCUSSION OVER TIME
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Release of U.N Report
Ja
n
Fe
b
M
ar
A
pr
M
ay
Ju
ne
Ju
ly
A
ug
Se
pt
O
ct
N
ov
D
ec
Frequency
World Hunger
Month
2001
N = 16 (8% of 210)
HEADLINES 2001
1/25 WSJ Editorial, Jacobson: Consumer Groups Shouldn’t
Reject Biotech
1/26 NYT Pollack: Companies Unravel Rice Genome,
Providing Model for Grains
2/4 NYT Pollack: Ideas &Trends; A Food Fight for High
Stakes
2/6 NYT Letter to Ed., Jacobson: Re: A Food Fight for High
Stakes
3/4 NYT Pollan: The Way We Live Now: The Great Yellow
Hype
4/22 Post TV Week: “Harvest of Fear” PBS documentary
announcement
6/8 WSJ Leggett: Unveiling Rules on Genetic Engineering,
Beijing Embraces a Controversial Science
HEADLINES 2001
7/8
NYT
7/9 Post
7/10 WSJ
7/16 Post
7/30 WSJ
8/5 Post
8/26 Post
10/14 Post
11/25 NYT
Crossette: Move to Curb Biotech Crops Ignores
Poor, U.N. Finds
Editorial, Mallaby: Post staff: Food Fight
Oyama: U.N. Urges Research Into Genetic
Crops For Hungry Nations
Letter to Ed., Biotech Food: An Unhealthy
Endorsement
Letter to Ed., Miller: Science vs. the U.N.’s
Luddites
Editorial, Biotech Panderers
Editorial, Florence Wambugu: Taking the Food
Out of Our Mouths
Book World: A Closer Look at the Stuff We Eat
McCoy: A Corporate Believer’s Turnabout
THE DISCUSSION OVER TIME
Frequency
World Hunger
African Refusal
of GM Food Aid
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Ja n
Ma
r
Ma
y
Jul
y
Month
2002
N = 27 (16% of 173)
Sep
t
Nov
HEADLINES 2002
2/20 WSJ King: U.S. Courts African Allies for Brewing Biotech-Food FightTrade Official Seeks Closer Ties to Counter Europe’s Rejection of Gene
Altered Crops
5/9 WSJ Zimmerman: Gates Fights Malnutrition With Cheese, Ketchup
Incentives
6/10 NYT Reuters: U.N. Hunger Meeting Opens Today, Minus Most
Top Leaders
7/31 Post Weiss: Starved for Food, Zimbabwe Rejects U.S. Biotech Corn
8/3 Post Weiss: Zimbabwe Continues to Block Gene-Altered Corn
8/10 Post Weiss: Zimbabwe Ends Altered-Corn Dispute; Mugabe, Relief
Agencies Agree to Grain Swap, Freeing Up Tons Of Food Aid
8/18 NYT AP: Zambia Bars Altered Corn From U.S.
8/23 WSJ Paarlberg: African Famine, Made in Europe
8/23 WSJ Paarlberg: The Economy: EU Rejects U.S. Plea to Endorse
Safety of Corn for Hunger Relief
8/30 NYT Cauvin, Between Famine and Politics, Zambians Starve
9/2 Post Mallaby, Phony Fears Fan a Famine
HEADLINES 2002
9/4
9/7
NYT Cauvin: Zambian leader Defends Ban on
Genetically Altered Foods
WSJ Johnson: In Debate Over Modified Foods, Famine
Weighs In
NYT Dao: Protesters Interrupt Powell Speech as U.N.
Talks End
NYT Swarns: Criticized by the West, Mugabe is a Hero
to Many
NYT Editorial: Folly in the Face of Famine
9/8
NYT Lacey: Engineering Food for Africans
9/4
9/5
9/6
9/10 NYT Agence France-Presse: World Briefing Africa:
Zambia: Food Aid Agreement
9/11 NYT Swarns: Hunger in Zimbabwe Takes Toll on
Education
HEADLINES 2002
9/17 WSJ Editorial: Why Africans are Starving
9/17 Post AP, Nessman: Famine Threatens 14 Million in
Southern Africa
10/3 WSJ Letter to Ed., Ambassador Burghardt: The Fears
Behind the Big GM Food Fight
10/30 WSJ Editorial, Kleckner: Boo! Biotech
10/30 NYT After Study Zambia Rejects Altered Food
11/17 Post Grunwald: Sowing Harvests of Hunger In Africa;
Drought and Disease Fuel Famine in South
11/17 Post Grunwald: Southern Africa Runs Short of Food
and Hope; AIDS, Drought and Politics Fuel Famine
12/26 WSJ Thurow, Mitchener, Kilman: Seeds of Doubt: As
U.S., EU Clash on Biotech Crops, Africa Goes HungryTinkering With Banana Genes Could Save Uganda Staple,
But the Seeds Stay in Lab-Using the Poor as Guinea
Pigs?
Results
Sources of Information Cited
“A sound policy process would ensure that
people affected by an issue have a
meaningful say in decision-making, and
can draw on expertise as they see fit.”
(Cingranelli, 1993)
Sources of Information for World Hunger Articles
NYT
Post
WSJ
2001
2002
2001
2002
2001
2002
N=12
N=22
N=12
N=14
N=8
N=18
N= 32
N=54
Industry affil
2
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
U.S. govt affl
0
0
0
0
1
3
1
3
EU govt affil
0
0
0
0
1
1
1
1
Devl nat govt
1
7
0
1
0
1
1
9
UN affiliated
2
4
1
2
2
0
5
6
Media org
1
0
1
2
0
0
2
2
Author/editor
1
0
1
0
0
0
2
0
Env gp/activ
2
0
0
1
1
2
3
3
University affl
0
0
0
1
0
2
0
3
Priv. Foundat
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
1
Scientific Un.
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
2
Farmer(s)
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
Other
0
1
0
1
1
1
1
3
None
3
8
8
6
2
6
13
20
Source
Total 01 Total 02
QUOTES
United Nations…
7/10/01 WSJ, Oyama: U.N. Urges Research
Into Genetic Crops For Hungry Nations
“The world’s richest nations must get over
their fear of genetically engineered food if
they want to help eradicate poverty in the
world’s poorest countries, a United Nations
report says.”
QUOTES
Developing nation government…
8/18/02 NYT AP: Zambia Bars Altered Corn From U.S.
“In light of uncertainties surrounding the likely consequences
of consuming genetically modified food”, Information
Minister Newstead Zimba said on state television Friday
night, the “government has decided to take this
precautionary principle on this matter.”
9/4/02
NYT Cauvin: Zambian leader Defends Ban on
Genetically Altered Foods
“I am not prepared to accept that we should use our people
as guinea pigs,” Mr. Mwanawasa said. (President of
Zambia)
Conclusions
“Because most mediated public policy
issues and controversies are
inherently multifaceted and subject to
multiple interpretations, the potential
for framing abounds” (Nelson, 1999).
Conclusions
“Public rhetoric, though not useless as a source of
information about the true intentions of policy
makers, does not reveal the whole story. A leader’s
use of particular moral justifications for different
types of foreign policy actions can be observed, and
the varying frequency of use over time can be
recorded. On this basis alone, we can draw
conclusions about the public acceptability of
different moral justifications for various foreign policy
actions. But the full picture emerges only by
assessing the consistency between the goals stated
in policy rhetoric, and the set of actions pursued by
policymakers, and the consequences of those
actions.” (Cingranelli, 1993)
Conclusions
“Granted, it would be immoral for finicky Americans
to thwart a technology that could rescue
malnourished children. But wouldn’t it also be
immoral for an industry to use those children’s
suffering in order to rescue itself? The first case
is hypothetical at best. The second is right there
on our television screens, for everyone to see.” *
*Michael Pollan, The Great Yellow Hype, NYT, 3/4/01