Media Discourse and Public Opinion on Nuclear Power: A Constructionist Approach

@article{Gamson1989MediaDA,
  title={Media Discourse and Public Opinion on Nuclear Power: A Constructionist Approach},
  author={William A. Gamson and Andr{\'e}a Modigliani},
  journal={American Journal of Sociology},
  year={1989},
  volume={95},
  pages={1 - 37}
}
Media discourse and public opinion are treated as two parallel systems of constructing meaning. This paper explores their relationship by analyzing the discourse on nuclear power in four general audience media: television news coverage, newsmagazine accounts, editorial cartoons, and syndicated opinion columns. The analysis traces the careers of different interpretive packages on nuclear power from 1945 to the present. This media discourse, it is argued, is an essential context for understanding… 
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