Primetime Pundits: How Cable News Covers Social Issues - Softcover

Letukas, Lynn

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1498501699 ISBN 13: 9781498501699

Publisher: Lexington Books, 2016

Synopsis

Despite the central role of punditry in our contemporary media environment, research has been slow to examine punditry on cable news. Deregulation, the advent of cable television, and the rise of a twenty-four hour news cycle have dramatically transformed the structure and content of news, paving the way for political pundits to come to the forefront. Cable news networks, in particular, have played a critical role in challenging the neutrality of traditional media through the development of opinion programs that made highly politicized and entertaining content central to their primetime coverage. Over the past three decades, these opinionated programs have become increasingly popular as a programming strategy for cable news producers seeking to develop novel programming to target niche audiences. The pundits who pontificate on these programs have come to dominate our national political dialogue, and play a significant role in setting the public agenda and influencing public opinion in the United States. Punditry and pundits lie at the heart of programming and network changes that have evolved over the past thirty years. Primetime Pundits: How Cable News Covers Social Issues explores the ascent of punditry and offers new models for understanding how social issues are covered—not just by pundits, but also in the larger changing media landscape.

About this title

About the Author

Lynn Letukas is assistant research scientist at the College Board and independent research scholar.

Edition details

• Publisher: Lexington Books
• Publication date: 2016
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1498501699
• ISBN 13: 9781498501699
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 181