Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2022, Media and Communication

Long has alternative media been conceptualized as inherently leftist. Using recent conceptualizations of alternative media as existing on a continuum (Kenix, 2011) and definitions of alternative media as critical in its content (Downing, 2001; Atkinson, 2021), a segment of the Fox News show Tucker Carlson Tonight (TCT) is thought of as conservative embedded alternative media. On April 26, 2021, a segment of TCT provoked widespread mainstream news reporting. This exploratory study sought to better understand the relationship between the mainstream news media and embedded alternative media. Qualitative and quantitative content analysis was used to examine an exhaustive list of 40 mainstream news articles that mentioned the TCT segment in the two days following its airing. Research questions asked include if and why intermedia agenda-setting is occurring, what the flow of information is between the mainstream news and TCT, and what news values are associated with the relationship between mainstream news and embedded alternative media. Results show several different directions for future research. It appears that the mainstream news constructs controversy using social media, in this case, Twitter posts, to provide negative reactions to a story. In cases where social media accounts were not referenced, articles still were generally portrayed negatively and focused on controversy. This controversy was, in some cases, tied to leftist alternative media site The Daily Beast. It also appears that intermedia agenda-setting is occurring at a first level, but not second. Additionally, it is argued that intermedia agenda-setting occurred because of the competitive advantage that negative and controversial stories may provide mainstream news media. Future research should attempt to broadly generalize these relationships, conduct further analysis of controversy as a news value in relation to traditional and embedded alternative media, and consider using a political economy framewor (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Joshua Atkinson Ph.D. (Advisor); Yanqin Lu Ph.D. (Committee Member); Louisa Ha Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Journalism; Mass Media