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Public Opinion Quarterly 36:176-187 (1972)
© 1972 American Association for Public Opinion Research
THE AGENDA-SETTING FUNCTION OF MASS MEDIA*
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
In choosing and displaying news, editors, newsroom staff, and broadcasters play an important part in shaping political reality. Readers learn not only about a given issue, but also how much importance to attach to that issue from the amount of information in a news story and its position. In reflecting what candidates are saying during a campaign, the mass media may well determine the important issues—that is, the media may set the "agenda" of the campaign.
*This study was partially supported by a grant from the National Association of Broadcasters. Additional support was provided by the UNC Institute for Research in Social Science and the School of journalism Foundation of North Carolina.
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