Comparison of Articles by Kavussanu and Burgard, Brand, and House - Essay Example

Much data has indeed been disseminated on Hurricane Katrina and the challenges which health officials faced in spreading and the media in retrieving accurate and timely public health data during emergencies (Cohen, et.al., 2008).  Evaluating how the media publicizes tragedies is an important aspect of communication research.  Even as some media scholars have considered separate news coverage for public health issues, there is still an inadequate evaluation of the news coverage of public health issues during tragedies.  Hence, this study is being carried out to evaluate the content of national newspapers about the Hurricane Katrina news coverage (Cohen, et.al., 2008).  By evaluating such data, it may then be possible to close the gap between theoretical models of agenda agenda-setting wealth public health data that need to be conveyed for the sake of public health service (Cohen, et.al., 2008).

            Specifically, the study sought to evaluate the following objectives: the topics discussed in the newspapers after the Katrina hurricane coverage; the ways by which the news described the effect of the hurricane on the community and the rest of the nation; and the ways by which these newspapers described the health impact of risks of Hurricane Katrina.  It examines these objectives, the authors carried out a content analysis of four newspapers published from August 26, 200,5 to September 30, 2005.  The analysis was carried out through descriptive statistics and frequencies to establish a clear picture of the nature of the news coverage after Hurricane Katrina. A statistical evaluation was then applied to the stories included in the sample with the application of cross-tabulations and Pearson’s chi-square (Cohen, et.al., 2008).  The study then revealed that 8.5% of the articles were related to efforts by first responders to the hurricane.  About 6.4% of the articles focused on who or what was to blame for the disaster; 4.6% discussed practical concerns including access to health services; 2.1% covered animal rescue; 3.0% discussed reasons why the people stayed in New Orleans; 2.1% discussed racism; 2.1% covered disease; and finally, 2.1% of the news articles discussed population conflict (Cohen, et.al., 2008).  The objectives of this study were met because the paper was able to cover the type of news discussed by the media in the aftermath of the Katrina hurricane.