The ASSIST Media Tracking System is a comprehensive archive of newspaper articles on tobacco control issues. The tracking system contains over 100,000 articles, appearing from October 1993 to the present, coded in terms of their tobacco control content, slant, prominence, and focus of coverage. This presentation describes the methodology used to compare coverage of tobacco related issues between ASSIST and non-ASSIST states, and preliminary findings from the analysis. The ASSIST Media Tracking System was merged with monthly counts of daily newspapers obtained from a National news clipping service to account for differences in the number of newspapers in each state. Individual yearly rates were calculated for each policy category tracked by dividing the number of articles by the number of newspapers in each state. A repeated measured analysis was performed using SAS Proc Mixed to test the effect of state groupings, and year of publication, while controlling and a measure representing states’ effort in tobacco control prior to the implementation of ASSIST intervention. The preliminary results of the analysis are discussed as well as applications of this approach to other possible analyses of state tobacco control efforts. The broad applicability of this model for other public health media analysis and tracking is described, and future research and other applications discussed.
Learning Objectives: The participant will understand how the Media Tracking System has been used to compare states based on the amount and type of newspaper stories generated in their state
Keywords: Tobacco Control, Media
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Employee of NCI