Setting the news agenda with an ethnic‐relevant topic: Public salience of illegal immigration

Abstract

This study investigated news media agenda‐setting with the issue of illegal immigration. Respondents in Phoenix, Arizona, assessed their self‐identified “most important problem”; differently from illegal immigration along several dimensions. The “most important problem”; measure, often used in agenda‐setting, was rated higher on experience, interest, and a series of evaluations than the ethnic‐relevant problem of illegal immigration. Although findings failed to indicate differences between Hispanics’ (mostly Mexican‐Americans) and non‐Hispanics’ perceptions of illegal immigration, Hispanics assigned greater interest to illegal immigration than non‐Hispanics.

Key words:

• agenda‐setting
• ethnicity
• Hispanics
• immigration