Black cultural projection: an analysis of major daily news coverage of successful black mayoral campaigns in major US Cities

ABSTRACT

Newspapers often play a significant role in providing knowledge about political matters and may shape public opinion about political figures. However, a focus on newspaper coverage of some of the first Black mayors of major US cities and themes related to racial identity and policy is under-examined. The current investigation adopts an ethnographic content analysis and examines 30 days of major daily newspaper coverage of Black mayoral campaigns in Los Angeles, Detroit, New Orleans, Newark, and Chicago before each mayoral election. Findings reveal that news coverage draws attention to overt racial narratives and emphasizes racial stereotypes. However, news coverage of the candidates’ policy proposals was present and often nonracialized. The outcomes suggest that the inclusion of racial identity and policies, while not entirely favorable, may increase awareness of each candidate’s policies, potentially contributing to their electability.

KEYWORDS:

• Black mayors
• critical race theory
• cultural projection
• politics
• newspapers

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

¹ In response to a reviewer comment, we added quotations marks around the term “negro” as it may be considered a derogatory term, but this may not have been the case when each mayoral candidate ran for office.

² The data set resulted in over 250 articles analyzed for the current study. Accordingly, only direct quotes are referenced in the findings section. A list of all articles and specific subject matter cited in the findings section can be accessed by contacting the first author.