“A National Disgrace”

Abstract

Because of a series of editorial apologies for neglecting coverage of the civil rights movement, this article examines coverage of the 1963 Birmingham campaign in five prestige dailies to explore the social construction of news and the relationship between news organizations, their subjects, and their audiences. This study considers survey data that indicated regional attitudes toward civil rights and found coverage did not always reflect the views of a paper's readers. Southern newspapers tended to discredit movement leaders and their agenda, as well as to emphasize law enforcement's preparedness, while northern and western papers were sympathetic to the movement. The study specifically considers why a midwest paper was hostile to the movement in contradiction to its readers’ pro-integration attitude.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Barbara G. Friedman

BARBARA G. FRIEDMAN is an assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina

John D. Richardson

JOHN D. RICHARDSON is a trial consultant in Houston. The authors are grateful to Robin Roger and Mark Slagle for research assistance on this article, an earlier version of which was presented at the 2005 annual convention of the American Journalism Historians Association.