Work

Comparison of community firearm violence news reports across four local television stations in Philadelphia, PA, USA: A quantitative media content analysis

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Objective On television news in Philadelphia, PA, USA, community firearm violence (CFV) is rarely covered as a public health issue, and harmful content elements are pervasive. It is unknown whether and how coverage differs across networks. To fill this gap, we compared CFV stories across all local English-language Philadelphia stations: 6ABC, CBS3, NBC10, and FOX29. Methods We performed a quantitative media content analysis using a stratified sample of CFV news clips. On each day of 2021, one network and broadcast time were chosen randomly and all clips featuring a firearm-injured person in Philadelphia were collected. We coded the clips to identify victim characteristics and the frequency of 11 harmful content elements. We calculated harmful content scores and compared content frequencies. Results Most clips contained harmful content (99.7 %) and most harmful content scores were similar. Differences included: NBC10 less frequently reported clinical condition( p = 0.01) and number of gunshot wounds( p = 0.02) with a significantly lower individual-level harm score( p = 0.04). Differences in the frequency of reported age and child victims were noted. Conclusions CFV reports were similar across television news outlets in Philadelphia, suggesting that networks are approaching coverage in the same manner: placing high news value on crime framing and frequently including harmful content.

Source: Preventive Medicine Reports

DOI: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2025.103324