Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.5559/di.33.3.02
Towards a More Democratic Forum: Source Analysis of News Reporting on Older People's Problems in Delo during the Slovenian Parliamentary Elections from 2004 to 2018
Otto Gerdina
orcid.org/0000-0002-0838-6484
; Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
*
Sinja Gerdina
; Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
* Corresponding author.
Abstract
While an increasing number of studies provide important
insights into media construction of old age, the structure of
news sources is seldom examined. The latter is especially
important in democratic societies, during election years,
when people elect representatives who tackle older people's
social problems. Using content analysis, we examined the
source structure of news articles reporting on older people's
problems in the Slovenian newspaper Delo in five sequential
parliamentary election years from 2004 to 2018. The
findings showed that news coverage was predominantly
constructed by elite sources rarely including representatives
of older people. This characteristic strengthens the
surveillance function of Delo but undermines its role as a
democratic forum. However, during the last three observed
election years, Delo's news reporting showed signs of
transitioning towards a more democratic forum, which holds
potential for fostering older people's civic inclusion.
Keywords
population ageing; social problems; media representations; print media; news reporting
Hrčak ID:
322300
URI
Publication date:
12.11.2024.
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