Press and Democratic Backsliding

Thomas J. Johnson is Amon G. Carter Jr. Centennial Professor in the School of Journalism at the University of Texas at Austin and director of the digital media research program.Aaron S. Veenstra is associate professor and multimedia journalism area coordinator in the School of Communication and Multimedia Studies at Florida Atlantic University.

• Part I: News ProductionChapter 1: Seeing Both Sides: News Photographs of Politicians and the Normative Challenge of Anti-democratic Partisan ActorsChapter 2: Cameramen and Congresswomen: How Photojournalists Framed Female Candidates in the “Year of the Woman”Part II: The Press and Political ActorsChapter 3: To Tweet or Not to Tweet: How Lawmakers Engage in Breaking News OnlineChapter 4: It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World: Need for Chaos, Media Reliance, and Belief in 2020 Election Conspiracy TheoriesPart III: LocalChapter 5: Sheriffs, School Boards, and the Necessity of Pro-Democracy News in Local ElectionChapter 6: Considering News Poverty and Critical Information Needs in Appalachia: Historical and Digital Stratification in the Age of Divisive PoliticsPart IV: InternationalChapter 7: Cross-national Challenges in the Americas: Confronting Anti-democratic Efforts with Democracy-focused News CoverageChapter 8: The Relative Nexus of Election Coverage, Media Ownership, Partisanship and Threats to Democracy in Nigeria: Illuminating the Growing Crisis of Media DemocracyChapter 9: The B Side of Activism: What Happens When Threats Against Journalists Affect the Coverage of Democratic Backsliding?Part V: SolutionsChapter 10: Reporting on Risk Using Constructive Journalism: The Effects of Solutions Content and Source in Stories Covering Threats to American ElectionsChapter 11: News Literacy Is Essential to DemocracyChapter 12: Prioritizing Public Service in Political News Coverage: Solidarity Journalism for Democracy

This edited collection's 12 chapters, written by 21 different authors, suggest that the news media’s political coverage emphasizes electoral competition, strategy, entertainment, and candidate savvy instead of exposing the veracity of statements by politicians and their community engagement. Some chapters focus on the 2020 US election, during which journalists overemphasized candidates' political strategies, as several authors argue. However, three chapters contend that similar journalistic practices occur outside the US. Some authors provide strategies for improving political news coverage, such as a renewed emphasis on local issues. For example, one chapter suggests that US sheriff’s offices and school boards represent community venues where democratic values frequently clash; more news coverage could enhance voter insight. While all submissions offer a comprehensive literature review, some supply case studies and original research. This book is an excellent companion to Matt Carlson, Sue Robinson, and Seth C. Lewis's News after Trump: Journalism’s Crisis of Relevance in a Changed Media Culture (2021). Recommended for libraries in higher education with journalism, mass communication, and political science graduate degree programs. Recommended. Graduate students and faculty.