Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes both ASU Theses and Dissertations, submitted by graduate students, and the Barrett, Honors College theses submitted by undergraduate students.
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As the United States’ media aims to mollify an unprecedentedly disenchanted audience as the result of a partisan political climate, border and immigration reporters are tasked with presenting objective and extensive coverage of the highly politicized and polarized phenomenon. The events occurring at the southwest border and the experience of immigration are complex, and the challenges border and immigration reporters face are an extension of that complexity. Reporters attempt to navigate through an array of difficulties in their aim for excellent journalism. This dissertation identifies the 5 greatest challenges border and immigration reporters face and asks how these challenges influence coverage. These are: 1) From the mid-90s to present day, there’s been a surge in border and immigration reporting. How has history influenced this increase in coverage, and what challenges arose from this shift? 2) All people have biases, whether conscious or unconscious. How does that potentially affect border reporting, both from the journalist's and audience’s perspective? 3) Politicians have exploited the phenomenon of immigration to incite fear and have played to the public’s distrust of media. In turn, how do reporters try to avoid exploiting immigrants and consumers in their coverage? 4) There are gaps in government data, resulting in punctured coverage. How do journalists acquire the information necessary to tell the story? 5) Border and immigration reporters experience emotional trauma from exposure to hypersensitive situations. How do reporters cope and continue to search for stories that must be told? This thesis puts most stock in the first-hand accounts of the anecdotes and understandings shared in the 11 border and immigration reporters interviewed in an effort to personalize the discourse. This thesis examines both qualitative and quantitative research to broaden readers’ understanding of the current quality of coverage and the extent of challenges faced by reporters.
ContributorsMuldrew, Jaime Audrey (Author) / Andres, Martinez (Thesis director) / Vanessa, Ruiz (Committee member) / Valeria, Fernandez (Committee member) / Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Comm (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2019-05