Mackenzie Ross, Chapman Simon, Johnson Natalie, McGeechan Kevin, Holding Simon
School of Public Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Med J Aust. 2008 Aug 4;189(3):155-8. doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2008.tb01950.x.
To test the hypothesis that television news coverage of different cancers reflects their incidence and burden, and to examine the journalistic approaches used in reporting cancer.
Content analysis of all news, current affairs and infotainment reports on cancer broadcast on five free-to-air television channels in Sydney, New South Wales, 2 May 2005 - 6 January 2008.
Number of items on specific cancers, relationship with burden of that cancer (disability-adjusted life-years [DALYs]), and category of "story lead" used for the item.
Cancer was the fifth most reported health issue, with 1319 items; 25 different cancers received news coverage. The most reported cancers were breast cancer (42.5% of all items on specific cancers), melanoma (11.9%) and cervical cancer (11.6%). Some cancers were significantly over-reported in relation to their DALYs (eg, cervical cancer was over-reported by a factor of 10.2 compared with the number of reports predicted on the basis of DALYs) while others were under-reported, including colorectal, lung and pancreatic cancers. The most common story leads used in cancer reports were treatment (32% of items) and celebrities with cancer (21%), particularly breast cancer.
The current predominance of reports on breast and cervical cancer and on young women with cancer may be distorting public and political perceptions of the burden of cancer. The success of advocates in raising the news profile of breast cancer may hold lessons for agencies wishing to improve the newsworthiness of other cancers.
检验关于不同癌症的电视新闻报道反映其发病率和负担这一假设，并审视报道癌症时所采用的新闻手法。
对2005年5月2日至2008年1月6日在新南威尔士州悉尼的五个免费电视频道播出的所有有关癌症的新闻、时事和资讯娱乐报道进行内容分析。
特定癌症的报道条数、与该癌症负担（伤残调整生命年[DALYs]）的关系以及该报道的“故事导语”类别。
癌症是报道的第五大健康问题，共有1319条相关报道；25种不同癌症得到了新闻报道。报道最多的癌症是乳腺癌（占特定癌症所有报道的42.5%）、黑色素瘤（11.9%）和宫颈癌（11.6%）。一些癌症相对于其伤残调整生命年被过度报道（例如，与根据伤残调整生命年预测的报道数量相比，宫颈癌被过度报道了10.2倍），而其他癌症则报道不足，包括结直肠癌、肺癌和胰腺癌。癌症报道中最常见的故事导语是治疗（占报道的32%）和患癌名人（21%），尤其是乳腺癌方面。
目前对乳腺癌和宫颈癌以及患癌年轻女性的报道占主导地位，这可能会扭曲公众和政治对癌症负担的认知。倡导者提高乳腺癌新闻关注度的成功经验可能为希望提升其他癌症新闻价值的机构提供借鉴。
