Content Analysis of News Analyses: Examining Trends in News Content and Resources

While the news industry and news databases have changed over the last 20 years, little is known about the type of news content studied and how the ways researchers access content have evolved. This paper aims to identify trends in news analysis studies by examining 216 print and online news analyses published in communication, journalism, and media studies journals by U.S. authors between 2002 and 2020. Each publication was coded for their methodological attributes. Findings show most studies analyze text articles. Subscription-based news aggregator databases like LexisNexis, NewsBank/Access World News, ProQuest, and Factiva are the most popular resources to access news content, and there has been a statistically significant increase in the use of news websites and public databases. Librarians can use these findings to assess their news collections and advise researchers on resources to access news content for news analysis projects.