Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27577053›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2016

Why media representations of corporations matter for public health policy: a scoping review.

Heide Weishaar, Lori Dorfman, Nicholas Freudenberg, Benjamin Hawkins, Katherine Smith, Oliver Razum, Shona Hilton

Abstract readScoping Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC public health, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
37citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

37 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Heide WeishaarMRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, 200 Renfield Street, Glasgow, G2 3QB, UK.
Lori DorfmanBerkeley Media Studies Group, Public Health Institute, and University of California, 2130 Center St. Ste. 302, Berkeley, CA, 94704, USA.
Nicholas FreudenbergCity University of New York School of Public Health, 55 West 125th Street, New York, NY, 10027, USA.
Benjamin HawkinsLondon School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, 15-17 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SH, UK.
Katherine Smith, 2.27 Chrystal Macmillan Building 15a George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9LD, UK.
Oliver RazumBielefeld School of Public Health, Bielefeld University, Post box No.10 01 31, 33501, Bielefeld, Germany. oliver.razum@uni-bielefeld.de.
Shona HiltonMRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, 200 Renfield Street, Glasgow, G2 3QB, UK.

Funding

Tobacco Companies, Public Policy and Global HealthR01CA091021 · NCI · U OF L LONDON SCH/HYGIENE &TROPICAL MED · PI LEE, KELLEY · 2001 to 2018
$5.1M
Chief Scientist OfficeMedical Research Council MC_UU_12017/15NCI NIH HHS R01 CA091021
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMedia representations play a crucial role in informing public and policy opinions about the causes of, and solutions to, ill-health. This paper reviews studies analysing media coverage of non-communicable disease (NCD) debates, focusing on how the industries marketing commodities that increase NCD risk are represented.

methodsA scoping review identified 61 studies providing information on media representations of NCD risks, NCD policies and tobacco, alcohol, processed food and soft drinks industries. The data were narratively synthesized to describe the sample, media depictions of industries, and corporate and public health attempts to frame the media debates.

resultsThe findings indicate that: (i) the limited research that has been undertaken is dominated by a focus on tobacco; (ii) comparative research across industries/risk-factors is particularly lacking; and (iii) coverage tends to be dominated by two contrasting frames and focuses either on individual responsibilities ('market justice' frames, often promoted by commercial stakeholders) or on the need for population-level interventions ('social justice' frames, frequently advanced by public health advocates).

conclusionsEstablishing the underlying frameworks is crucial for the analysis of media representation of corporations, as they reflect the strategies that respective actors use to influence public health debates and decision making. The potential utility of media research lies in the insights that it can provide for public health policy advocates about successful framing of public health messages and strategies to counter frames that undermine public health goals. A better understanding of current media debates is of paramount importance to improving global health.

Indexed as

Food IndustryHealth PolicyMarketingMass MediaPublic HealthPublic OpinionTobacco IndustryHumansRisk FactorsSocial JusticeCorporationsFramingMedia analysisNon-communicable diseases

Identifiers

PMID27577053
PMCPMC5006262

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.