Tuesday’s Washington Post offered this study tidbit: “President Obama received far more favorable coverage from Arab television networks than on American newscasts during the first 18 months of his term.” Academics Stephen Farnsworth, Robert Lichter, and and Roland Schatz found the coverage on five Arab networks (including al-Jazeera and al-Arabiyah) was 7.9 percent more positive than negative, compared to 2.6 percent more positive on European networks and 7.9 percent more negative on the ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox evening newscasts. “Reporting on the president’s character was a major part of international news reports on Obama, and was an area where Obama was highly regarded,” the study proclaims. Obama’s coverage was less positive in the first six months of 2010, but the disparity remained: 4 percent more negative than positive on the Arab networks, compared to 6.5 percent more negative in Europe, and 12 percent more negative on American TV news. The authors evaluated almost 77,000 statements and submitted their findings to the American Political Science Association. Those statements included evaluations by journalists as well as experts, regular Americans, and partisans on both sides.
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Obama News Far More Favorable on Arab TV Networks Than America’s
