Systemic determinants of international news coverage: a comparison of 38 countries

This study investigates the influence of systemic determinants on international news coverage in 38 countries. Systemic factors include traits of nations, magnitude of interaction and relatedness between nations, and logistics of news gathering. Multiple regression is implemented to assess 9 systemic determinants in each individual country. Findings indicate that the U.S. was the most covered country in the world. In spite of some variation, trade volume and presence of international news agencies were found to be the 2 primary predictors of the amount of news coverage. The study concludes that the prediction framework of international news coverage has probably altered in the post-Cold War epoch and, therefore, that the relevant problems need to be revisited.