Media and Foreign Policy: Comparative Study of Journalists’ Perceptions of Press-Government Relations during the Six-Party Talks

Abstract

This study examines journalists’ role conceptions in their coverage of diplomatic issues, based on a survey of South Korean, U.S., and European journalists who covered the six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear program. The author found differences between South Korean, U.S., and European journalists in their perceptions of journalists’ role in the multilateral nuclear talks. Compared with U.S. and European journalists, South Korean journalists believed more strongly that journalists are participants in the negotiation process and that news sources have significant influence on their judgments of the newsworthiness of issues related to the talks. This comparative study offers important implications for the press-government relationships in foreign affairs issues.