What men and women think while watching the news: An exploration

Abstract

This study addresses gender differences in television news processing. Male and female subjects were asked to verbalize their thoughts while they watched an edited television newscast. The authors use an interpretive procedure to analyze both the newscast's content and protocols of the thoughts expressed by the subjects. Results indicate that women and men differ in the number and types of thoughts they have while watching the news. Most notably, the analyses suggest that women generally experience a lack of information while they watch newscasts that can be regarded as largely masculine in nature. This perception of not being informed culminates in criticism of the news among the highly educated women while it causes embarrassment among the lower educated women. The consequences of the findings and possible uses of the method for future news research are discussed.