Media in a Crisis Situation Involving National Interest: A Content Analysis of the TV Networks Coverage of The 9/11 Incident during the First Eight Hours

A content analysis of coverage of 9/11 incident during the first eight hours examined how five television networks framed the news coverage as events unfolded. Media performed their function in a crisis basically as they were expected and coverage and issues do not vary significantly among the networks. This study found that a variety of sources was used, and the influence of government officials was not as great as in the coverage of a crisis with less involvement of U.S. national interest. Media primarily serve as the sources of accurate information instead of guidance and consolation in the crisis. Human interest was not found to be a dominant frame in the coverage, even though the crisis involved human casualties. Dominant frames were associated with the dominant theme of the incident. The stage of a crisis was an important factor determining the coverage frames. Coverage frames changed over different stages as the unfolding event brought attention to new issues.