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Relative risk in the news media: a quantification of misrepresentation
Objectives:
This study quantifies the representativeness with which the print news media depict mortality.
Methods:
The proportion of mortality-related copy in samples of national print media was compared with the proportion of actual deaths attributable to the leading causes of US mortality over a 1-year period.
Results:
For every tested cause of death, a significant disproportion was found between amount of text devoted to the cause and the actual number of attributable deaths. Underrepresented causes included tobacco use (23% of expected copy) and heart disease (33%); overrepresented causes included illicit use of drugs (1740%), motor vehicles (1280%), and toxic agents (1070%).
Conclusions:
The news media significantly misrepresent the prevalence of leading causes of death and their risk factors. This misrepresentation may contribute to the public's distorted perceptions of health threats.