Indiana U. Study of O'Reilly finds 'Spin' to be a factor

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Content analysis of O'Reilly's rhetoric finds spin to be a 'factor'
Commentator uses name-calling more than once every seven seconds in 'Talking Points Memo'
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2007

Editors: Additional data, charts and the full text of the study are available online at http://journalism.indiana.edu/papers/oreilly.html.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Bill O'Reilly may proclaim at the beginning of his program that viewers are entering the "No Spin Zone," but a new study by Indiana University media researchers found that the Fox News personality consistently paints certain people and groups as villains and others as victims to present the world, as he sees it, through political rhetoric.

The IU researchers found that O'Reilly called a person or a group a derogatory name once every 6.8 seconds, on average, or nearly nine times every minute during the editorials that open his program each night.

"It's obvious he's very big into calling people names, and he's very big into glittering generalities," said Mike Conway, assistant professor in the IU School of Journalism. "He's not very subtle. He's going to call people names, or he's going to paint something in a positive way, often without any real evidence to support that viewpoint."

Maria Elizabeth Grabe, associate professor of telecommunications, added, "If one digs further into O'Reilly's rhetoric, it becomes clear that he sets up a pretty simplistic battle between good and evil. Our analysis points to very specific groups and people presented as good and evil."

More: http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/5535.html?emailID=5535">Content analysis of O'Reilly's rhetoric finds spin to be a 'factor'
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