Election Coverage Summary

Local TV Election Coverage Summary: 1999-2003

To read a list of proposed Community Standards for election coverage, click here.

1999

Local Elections - 30 days prior to Election Day
StationNumber of StoriesTotal Time
WOOD TV 8 (6 & 11pm)7 stories8 minutes 9 sec.
WZZM 13 (6 & 11pm)4 stories2 minutes 40 sec
WXMI 17 (10pm)1 story 1 minute 40 sec.

All 3 stations combined - 12 stories. Comparatively, all 3 stations combined ran 18 stories on Pro Golfer Payne Stewarts death & 28 stories on a Muskegon teenager on trial for murder. Full report: http://www.mediamouse.org/griid/reports.php

2000

Presidential, State & County Elections - 30 days prior to Election Day
Station # of local election storiesTotal # of Crime stories
WOOD TV 8 (6 & 11pm)36 76
WZZM 13 (6 & 11pm)1774
WXMI 17 (10pm)1644

Races that received no coverage - State Board of Education, State Supreme Court, State Board of Appeals, University Regents, Kent County Clerk, regional judicial races and most State House races. The Kent County Sheriff's race received 1 story and of the 18 races for Kent County Commission there was 1 story. Full report: http://www.mediamouse.org/griid/pdfs/reports/an_informed_vote_2000.pdf

2001

Local Primary Elections - 30 days prior to Election Day
Station # of local election storiesTotal # of Crime stories
WOOD TV 8 (6 & 11pm)496
WZZM 13 (6 & 11pm)280
WXMI 17 (10pm)255

All 3 stations combined - 7 stories. Comparatively all 3 stations ran 12 stories about Ostriches running loose in Kent County and Jim Dreyer swimming the great lakes, also 12 stories. Full Report: http://www.mediamouse.org/griid/pdfs/reports/an_informed_vote_2001.pdf.

2002

State & Local Elections - 30 days prior to Election Day
Station # of stories on Gov. race# of all other E stories
WOOD TV 8 (5:30, 6 & 11pm)4840
WZZM 13 (5:30, 6 & 11pm)4642
WXMI 17 (10pm)89

Senate Race - 1 story (Ch. 8), Congressional races - 3 stories (Ch. 8), State races - 9 on channel 8 and 1 each on channel's 13 & 17. Total number of stories on Kent County Commission races - NONE, but comparatively the 3 stations combined aired 138 stories on the DC sniper case. Full Report: http://www.mediamouse.org/griid/pdfs/reports/fall_elections_2002.pdf

2003

Local Elections - 30 days prior to Election Day
Station # of election stories# of Crime stories
WOOD TV 8 (5:30, 6 & 11pm)10115
WZZM 13 (5:30, 6 & 11pm)3158
WXMI 17 (10pm)249

Total number of election stories - 15. Comparatively, the 3 stations combined ran a total of 22 stories on fires in California and 16 on a Kentwood School lockdown. Full report: http://www.mediamouse.org/griid/pdfs/reports/election_study_2003.pdff.

 

Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy (GRIID)
711 Bridge St. NW
Grand Rapids, MI
49504

616-459-4788x122 (phone)
616-459-3970 (fax)

www.griid.org

The contents of this page are also available in a PDF versions: Local TV Election Coverage Summary 1999 - 2003 and 2004 Local TV News Statistics.

Local TV News Election Coverage Statistics - 2004
September 13 to November 1

Total airtime of election stories
StationAirtime
WOOD 85 hours 12 minutes
WZZM 135 hours 25 minutes
WXMI 171 hour 27 minutes
Airtime of Presidential race stories plus Percentage of total
StationTimePercent
WOOD 83 hours 48 minutes73 %
WZZM 133 hours 35 minutes66 %
WXMI 171 hours 5 minutes75 %
Airtime of local race stories plus percent of total
StationTimePercent
WOOD 80 minutes 0%
WZZM 139 minutes 3 %
WXMI 172 minutes 2 %
Airtime of State race stories plus percentage of total
StationTimePercent
WOOD 839 minutes 13 %
WZZM 1345 minutes 14 %
WXMI 1712 minutes 14 %
Total number of election stories
Station# of Stories
WOOD 8135
WZZM 13134
WXMI 1735
Number of election stories that were horse race style coverage plus percentage of total
Station# of Stories% of Total
WOOD 86246%
WZZM 136246%
WXMI 1717 49%
Number of stories that featured graphics of polls
Station# of Stories
WOOD 826
WZZM 1329
WXMI 174
Candidate Voices
CandidateWOOD 8WZZM 13WXMI 17TOTAL
Bush13:219:473:1026:18
Kerry10:017:184:2921:48
Cheney5:033:011:279:31
Edwards2:442:011:065:51
Nader:36:00:22:58
Cobb:30:09:221:01

Within stories that included footage of a Presidential candidate speaking, the average air time given for the candidates comments: 21 seconds

Paid Political Ads
Paid Political Ads...#
that ran during news broadcasts810
for Presidential race542 (271 for Bush / 271 for Kerry)
about Prop 1181 (132 for / 49 against)
about Prop 229 (all in favor of it)
for a State or local candidate48 (all for Judge Markman)

Local News Election Coverage Spring 2005
March 29th - May 2nd

Summary

For the thirty days leading up to the May 3 election, the three local TV news stations broadcast only nine stories concerning the election. All nine of the stories mentioned the Grand Rapids public school board election, although often it was mentioned only in passing. Only FOX 17 provided any information about the school board candidates positions, giving about ten seconds per candidate describing their position on school privatization. None of the news stories featured the candidates speaking for themselves. Several times both WOOD and WZZM referred the viewer to their website for more information concerning the candidates. The only other election issues mentioned was a millage vote in Kalamazoo that was very briefly discussed in a WOOD 8 story and a millage vote in Wyoming was mentioned in two stories on WZZM 13. There were 174 school board elections in the West Michigan viewing area, the GRPS board was the only one reported on. There also were numerous millage issues that the local news reported on after the election, but the only millage issues reported on prior to the election were the ones in Wyoming and Kalamazoo.

View tables with data on election coverage (pdf).

 

Local News Election Coverage Summer 2005
June 27th - August 1st

WOOD 8

Total # of Stories: 9

Total Time: 21 minutes, 29 seconds

WZZM 13

Total # of Stories: 12

Total Time: 18 minutes, 56 seconds

WXMI 17

Total # of Stories: 7

Total Time: 17 minutes, 55 seconds

Candidate Voices

Grand Rapids 1st Ward
CandidateWood 8WZZM 13WXMI 17
Jendrasiak17 seconds5144
Milanowski16 seconds2336
Schaffer13 seconds2335
Froot16 seconds2735
Grand Rapids 2nd Ward
CandidateWood 8WZZM 13WXMI 17
Johnston17 seconds3731
Bliss15 seconds2539
Croon20 seconds2239
Grand Rapids 3nd Ward
CandidateWood 8WZZM 13WXMI 17
White17 seconds1832
Tietema14 seconds1739
Marshall18 seconds-43
Wyoming Mayor
CandidateWood 8WZZM 13WXMI 17
Vorhees15 seconds1020
Sheets16 seconds1824
Marshall17 seconds1126
Comparative Stories
Story TypeWood 8WZZM 13WXMI 17Total
# of Election stories912728
# of Crime stories 15011470334
Missing Boy 1813436
Missing Boater 57416

View tables with data on election coverage (pdf).

 

Local TV Election Coverage 2005
October 10 through November 7

WOOD TV 8

16 Stories; 27 minutes and 37 seconds of Coverage
DateStory TopicBroadcastLength
10/13Kalamazoo Mayoral race11pm:27
10/13Kalamazoo Mayoral race11pm:27
10/24Grand Rapids 1st ward/ budget5:30pm2:38
10/25Grand Rapids 1st ward/ taxes5:30pm2:09
10/26Grand Rapids 2nd ward/ budget5:30pm2:40
10/27Grand Rapids 2nd ward/ taxes5:30pm2:03
10/31Kalamazoo Mayoral race5:30pm2:10
11/1Muskegon Mayoral race5:30pm1:59
11/2Wyoming Mayoral race5:30pm4:05
11/3Wyoming Mayoral race5:30pm2:24
11/4Comstock School bond 5:30pm2:03
11/4Attack ads6pm:35
11/4Attack ads11pm1:05
11/7Attack ads5:30pm:46
11/7Kalamazoo/Comstock ballots5:30pm:26
11/7Turnout predictions6pm1:54

WZZM 13

11 Stories; 20 minutes and 10 seconds of Coverage
DateStory TopicBroadcastLength
10/27Forum announcement6pm:19
10/27Forum summary11pm:20
10/31Grand Rapids 1st ward6pm2:40
11/1Grand Rapids 2nd ward6pm2:01
11/2Wyoming Mayoral race6pm3:00
11/3Muskegon Mayoral race5:30pm3:22
11/3Wyoming Forum11pm1:00
11/4Ottawa county issues5:30pm3:05
11/7Voter Apathy5:30pm2:35
11/7Snowmobiles in Whitehall5:30pm:53
11/7Voter apathy6pm:55

WXMI 17

5 Stories; 17 minutes and 35 seconds of Coverage
DateStory TopicBroadcastLength
10/31Kalamazoo Mayoral race10pm3:31
11/1Wyoming Mayoral race10pm3:05
11/2Muskegon Mayoral race10pm2:54
11/3Grand Rapids 1st & 2nd ward10pm5:21
11/7Election Summary10pm2:44

Candidate Voices

RaceCandidateWOOD 8WZZM 13WXMI 17
Grand Rapids 1st WardJendrasiak103 words35 words72 words
Grand Rapids 1st WardSchaffer132 words31 words123 words
Grand Rapids 2nd WardJohnston108 words40 words99 words
Grand Rapids 2nd WardBliss152 words49 words89 words
Wyoming Mayoral RaceVorhees128 words40 words55 words
Wyoming Mayoral RaceSheets141 words47 words70 words
Muskegon Mayoral RaceWarmington73 words78 words135 words
Muskegon Mayoral RaceScott64 words65 words162 words

Comparative Stories

TopicWOOD 8WZZM 13WXMI 17Total
# of Election stories1611532
# of Crime stories996751217

Election Story Transcripts

Election Data

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