Building the health news agenda in local newspapers: Lessons for health-care managers

Abstract Health news is a significant source of health information for many Americans, and recent research has explored how health news is produced from the theoretical perspective of agenda building. In addition, work in public health and mass communication has focused on the significance of the health literacy concept as a tool for journalists and as a rubric for evaluating media messages. However, little is known about health news agenda building or health literacy in relation to local newspapers. This study explores the health news agenda-building process from the perspective of both newspaper journalists and administrators from local public health organizations in one Midwestern state through online and telephone surveys. Results show that public health professionals and journalists offer significantly different definitions of health literacy and interpretations of what should constitute the health news agenda.