Prophet, Gadfly, Polemicist, Conscience of America? The US press versus Noam Chomsky

Tabe Bergman*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

As a contribution to the scholarship on the US media's reporting of dissidence, this article assesses the treatment of Noam Chomsky's books on politics and media in four US newspapers. It documents and explains the fluctuations in attention over time. A content analysis shows that a sizeable majority of reviews were negative, but also that the press reception was quite varied. A qualitative assessment demonstrates that reviewers largely failed to provide substantive counterarguments to Chomsky's research and frequently praised it. The article discusses the newspapers’ weak and surprisingly positive reactions to Chomsky's media criticism. Then it draws parallels between the criticisms and marginalization of Chomsky in the press and academia, and highlights the evidence that confirms his analyses.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1453-1469
Number of pages17
JournalJournalism Studies
Volume18
Issue number11
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2 Nov 2017
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Christian Science Monitor
  • Los Angeles Times
  • New York Times
  • Noam Chomsky
  • Washington Post
  • book reviews
  • dissidents

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