Sunday television and intermedia agenda setting : do political talk shows influence news coverage?

This paper examined the intermedia influence of Sunday political talk shows when it comes to political coverage in the United States. A content analysis of these programs over a six-month period showed that from September 2006 through February of 2007 most topics dealt with the Iraq war, discussed by members of the U.S. Congress. The results revealed the Sunday programs had an intermedia agenda-setting effect on Monday’s mainstream media, particularly on the front page of major newspapers. Further study is recommended since Sunday evening and Monday morning newscasts and articles from the inside pages of newspapers were not examined here, possibly underestimating this intermedia effect.