Pew Research on How The Mainstream Media Covers Technology

Link to September 27 Pew Research Project for Excellence in Journalism report, "Tech Times: Media Coverage of Technology".

Excerpt: The mainstream news media have offered the American public a divided view of how information technology influences society, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism.

Over the past year, messages about the promise of technology making life easier and awe about new gadgets have vied in the news with worries about privacy, child predators, shrinking attention spans and danger behind the wheel.

The most prevalent underlying message about technology's influence has been upbeat -- the notion that technology is making life easier and more productive. Nearly a quarter of all technology stories studied from June 1, 2009, to June 30, 2010, conveyed this idea. But that was closely followed by the sense that with convenience comes risk -- to our privacy and particularly to our children -- which made up nearly two-in-10 stories, according to the study.