PUB TYPE Speeches/Conference Papers (150)-- Reports-

Examining the impact of news on people's knowledge about and favorableness of opinion toward six foreign countries, a study conducted telephone interviews with 374 adult residents in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, during November 1984. The nations selected for study included three developed countries (Britain, the Soviet Union, and Japan) and three developing countries (Mexico, India, and Venezuela). Knowledge about the countries was measured by asking respondents to identify the capital and estimate the population and income per person for each country. Respondents were also given the name of each country's political leader and were asked to name that leader's country. Favorableness of opinion was assessed by asking respondents to rate each country on a scale of zero to 100, with zero representing an extremely unfavorable opinion. News orientation variables included traditional exposure items an