News Interest vs News Coverage June 17-27 Situation in Iraq 26 Ohio woman 23 Immigration 13
While events in Iraq dominated public interest last week, news about a pregnant Ohio woman, Jessie Davis, who was missing and later found dead drew a large audience. Nearly a quarter of the public (23%) followed the Davis story very closely and the same percentage said this was the story they followed most closely — making it the second most closely followed story for the week.
Davis’s disappearance and murder drew much greater interest among women than men. It was the top story for women overall (31% of women listed this as their top story, while 22% listed Iraq). By contrast, men were much more focused on Iraq. Just 15% of men listed the Davis murder as their top story of the week, while twice as many (30%) cited Iraq. Overall, the national news media devoted 5% of its coverage to the Davis story, making it the week’s fourth most heavily covered story (behind the 2008 campaign, the situation in Iraq, and the conflict between rival Palestinian groups). However, cable news devoted 15% of the newshole to the Davis story, making it the second most heavily covered story on cable for the week.
News Interest vs News Coverage  | June 17-27  | Situation in Iraq 26  | Ohio woman 23  | Immigration 13  | 2008 Campaign  | 6  | Stem cell veto  | Palestinian conflict  | Interest: percent who followed this story most closely  | Coverage: percent of news coverage devoted to story 