2019 Urban Research Award: Constructing City Images through Local Media: An Intermedia Agenda-Setting Analysis of Big Media Data

Lei Guo

PI: Lei Guo, Assistant Professor, Division of Emerging Media Studies, College of Communication
Co-PI: Yiyan Zhang, PhD student; Division of Emerging Media Studies, College of Communication

City marketing works as a foundation for local residents to understand and identify with municipal policies and is used to alter the perception of a city among outsiders to encourage external investment, residence, and tourism. Investigators will focus on how local media plays a critical role in communicating the status quo and vision of a city to audiences beyond the city, aiming to critically assess the impact of United States local media in influencing the city portrayal in national, as well as international, media.  Focusing on major local media in top 30 most populated US cities (including Boston), this study will analyze prominent issues related to each city emphasized in their respective local media. More importantly, the study will explore the extent to which the salience of each city and the associated urban issues will be transferred from its local media to the national and international media agenda.

View more projects funded through our Early Stage Urban Research Awards