The coverage of family planning use in the mass media in Uganda : a comparative analysis of the New Vision and Daily Monitor

Abstract

This study was motivated by the low use of modern Family Planning (FP) methods observed in Uganda. It compared the extent to which two leading print media outlets– the New Vision and the Daily Monitor, gave coverage to promoting FP as they played their agenda setting role in fostering health and development. The study employed a comparative research design guided by the framing theory combined by the agenda setting theory and the instrumental learning theory. It was guided by three objectives that included: comparing the extent to which the New Vision and the Daily Monitor promoted the use of FP methods through (a) publicity, (b) informative reporting and (c) prominence. Quantitative content analysis was used to collect data from a sample of 240 newspaper editions, which included 120 editions that each daily had published in four randomly selected months of the year 2017. Data was analysed using the Chi Square method aided by SPSS (Version 22). The Chi Square was used to establish how the two dailies differed in promoting the use of FP. Findings show that both the New Vision and the Daily Monitor gave positive, but low publicity to the use of FP. This publicity was more given by the New Vision compared to the Daily Monitor, especially in terms of promoters’ reports, contraception advertisements, special reports and supplements. It was only in terms of advertorials that the Daily Monitor took the lead. The two dailies gave low informative reporting to the use of FP. However, the New Vision reported more positively about it compared to the Daily Monitor. It was in terms of negative reporting that the Daily Monitor took the lead. No prominence was given to promoting the use of FP by the two dailies. Both dailies did not attach importance to FP use. They specifically did not publish any item about the use of FP as lead or headline story, or on their front and second pages. It was only in terms of including photographs in items about FP use that the New Vision gave more prominence compared to the Daily Monitor. From these findings, the study was concluded by noting that while the New Vision gave more publicity, positive reporting and prominence to the use of FP compared to the Daily Monitor, the extent of all these forms of coverage was low in both dailies. Therefore, given the impact and role of the media in shaping and informing perspectives, it is recommended that the two dailies should improve the coverage given to the use of FP by increasing its publicity, informative reporting about and prominence given to it towards improved uptake of FP services. The study recommended more research into why the proprietors and editors of the two dailies give low coverage to promoting the use of family planning.