Personalizing the U.S. Supreme Court Through Attention to Individual Justices

Brian J. Fogarty, S. Nasser Qadri and Patrick C. Wohlfarth

Social Science Quarterly, 2020, vol. 101, issue 2, 825-841

Abstract: Objectives We examine media incentives shaping the nature of U.S. Supreme Court justices’ news coverage and, in particular, how those incentives often lead news outlets to concentrate coverage on particular justices on the Court. Methods First, we examine and model aggregate, over time patterns of news attention devoted to individual justices in the New York Times over the past four decades. Second, we compare and model temporal variation in individual justice coverage relative to generic coverage of the Supreme Court. Findings The results suggest that particular justices receive disproportionate attention from the national news media. Further, we demonstrate how individual justices have received a greater proportion of print media coverage over time and in a way that is shaped by internal division among the justices. Conclusion The findings provide a more complete and nuanced understanding of how national media utilize resources to maximize journalistic impact and personalize the Court as an institution.

Date: 2020
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