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WLBT News in the Deregulation Era

Modern Racism or Representative Picture?

Jackson State University

The Federal Communications Commission no longer keeps a microscopic watch on television stations as it did in years past. This being the case, could stations falter in their public interest obligations? This is an important question because of the power of television news. The present research examines WLBT News in Jackson, Mississippi. This article does not contend that WLBT News should adhere to a higher standard for public interest than the other stations in its market. WLBT holds a distinctive place in broadcast history. WLBT was the first television station to lose its broadcast license for anti-public interest reasons during an era of heavy broadcast regulation. The content of the newscasts were read as "text" and interpreted with semiotic methodolgy in terms of their symbolic and cultural meanings about race. The results of the study suggest that there is more to the messages in the newscasts than what meets the eye at first glance.

Key Words: WLBT • news • Blacks • African American • public interest • racism • deregulation • minorities • Federal Communications Commission • Jackson • Mississippi • television

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