PBS’ NewsHour remains the gold standard for broadcast evening news on the economy. NewsHour once again proved in the second quarter of the year to be better at covering economic news than its corporate broadcast competitors, ABC’s World News Tonight, CBS’ Evening News (and Weekend News), and NBC’s Nightly News. Media Matters found that in the second quarter, PBS featured 113 qualifying news segments with significant reporting on the economy — far more than ABC (19), CBS (31), and NBC (28) combined. The combined quarterly coverage represented a slight decline from the previous quarter.

Viewers of corporate broadcast news programs often went several days without a single substantive discussion of the economy. By comparison, PBS NewsHour aired a dedicated daily stock market update in addition to feature reporting on the economy. This marked the second consecutive quarter in which PBS lapped its broadcast competition in terms of both the depth and breadth of its economic news coverage, even though it doesn't air on weekends.

Many evening corporate broadcast news viewers also missed out on mentions of major economic news releases. The ABC and CBS evening programs failed to cover the April jobs report, NBC didn’t cover the June jobs report, and both CBS and NBC failed to report on the July GDP update. Additionally, NewsHour was the only evening program that mentioned the economic topics discussed during the Biden-Trump presidential debate in late June.

ABC’s World News Tonight aired by far the fewest qualifying economic segments of all network evening news programs, accounting for just 19 segments (or 10%) of all 191 broadcast evening news economic segments for the second quarter of 2024. ABC’s coverage of the economy during the study period represented a significant decline from the first quarter of the year, during which the network featured 31 qualifying economic news segments.

ABC mentioned inflation more than any other economic indicator (9 segments, or 47% of its coverage), followed by stock market updates (5 segments, or 26%). ABC did not mention corporate profits, student loan debt, economic growth and GDP, health care policy, tax policy, government spending, or the national debt and federal budget deficit in any of its qualifying news coverage. ABC improved slightly on its coverage of economic inequality from the previous quarter with 1 qualifying mention during the second quarter, up from 0 in the first.

CBS’ Evening News and Weekend News aired 31 qualifying economic news segments, representing a slight increase from the previous study period and accounting for roughly 16% of qualifying segments in the second quarter. CBS mentioned inflation in 45% of its qualifying segments — more than any other economic indicator and a virtually identical proportion to the previous quarter. Stock market performance, labor market indicators, and employee wages were each mentioned in 6 segments (or 19%).

CBS neglected to mention corporate profits, student loan debt, economic growth and GDP, health care policy, economic inequality, Social Security, or the national debt and annual budget deficits at all.

NBC’s Nightly News aired 28 qualifying economic news segments, or just under 15% of all 191 segments in the second quarter of 2024. Both the number of qualifying segments aired by NBC and the proportion of all qualifying broadcast segments that were aired by NBC are similar to the first quarter of the year. NBC also mentioned inflation more than any other economic indicator, with the topic appearing in 12 (or 43%) of its economic news segments. NBC slightly increased the proportion of its coverage focused on the job market, with 7 segments (or 25%), followed by trade with 4 segments (or 14%) and stock market updates with 3 segments (or 4%). NBC was again the least reliant on stock market updates among its broadcast competitors. NBC did not mention tax policy, government spending, Social Security, or the federal budget deficit and national debt in any of its qualifying coverage.

PBS’ NewsHour aired 113 qualifying economic news segments, accounting for 59% of all 191 economic news segments aired by the major broadcast networks' evening programs during the second quarter. In line with the prior survey period, just over half of PBS’ economic coverage (65 segments, or 58%) included substantial focus on stock market performance and financial markets, as NewsHour included a routine stock market update in nearly every episode. PBS aired far more coverage on inflation than any of its competitors, with 28 segments (or 25%). It also featured far more segments on the job market and government regulation (with 12 segments each, or 11%), trade (with 8 segments, or 7%), student debt or college loans (with 7 segments, or 6%), and wages (with 6 segments, or 5%).

PBS’ dominance in economic news coverage carried over from the first quarter of the year. Even excluding stock market updates, PBS aired more economic news coverage (48 segments) than any other broadcast news program and, with one exception (unions and organized labor), NewsHour covered each selected economic indicator more than any other news program. PBS aired 2 segments on unions and organized labor, compared to 2 each from CBS and NBC and 3 segments from ABC.
 

Fox News and MSNBC engaged in a tug-of-war over the framing of the economy. Media Matters reviewed prime-time cable news coverage of the economy during the second quarter of 2024 and found similar airtime being dedicated to economic news and policy by Fox News (66 segments) and MSNBC (54 segments). Fox News dedicated more time to covering inflation (43 segments, or 65%) than MSNBC did (21 segments, or 39%), but the two networks also differed greatly in their portrayal of the topic. Fox personalities repeatedly portrayed inflation as being out of control and the result of specific policies pursued by the Biden-Harris administration, while MSNBC’s coverage was much more likely to focus on significant improvements to inflation, which had largely stabilized by the time of the study period. Fox’s prime-time coverage of the economy also included significant misinformation about various economic issues.

These disparate portrayals of economic news remained generally consistent across the board in Fox and MSNBC’s dueling coverage of the economy, and the two networks also showed a noticeable difference in the topics they tended to cover. Fox ran 10 segments on the federal budget deficit and national debt, compared to just 3 from MSNBC, but MSNBC aired 8 discussions of corporate profits, which were never mentioned in qualifying segments on Fox News during the survey period. MSNBC aired more discussions of government regulations and government spending than Fox, while Fox aired more segments on taxes, college loans, and wages and earnings.

During the survey period, American stock markets reset several all-time highs, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 40,000 points for the first time. Perhaps unsurprisingly, MSNBC discussed the strong financial markets much more than Fox in prime-time.

MSNBC also aired more discussion than Fox of trade and tariff policies — particularly those proposed by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, which economists believe would have a significant negative effect on the economy.

Overall, MSNBC’s coverage of the economy was significantly more well-rounded than its cable competitors’; the network registered at least one significant discussion of each economic indicator included in this survey.

CNN was apparently not interested in economic news. Even though the survey period included three hours of daily prime-time news programming, CNN aired only 22 qualifying segments dedicated to economic news and policy during the second quarter of 2024, or just over 15% of cable news prime-time coverage. CNN’s economic coverage overwhelmingly focused on inflation (with 14 segments, or 64% of its coverage) and job market data (12 segments, or 55% of its coverage)

The Wall Street Journal nearly lapped the competition in front-page economic news coverage. The Wall Street Journal alone was responsible for nearly half of the front-page economic news coverage published by five of the most prominent daily newspapers in the second quarter of the year. The Journal published more than twice as much economic news (42 news articles) as its next closest competitor, The Washington Post (17). After including third-place finisher The New York Times (15 news articles), those top three newspapers were responsible for nearly all of the economic news coverage published during the survey period by the five newspapers we reviewed (74 of 85 new articles, or 87%).

The Los Angeles Times registered a distant fourth place with just 8 qualifying front-page news articles published during the second quarter and 0 such articles published on the front page in the entire month of June. Readers of USA Today got just 3 front-page economic news articles in the second quarter, with 0 qualifying articles published in the months of April and June.

Front-page newspaper coverage of the economy was dominated by discussion of inflation and stock market performance. Consistent with observed trends in broadcast evening news and prime-time cable programming, inflation dominated newspapers’ front page coverage of the economy in the second quarter of the year. Articles containing significant discussions of inflation represented more than half (44 of 85 articles, or 52%) of qualifying articles in the second quarter of the year.

Monthly data for three key inflation metrics remained relatively stable throughout the survey period, but newspaper coverage largely fixated on the impact that monthly variances in one measurement or another would have on Federal Reserve monetary policy. This inflation reporting particularly focused on the effects these monetary policy swings had on financial markets.

Twenty-one of the 26 qualifying news articles featuring a significant discussion of American stock markets appeared in articles that also focused on inflation. All told, news articles featuring discussions of stock market performance accounted for 26 of 85 news articles, or 31%.

Social Security, Medicare, economic inequality, and student loan debt were virtually ignored on newspaper front pages. Several important economic policy issues were virtually ignored by major newspaper coverage in the second quarter of the year, with just 1 article mentioning economic inequality and 1 on Social Security, just 3 articles mentioning college debt, 3 mentioning student loan forgiveness, and 3 more articles discussing government health care programs (including Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act).

The following is a thorough rundown of the economic topics that Media Matters found in five top newspapers’ front-page coverage of the economy in the second quarter of the year.

• Inflation was mentioned in 44 of 85 qualifying news articles, or 52%.
• The stock market was mentioned in 26 of 85 qualifying economic articles, or 31%.
• Jobs and employment were mentioned in 25 of 85 articles, or 29%.
• Wages were mentioned in 17 of 85 articles, or 20%.
• Trade policy, including tariffs, was mentioned in 11 of 85 articles, or 13%.
• Economic growth was mentioned in 11 of 85 articles, or 13%.
• Corporate profits were mentioned in 10 of 85 articles, or 12%.
• Government regulations were mentioned in 9 of 85 articles, or 11%.
• National debt and the federal budget deficit were mentioned in 8 of 85 articles, or 9%.
• Unions and union activity were mentioned in 8 of 85 articles, or 9%.
• Taxes were mentioned in 7 of 85 articles, or 8%.
• Government spending was mentioned in 5 of 85 articles, or 6%.
• College debt and President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness programs were mentioned in 3 of 85 articles, or 4%.
• Government health care programs — including Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act — were mentioned in 3 of 85 articles, or 4%.
• Economic inequality and poverty was mentioned in 1 of 85 articles, or roughly 1%.
• Social Security was mentioned in 1 of 85 articles, or roughly 1%.

Media Matters searched transcripts in the SnapStream and Kinetiq video databases for all original episodes of ABC's World News Tonight, CBS' Evening News and Weekend News, NBC's Nightly News, and PBS' NewsHour, including any weekend editions, for any of the terms “debt,” “deficit,” “growth,” “inequality,” “inflation,” “jobs,” “tax,” “revenue,” “supply side,” “trickle down,” “GDP,” “GNP,” “income,” “labor,” “union,” “trade,” “tariff,” “Social Security,” “Medicare,” “Medicaid,” “Affordable Care Act,” or “retirement” or any variations of any of the terms “economy,” “spend,” “wage,” “wealth,” “unemployment,” “product,” “employ,” “Obama care,” “health care,” “healthcare,” “Wall Street,” “stock,” “S&P,” “NASDAQ,” “Dow,” “regulation,” or “loan” from April 1, 2024, through the second quarter of the year ending June 30, 2024.

We searched transcripts in the Nexis and Kinetiq databases for all original episodes of CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360, The Source with Kaitlan Collins, and CNN Newsnight; Fox News Channel's Jesse Watters Primetime, Hannity, and Gutfeld!; MSNBC’s Inside with Jen Psaki, All In with Chris Hayes, The Rachel Maddow Show, Alex Wagner Tonight, and The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell, for the same search terms from April 1, 2024, through the second quarter of the year ending June 30, 2024.

We searched front-page print articles in the Factiva database from the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post for the same search terms from April 1, 2024, through the second quarter of the year ending June 30, 2024.

We included segments, which we defined as instances when the American economy was the stated topic of discussion or when we found significant discussion of the economy. We defined significant discussion as instances when two or more speakers in a segment discussed issues relating to the American economy with one another.

We did not include passing mentions, which we defined as instances when a single speaker in a segment or article on another topic mentioned the U.S. economy without another speaker engaging with the comment, or teasers, which we defined as instances when the anchor or host promoted a segment about the economy scheduled to air later in the broadcast.

We also included front-page articles, which we defined as instances when the American economy was mentioned in the headline or lead paragraphs of each paper. We did not include editorial, op-eds, or letters-to-the-editor.

We then reviewed the identified segments and articles and determined whether they included mention of any of the following: the federal budget deficit or the national debt; economic, income, wealth inequality, or references to any anti-poverty program; inflation (including monetary inflation), price increases, purchasing power, or price gouging; state, local, or federal minimum wages or government reports on payroll or discussion of income changes; jobs reports, the unemployment rate, jobs growth, or changes to employment both regionally and nationally; corporate profits and revenues; the economic impact of government regulation or discussion of economic regulations broadly; state, local, or federal taxes on personal income, wealth, or corporate revenue; imports, exports, tariffs, or international trade agreements and negotiations; labor unions, strikes, or worker organizing; the federal budget or any federal funding or spending legislation, deals, or continuing resolutions to avoid government shutdowns; Social Security; the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, or Medicaid; student debt and college loans; or the stock market.

Percentages may not add up to 100% because individual segments and articles could include multiple economic indicators and/or because of rounding.

Definitions of terms

• Debt and deficit: Federal budget deficit and/or national debt
• Poverty or Economic inequality: Economic, income, or wealth inequality or references to any anti-poverty program
• Inflation: Inflation broadly, inclusive of monetary inflation, price increases, purchasing power, or price gouging
• Jobs and employment: Discussion of the monthly job creation, jobs report, general employment situation (nationally or regionally), jobs created by federal legislation, or unemployment rate
• Profits: Corporate profits and revenues
• Regulations: Economic impacts of government regulations or discussion of economic regulations broadly
• Taxes: State, local, or federal taxes on personal income, wealth, or corporate revenue
• Trade: Imports, exports, tariffs, or international trade agreements and negotiations
• Unions: Labor unions, strikes, or worker organizing
• Wages: State, local, or federal minimum wages. Government reports on average hourly earnings and/or wages. General discussion of income changes
• Growth: Discussion of economic growth, GDP/GNP
• Social Security: Social Security/SSDI
• Government spending: Budget proposals, continuing resolutions, any legislation related to federal government funding/spending
• Health care and health insurance: Any mentions of federally provided/regulated health care/insurance, particularly The Affordable Care Act, Medicare, Medicaid, and VA health care
• College debt: Discussion of college debt and student loan forgiveness programs
• Stock market: Discussion of stock market performance