TV & VIDEO - Feb. 14, 1990

Survey on Racism: A survey of 204 news stories about race relations that were aired on the three major networks in 1989 shows that one out of three sources interviewed said America is racist. The survey, conducted by the Center for Media and Public Affairs in Washington, included 73 stories on NBC (totaling 2 hours and 17 minutes), 69 on ABC (2:08) and 62 on CBS (1:59). Charges of racism were most often leveled against business and the economic sector but the justice system, schools, sports and government were also charged with bias. Among all sources, 54% said racism was increasing, 19% said it was on the decline and 27% saw no change. Crime was the leading topic of race-related stories, followed by elections, white supremacists and civil rights history.