Changing media representations of youth in the news – a content analysis of Danish newspapers 1953–2003

Media plays an important role in shaping public perceptions of youth. Previous studies have shown consistently negative images of youth in news media through a heavy focus on crime, accidents, and moral decay. Most research in this area has only collected data over short timeframes, which makes it difficult to register possible changes in modes of representation. The present study has sought to overcome this short come by emphasizing long-term data collection, by focusing on how newspapers have portrayed youth in the period 1953–2003. On the basis of quantitative content analyses of Danish newspapers, we find a strong emphasis on crime and accidents; however, culture takes up almost as much space. Furthermore, we cannot confirm a tendency toward increasingly negative media representations regarding young people. Our data show more neutral portrayals and an increase in news items quoting young people.