National press coverage of UK general elections (1918-2010): end of project report for the Leverhulme Trust

This report outlines the main findings of a systematic content analysis of General Election news reporting in the UK national press from 1918 to 2010. The research assessed five main questions: 1. To what extent has election news reporting become increasingly dominated by the main party leaders over the last century (‘presidentialisation’)? 2. Has political coverage become more focused upon the personalities and personal qualities of candidates (‘personalisation’)? 3. Is negative coverage of politicians increasing (‘negativity’)? 4. Has electoral coverage become more focused upon the process rather than content of the election campaign (‘meta-coverage’)? 5. Have General Elections become less newsworthy (‘Media engagement’)?