Poor News examines the way discourses of poverty are articulated in the news media by incorporating specific narratives and definers that bring about certain ideological worldviews. This happens, the authors claim, because journalists and news editors make use of a set of information strategies while accessing certain sources within specific social and political dynamics. The book looks at the case of the news media in Britain since the industrial revolution and produces a historical account of how these media discourses came into play. The main thesis is that there have been different historical cycles that reflect particular hegemonic ideas of each period. Consequently, the role of mainstream journalism has been a subservient one for existing elites when it comes to the propagation of dominant ideas.

By Dr. Steven Harkins and Jairo Lugo-Ocando

Introduction/ 1.The poverty revolution: From individualism to collectivism and back again/ 2. A poor 'fourth estate': The poverty of politics and the politics of poverty in the newsroom / 3. Blaming the Victims: Moral Panics, Welfare Reform and Scapegoating/ 4. Poor Sources: Giving a voice to the voiceless? How people living in poverty are excluded from the news/ 5. From Rags to Riches: Poverty and Ideology in the news/ 6. News after next: Resistance and adaptation in the digital age/ Conclusion/ Bibliography/ Index