Israeli Media increases division between people

University Park, Pa. The power that the Israeli media once used to create a sense of community is increasingly separating groups, according to a Penn State Altoona political scientist. A study of Israeli newspapers indicates that both religious and secular newspapers are using their ability to select and present information to divide groups of Israeli citizens, said Matt Evans, assistant professor, political science. "The media has immense power to influence people by the way they frame information," said Evans. "Instead of working to heal differences, they are actually exacerbating the social cleavages." Journalists frame information by determining what articles they publish, where articles are placed in the paper and how the articles are written. They can also use photos and artwork to frame the information, said Evans, who reported his findings in the current issue of the Middle East Journal. Evans said media framing is often unintentional.