Ithaca College

Matt Guardino, a lecturer in the Department of Politics, recently had an article published in the American Journal of Political Science. The piece, co-authored with Danny Hayes of American University, shows how network TV news coverage shaped public opinion on the Iraq War in 2002 and 2003.

Hayes and Guardino demonstrate that critical statements by leaders of foreign nations and officials from international organizations who appeared in the U.S. mainstream media caused many Democrats and independents to express opposition to the war. Their study, which relies on an analysis of more than 1,400 news stories and nine public opinion surveys including more than 5,700 respondents, offers the first empirical evidence that foreign elite voices in the news can shape American attitudes.

Guardino, who received his PhD from Syracuse University in 2011, teaches News Media & U.S. Politics at Ithaca College. Hayes is an assistant professor of government at American University. Their article, titled "The Influence of Foreign Voices on U.S. Public Opinion," appears in the October 2011 issue of the American Journal of Political Science.