Bandwagon Journalism

Background

The term takes its name from the late-nineteenth-century bandwagon, a large wagon pulled by draft animals that was part of political processions, sometimes even carrying a band, but also often carrying political figures. The term also refers to circus bandwagons, which were used to carry circus animals, musicians, and supplies. To jump or hop on the bandwagon indicated one's willingness to join the winning political side or the side appearing to have current momentum.

Bandwagon journalism should not be confused with the bandwagon effect in public opinion research. The bandwagon effect suggests voters are influenced in an election by their perception of which side is winning. The bandwagon effect holds that there is pressure on some audience members to alter their opinions to be in agreement with those enjoying greater support, renewed interest, or greater enthusiasm for their cause.

Application to Journalism

Bandwagon journalism is often used to describe the behavior of political journalists who, broadly speaking, appear to be following the lead of other journalists in their news media coverage. In this way, bandwagon journalism is sometimes used interchangeably with the term pack journalism, which is the tendency of journalists to concentrate on the same stories and storylines. The term pack journalism originated in the 1970s and is now more widely used and understood than bandwagon journalism.

Bandwagon journalism differs from pack journalism by the former's emphasis on the reasons why the coverage looks the same across media outlets. Bandwagon journalism is said to take place when journalists cover a political candidate or social movement because it is seen to have momentum and rapidly gathering support. One example of this is when a political candidate is considered likely to win political office and therefore attracts more news coverage than other candidates. Bandwagon journalism suggests that journalists react to political momentum by concentrating their coverage on the candidate who is benefiting from that momentum. Often this coverage is considered more favorable or positive than that accorded others in the race.

At the same time, the positive news coverage prompted by the bandwagon in the political realm can be short lived. Once a candidate has moved to front-runner status or has received greater attention in the news, journalists may resume a more critical “watchdog” stance in their coverage.

Researcher Thomas Patterson has pointed to what he sees as an effect that is the opposite of the bandwagon, the “losing-ground” candidate. When a candidate is seen to have lessening support in polls or has a campaign that is in disarray, news coverage becomes steadily less favorable. In this case, the losing ground bandwagon takes place as journalists follow the lead of other journalists in writing about problems within the campaign and the likely loss of the election.

...