An analysis of news coverage of an artificial heat implant and related public relations activities : the case of William Schroeder

From November 198A to August 1986, the media in the United States focused attention on the implantation of the Jarvik-7 artificial heart by Dr. William DeVries at the Humana Heart Institute International in Louisville, Kentucky. William Schroeder, DeVries' first patient there, became the second artficial heart recipient in history.

This study used Grunig's science communication model and situational theory to consider the complexities of medical coverage. It analyzed the coverage in The New York Times and the Louisville Courier-Journal and the coverage on ABC, CBS, and NBC for the first 22 weeks following Schroeder's implant. It also included interviews with key personnel and a narrative of the public relations activities of Humana, Inc.

An analysis of print paragraphs and broadcast reports showed that from one-quarter to one-third of the coverage dealt with routine medical updates on William Schroeder's condition. Discussion of treatment and the patient's activities often brought the total percentage close to half of the total coverage. Speculations that the coverage focused on the patient were well-founded. The rest of the coverage dealt with issues not directly related to the patient.

Content analysis and matrices of media activity revealed similar patterns of coverage by the networks. The two newspapers differed in coverage. The New York Times coverage focused on medical details and on the public's right to know. The Courier-Journal printed almost twice as much information as the Times, providing details on Schroeder's condition but also focusing on public policy and the issue of review. While similar in content, the broadcast media covered the event with different emphases. NBC emphasized the positive achievements of the medical team while ABC was more balanced and CBS used the coverage to bring other questions forward.

Information from Humana came primarily from the medical spokes-persons or other "unnamed sources." Extensive "media anticipation," a term former public relations director Robert Irvine used to describe Humana's planning and actions, was found. The Humana communications model varied from Grunig's model in that more players interacted and the patient was a central figure of concern for many issues, foremost among them the issue of privacy.