TABLE 1.

Causal Frames and Photo Captions in Experimental News Media Article About Type 2 Diabetes: United States, 2007

	Genetic Predisposition Frame	Behavior/Lifestyle Choices Frame	Social Determinants Frame
Causal Claim #1	Researchers believe that certain genes increase the chances of getting type 2 diabetes.	Researchers believe that the way people behave increases their chances of getting type 2 diabetes.	Researchers believe that the conditions in the neighborhoods where people live increase their chances of getting type 2 diabetes. Rates of diabetes are highest among people living in poor neighborhoods.
Causal Claim #2	Diabetes expert Dr. Howard Smith says, “People who have a specific genetic variation in the TCF7L2 gene on chromosome 10 are much more likely to develop diabetes than people who do not have this variation.” Several other scientific studies have supported the idea that genes are associated with the development of diabetes.	Diabetes expert Dr. Howard Smith says, “People who choose to eat too much food that is high in calories and who choose not to exercise are much more likely to develop diabetes.” Several other scientific studies have supported the idea that lifestyle choices are associated with the development of diabetes.	Diabetes expert Dr. Howard Smith says, “People who live in neighborhoods where the majority of stores sell food with high calories and low nutritional value, such as fast food restaurants or convenience stories, are much more likely to develop diabetes.” Several other scientific studies have supported the idea that people's neighborhoods, including not having convenient or safe places to exercise, and being exposed to many advertisements selling high-calorie foods, are associated with the development of diabetes.
Caption (for photo)	Shirley Jackson, 42, has type 2 diabetes. She recently found out that she carries the genetic variant that makes her more susceptible to diabetes. “Since both of my parents had diabetes,” she said, “I wasn't surprised when I got it too.”	Shirley Jackson, 42, has type 2 diabetes. She said, “What can I say, I just love to eat junk food and I hate to exercise. I guess it finally caught up to me.”	Shirley Jackson, 42, has type 2 diabetes. She said, “It's really hard for me to eat well. Where I live, there are no grocery stores with any fresh vegetables. When I walk down the street, all I see are fast food restaurants.”

Note. These sentences appeared within a hypothetical web-based news article of approximately 350 words entitled “People with Diabetes Lobby Congress This Week.” Each article described the activities of a group from the American Diabetes Association lobbying Congress for attention to type 2 diabetes and described basic epidemiologic facts about diabetes and its medical consequences. The control condition was the article stripped of any of the causal claims and with a neutral caption.