TABLE 2—
Proportion of News Coverage Framing the Problem of Obesity and the Characteristics of the New York City Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Portion-Size Cap Regulation: May 31, 2012–July 31, 2013
| Frame Topics Mentioned | Overall % (n = 263) | Before Board of Health Vote,a % (n = 133) | After Board of Health Vote,b % (n = 130) |
| News stories framing the problem of obesity | |||
| Obesity is a problem | 60.5 | 60.9 | 60.0 |
| SSB consumption is a cause of obesity | 27.4 | 31.6 | 23.1 |
| Role of the industry in contributing to SSB consumption or obesity | 9.5 | 13.5 | 5.4* |
| Role of individual choice, behavior, or lifestyles in contributing to SSB consumption or obesity | 13.7 | 16.5 | 10.8 |
| News stories framing characteristics of the SSB portion-size cap | |||
| Aim of the policy is to improve health | 53.6 | 49.6 | 57.7* |
| Policy only includes certain types of beverages | 28.9 | 24.8 | 33.1 |
| Policy only includes certain locations where SSBs are sold | 37.6 | 30.8 | 44.6* |
| Individuals can purchase refills or more than one 16-oz beverage | 28.1 | 33.8 | 22.3 |
| NYC health department has considered or enacted other obesity-specific public health interventionsc | 25.5 | 26.3 | 24.6 |
| NYC health department has considered or enacted other, non–obesity-specific public health interventionsd | 22.4 | 23.3 | 21.5 |
Notes. NYC = New York City; SSB = sugar-sweetened beverage.
May 31, 2012, to Sep 13, 2012.
Sep 14, 2012, to Jul 31, 2013.
Other obesity-specific public health interventions include front-of-package labeling, menu labeling, trans-fat bans, and other food policies or programs.
Non–obesity-specific public health interventions include tobacco and alcohol policies and programs, such as smoke-free indoor air restrictions.
*P < .05 indicating frames in news stories that differ significantly across 2 time periods with control for news story word count and adjustment of standard errors for nonindependence of news outlets.