Inclusive Discourse? Local Media Coverage of the Terri Schiavo Case.

This article contributes to a more systematic understanding of the role of mainstream media in deliberative processes by analyzing how inclusive local newspapers are of diverse perspectives on the Terri Schiavo case. Using both Pearson's chi-square test and multinomial logistic regression, we assess how ownership, state political ideology, geographic location, and news format affect what ideas are included in the debate over whether Terri Schiavo's hydration and nutrition tubes should be removed as well as the tone with which these ideas are discussed. We find that mainstream newspapers are relatively inclusive of diverse ideas and perspectives-regardless of whether the newspaper is independently or corporately owned, the political leanings of the target audience, and the geographic location of the outlet.

Mental and physical health consequences of spousal health shocks among older adults.

Objective: To examine how the experience of a negative health event (i.e., onset of heart disease, diabetes, lung disease, cancer, or stroke) of one spouse affects the mental and physical well-being of the other partner as measured by depressive symptoms and self-reported health.

"You don't need a prescription to go gluten-free": the scientific self-diagnosis of celiac disease.

We explore the social process of celiac disease diagnosis using fieldwork in the United States with two celiac support groups, interviews, and a virtual ethnography of an online discussion board. Distinguishing between medical diagnosis, self-diagnosis, and scientific self-diagnosis, we examine patients' varied paths to diagnosis and their attempts to legitimize symptoms as celiac disease. Web-based direct-access testing (DAT) permits patients to bypass physician requisition for testing in their diagnostic quest.