Pew: Media coverage favors same-sex marriage

News media's coverage of same-sex marriage has been more favorable than unfavorable by a wide margin, according to a new survey released Monday.

Stories focusing on support for same-sex marriage were five times more frequent than those focused on opposition, according to analysis conducted by the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism.

Between March 18, the week before the Supreme Court heard arguments on same-sex marriage, and May 12, Pew analyzed nearly 500 stories from more than 50 sources.

Of the stories Pew focused on, 44 percent of stories were neutral or presented a balance of opinions. Forty-seven percent concentrated on supportive viewpoints, while 9 percent concentrated on opposition.

The report found that those arguing for same-sex marriage had a more consistent message than those arguing against.

Among supporters, the argument was framed around civil rights, and 49 percent of the stories studied in the news media included the argument that same-sex couples should be allowed to marry because it is an issue of equality.

Arguments varied among those opposed. The most common argument was that same-sex marriage would harm traditional marriage and society, though only 18 percent of news stories included this claim.

Journalists and citizens following the subject online used different terms. According to an analysis using Google Trends, citizens searched more often for "gay marriage" while journalists, on the other hand, used "same-sex marriage" more frequently. The term "marriage equality" was not used by either as much, but did increase over time.

On social media, opinions expressed on Twitter were closely split between 31 percent supporting and 28 percent opposed, a result that is closer to an earlier Pew poll found the American public split 51 percent in favor of same-sex marriage to 42 percent against.

The view that the Supreme Court should not have taken up gay marriage was a common theme. About 17 percent of stories in the major news media studied included this view.