Donation and transplantation coverage in the Canadian media: a content analysis of story focus over 2 decades

Alessandro R. Marcon; Timothy Caulfield

doi:10.1503/cjs.012721

Article Figures & Tables

Tables

View popup

Table 1

Total number of articles published by media source and by year

Media source	No. (%) of articles
The Toronto Star	279 (13.4)
Ottawa Citizen	240 (11.5)
The Globe and Mail	207 (9.9)
National Post	159 (7.6)
The Hamilton Spectator	148 (7.1)
Edmonton Journal	136 (6.5)
Calgary Herald	130 (6.2)
Vancouver Sun	130 (6.2)
Montreal Gazette	109 (5.2)
Kitchener Waterloo Record	103 (4.9)
Windsor Star	81 (3.9)
Waterloo Region Record	65 (3.1)
Winnipeg Free Press	62 (3.0)
The London Free Press	39 (1.9)
Saskatoon Star Phoenix	36 (1.7)
The Ottawa Sun	30 (1.4)
The Toronto Sun	29 (1.4)
Vancouver Province	26 (1.2)
Regina Leader Post	24 (1.2)
The Calgary Sun	17 (0.8)
The Edmonton Sun	17 (0.8)
The Winnipeg Sun	15 (0.7)
Year of publication	No. of articles
2019 (January–May)	39
2018	63
2017	73
2016	86
2015	97
2014	94
2013	118
2012	192
2011	88
2010	103
2009	99
2008	118
2007	150
2006	163
2005	88
2004	138
2003	78
2002	113
2001	64
2000	118
Average no. articles per year	107^*

↵* Excludes the 39 articles published from January to May 2019.

View popup

Table 2

Main focus of all articles (n = 2082) and tone for each main focus topic

Main focus topic	No. (%) of articles	Tone, no. (%)
Main focus topic	No. (%) of articles	Positive	Negative	Neutral
Policy	492 (23.6)	106 (21.5)	163 (33.1)	223 (45.3)
Organ recipient	324 (15.6)	194 (59.9)	60 (18.5)	70 (21.6)
Raising awareness/funds	318 (15.3)	125 (39.3)	16 (5.0)	177 (55.7)
Donation rates	200 (9.6)	50 (25.0)	99 (49.5)	51 (25.5)
Organ donor	182 (8.7)	127 (69.8)	11 (6.0)	44 (24.2)
Procedure (medical)	139 (6.7)	84 (60.4)	42 (30.2)	13 (9.4)
Research	121 (5.8)	64 (52.9)	19 (15.7)	38 (31.4)
Organ harvesting, trafficking, transplant tourism	119 (5.7)	3 (2.5)	95 (79.8)	21 (17.6)
Ethics	73 (3.5)	20 (27.4)	24 (32.9)	29 (39.7)
Education	59 (2.8)	17 (28.8)	7 (11.9)	35 (59.3)
Other	24 (1.2)	6 (25.0)	11 (45.8)	7 (29.2)
Key figures	19 (0.9)	17 (89.5)	0 (0)	2 (10.5)
Business	12 (0.6)	1 (8.3)	4 (33.3)	7 (58.3)
Total	2082	814 (39.1)	551 (26.5)	717 (34.4)

View popup

Table 3

Secondary focus in all articles (n = 2082)

Secondary focus topic	No. (%) of articles	No. (%) of articles including main and secondary focus
Organ recipient	324 (15.6)	648 (31.2)
Organ donor	203 (9.8)	385 (18.5)
With at least 1 recipient or donor	460 (22.1)	966 (46.4)
Raising awareness/funds	236 (11.3)	554 (26.6)
Famous people	215 (10.3)	—
Hélène Campbell	76 (3.7)	—
Humboldt Broncos	21 (1.0)	—
Eugene Melynk	20 (1.0)	—
Wagner Twins	4 (0.2)	—
Policy	165 (7.9)	657 (31.6)
Legal proceedings	78 (3.9)	—
Social media	47 (2.3)	—
Ethnicity	44 (2.1)	—
Crowdfunding/public solicitation	37 (1.8)	—
Predictions	8 (0.4)	—
Other countries	297 (14.3)	—
USA	113 (5.4)	—
China	54 (2.6)	—
India	18 (0.9)	—
Australia	10 (0.5)	—
Philippines	9 (0.4)	—
UK	9 (0.4)	—
Spain	8 (0.4)	—

View popup

Table 4

Main category focus including subcategory on all articles (n = 2082)

Main focus category	No. (%) of articles
Policy (n = 492)
Opt in v. opt out, presumed consent	108 (22.0)
System management (e.g., database management)	104 (21.1)
Obtaining organs (organ trade, determining death)	88 (17.9)
Rules/laws around donation and transplantation (including family veto)	55 (11.2)
Other	53 (10.8)
Incentivizing donation (calls for, reflections from politicians)	42 (8.5)
Allocation (including denying donation)	36 (7.3)
Legal proceedings	6 (1.2)
Organ recipient (n = 324)
Received organ (recovering, living)	208 (64.2)
Waiting	80 (24.7)
Received organ (died)	18 (5.6)
Died while waiting	8 (2.5)
Other	10 (3.1)
Organ donor (n = 182)
Deceased	101 (55.5)
Live	59 (32.4)
Other	22 (12.1)
Raising awareness/funds (n = 318)
Galas, promotional events	147 (46.2)
Calls to donate from public	114 (35.8)
Calls to donate from politicians or institutions	29 (9.1)
Other	28 (8.8)
Donation rates (n = 200)
Too low	89 (44.5)
Too low (and specific policy or initiative to increase)	54 (27.0)
Too low (and reason/argument given why)	6 (3.0)
Total too low	149 (74.5)
Rising (improving)	37 (18.5)
Other	14 (7.0)
Procedure (n = 139)
Controversies, complications (e.g., malpractice, drug shortages)	38 (27.3)
High number of successful procedures	28 (20.1)
Novel transplantation (e.g., penis)	27 (19.4)
New methods of storing, transplanting	25 (18.0)
Other	20 (14.4)
Stem cells	1 (0.7)
Research (n = 121)
Other	67 (55.4)
Involving animals (i.e., pig cloning, etc.)	29 (24.0)
Involving stem cells	16 (13.2)
Pharmaceutical development	9 (7.4)
Ethics (n = 73)
Religions or religious figures	31 (42.5)
Crowdfunding, public solicitation	20 (27.4)
Social role of donation (being a donor)	16 (21.9)
Other	6 (8.2)
Educational (n = 59)
Focus solely on donation (e.g., how to be a donor)	29 (49.2)
Focus solely on transplantation (e.g., success rates)	9 (15.3)
Other (both donation and transplantation + specific media)	21 (35.6)
Key figures (n = 19)
Medical professionals	12 (63.2)
Nonmedical	7 (36.8)