While some aspects of the campaigns of gay candidates have been studied in the past, existing scholarship regarding the news coverage that they receive is limited in the United States. Given that the news media may influence electoral outcomes and marginalize gay and lesbian candidates, it is important to examine how they are covered. Research suggests that three theories influence the news coverage of gay candidates—sexual mediation (heteronormative bias), discovery-scrutiny-decline (timing of campaigns), and partisan-ideological media bias. Are the news media biased against gay candidates by focusing on their sexual orientation? When does this happen, and does this vary by outlet’s ideological slant? To answer these questions, I compiled a dataset of articles from online news outlets across the political-ideological spectrum about the unique candidacy of Pete Buttigieg during the 2020 presidential primary. Using content analysis, I find that Buttigieg is more likely than his heterosexual competitors to have his sexuality, novelty, and LGBT issues discussed in his coverage. Articles in low information settings, such as those at the beginning of his campaign, help to explain why such attributes of Buttigieg’s campaign are covered. The more partisan-ideological outlets are, the more often they discuss Buttigieg’s sexually based attributes.
AlitavoliRayeheh. 2020. “Framing the News on the Syrian War: a Comparative Study of Antiwar.Com and Cnn.Com Editorials.” Media, War & Conflict13 (4): 487–55.
AlwoodEdward. 1996. Straight News: Gays, Lesbians, and the News Media. Columbia University Press.
6.
ArceneauxKevinJohnsonMartin. 2013. Changing Minds or Changing Channels? Partisan News in an Age of Choice. University of Chicago Press.
7.
AyoubPhillip MGarretsonJeremiah. 2017. “Getting the Message Out: Media Context and Global Changes in Attitudes Toward Homosexuality.” Comparative Political Studies50 (8): 1055–85.
8.
BaileyMandi B.NawaraSteven P. 2017. “Gay and Lesbian Candidates, Group Stereotypes, and the News Media.” In LGBTQ Politics: A Critical Reader, edited by BrettschneiderMarlaBurgessSusanKeatingChristine, 334–49. New York University Press.
BudakCerenGoelSharadRaoJustin M. 2016. “Fair and Balanced? Quantifying Media Bias Through Crowdsourced Content Analysis.” Public Opinion Quarterly80 (S1): 250–71.
13.
CasseseErinConroyMeredithMehtaDhrumilNestorFranchesca. 2021. “Media Coverage of Female Candidates’ Traits in the 2020 Democratic Presidential Primary.” Journal of Women, Politics & Policy43 (1): 42–63.
CohenCathy. 1999. The Boundaries of Blackness: AIDS and the Breakdown of Black Politics. University of Chicago Press.
17.
Crowder-MeyerMelodyKushner GadarianShanaTrounstineJessica. 2020. “Voting can Be Hard.” Urban Affairs Review56 (1): 124–53.
18.
DeBoldKathleen. 1994. Out for Office: Campaigning in the Gay Nineties. Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund.
19.
DolanKathy. 2014. When does Gender Matter? Women Candidates and Gender Stereotypes in American Elections. Oxford University Press.
20.
DugganLisa. 2002. “The New Homonormativity: the Sexual Politics of Neoliberalism.” In Materializing Democracy: Toward a Revitalized Cultural Politics, edited by CastronovoRussNelsonDana D., 175–94. Duke University Press.
21.
EverittJoannaCampMichael. 2009a. “Changing the Game Changes the Frame: the Media’s Use of Lesbian Stereotypes in Leadership Versus Election Campaigns.” Canadian Political Science Review3 (3): 24–9.
22.
EverittJoannaCampMichael. 2009b. “One Is Not like the Others: Allison Brewer’s Leadership of the New Brunswick NDP.” In Opening Doors Wider: Women’s Political Engagement in Canada, edited by BashevkinSylvia, 127–44. University of British Columbia Press.
23.
FeldmanLaurenMaibachEdward W.Roser-RenoufConnieLeiserowitzAnthony. 2012. “Climate on Cable: the Nature and Impact of Global Warming Coverage on Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC.” The International Journal of Press/Politics17 (1): 3–31.
24.
FloresAndrew R. 2021. Social Acceptance of LGBTI People in 175 Countries and Locations. The Williams Institute.
25.
FloresAndrew R.StrodeDakotaHaider-MarkelDonald P. 2024. “Political Psychology and the Study of LGBTQI+ Groups, Politics, and Policy: Existing Research and Future Directions.” Political Psychology46 (S1): 213. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12989
26.
FridkinKimKenneyPatrick. 2014. The Changing Face of Representation: The Gender of US Senators and Constituent Communications. University of Michigan Press.
27.
GangulySoumenKulshresthaJuhiAnJisunKwakHaewoon. 2020. “Empirical Evaluation of Three Common Assumptions in Building Political Media Bias Datasets.” Proceedings of the International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media14: 939–43.
28.
García-SánchezPabloVelez-EstevezAntonioJulián MereloJuanCoboManuel Jesús. 2021. “The Simpsons Did it: Exploring the Film Trope Space and its Large Scale Structure.” PLoS One16 (3): e0248881.
29.
GarretsonJeremiah. 2018. The Path to Gay Rights: How Activism and Coming out Changed Public Opinion. New York University Press.
30.
GershonSarah. 2013. “Media Coverage of Minority Congresswomen and Voter Evaluations: Evidence from an Online Experimental Study.” Political Research Quarterly66 (3): 702–14.
GolebiowskaEwa A. 1996. “The Pictures in our Heads’ and Individual-Targeted Tolerance.” The Journal of Politics58 (4): 1010–34.
33.
GolebiowskaEwa A. 2000. “The Etiology of Individual-Targeted Intolerance: Group Stereotypes and Judgments of Individual Group Members.” Political Psychology21 (3): 443–64.
34.
GolebiowskaEwa A. 2001. “Group Stereotypes and Political Evaluation.” American Politics Research29 (6): 535–65.
35.
GolebiowskaEwa A. 2002. “Political Implications of Group Stereotypes: Campaign Experiences of Openly Gay Political Candidates.” Journal of Applied Social Psychology32 (3): 590–67.
36.
GolebiowskaEwa A. 2003. “WHEN TO TELL? Disclosure of Concealable Group Membership, Stereotypes, and Political Evaluation.” Political Behavior25 (4): 313–27.
37.
GolebiowskaEwa A.ThomsenCynthia J. 1999. “Group Stereotypes and Evaluations of Individuals: the Case of Openly Gay and Lesbian Political Candidates.” In Gays and Lesbians in the Democratic Process, edited by RiggleEllen D. B.TadlockBarry L., 192–219. Columbia University Press.
38.
GuessAndrew M. 2021. “(Almost) everything in Moderation: New Evidence on Americans’ Online Media Diets.” American Journal of Political Science65 (4): 1007–22.
39.
Haider-MarkelDonald P.CagleVan M. 2004. Media Coverage of Lawrence V. Texas: an Analysis of Content, Tone, and Frames in National and Local News Reporting. 1–121. GLAAD Center for the Study of Media and Society.
40.
Haider-MarkelDonald P.MillerPatrick R. 2017. “Equality or Transformation? LGBT Political Attitudes and Priorities and the Implications for the Movement.” In LGBTQ Politics: A Critical Reader, edited by BrettschneiderMarlaBurgessSusanKeatingChristine, 270–94. New York University Press.
41.
Haider-MarkelDonald P.AllenMahalley D.JohansenMorgen. 2006. “Understanding Variations in Media Coverage of US Supreme Court Decisions: Comparing Media Outlets in Their Coverage of Lawrence V. Texas.” Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics11 (2): 64–85.
42.
HarrisRockia K.BickhamShaniece B.BroussardJinx C. 2024. “Intersectionality and the Framing of News: a Discourse Analysis of Black Press and Mainstream Coverage About Vice President Kamala Harris.” Journal of Critical Race and Ethnic Studies2 (1): 3–22.
43.
HayesDannyLawlessJennifer. 2016. Women on the Run: Gender, Media, and Political Campaigns in a Polarized Era. Cambridge University Press.
44.
HayesDannyLawlessJennifer L. 2021. News Hole: The Demise of Local Journalism and Political Engagement. Cambridge University Press.
45.
HeckmanMegBhargavaRahulNdulueEmily Boardman. 2025. “Powerful in Pearls and Willie Brown’s Mistress: a Computational Analysis of Gendered News Coverage of Kamala Harris on the Partisan Extremes.” Feminist Media Studies25 (1): 1–19.
46.
HerekGregory M.McLemoreKevin A. 2013. “Sexual Prejudice.” Annual Review of Psychology64: 309–33.
47.
HerrickRebekahThomasSue. 1999. “The Effects of Sexual Orientation on Citizen Perceptions of Candidate Viability.” In Gays and Lesbians in the Democratic Process, edited by RiggleEllen D. B.TadlockBarry L., 170–91. Columbia University Press.
48.
IlfeldJohanna S.WinerRussell S. 2002. “Generating Website Traffic.” Journal of Advertising Research42 (5): 49–61.
49.
IyengarShanto. 1997. “Overview.” In Do the Media Govern? Politicians, Voters, and Reporters in America, edited by IyengarShantoReevesRichard, 211–16. Sage.
50.
IyengarShanto. 2019. Media Politics: A Citizen’s Guide. 4th ed.W. W. Norton & Company.
Joint Center For Political and Economic Studies (JCPES). 2023. History. Joint Center For Political and Economic Studies. https://jointcenter.org/about/history/
53.
JonesPhillip E.BrewerPaul R. 2020. “Elite Cues and Public Polarization on Transgender Rights.” Politics, Groups, and Identities8 (1): 71–85.
54.
KittilsonMiki CaulFridkinKim. 2008. “Gender, Candidate Portrayals and Election Campaigns: a Comparative Perspective.” Politics and Gender4 (3): 371–92.
55.
KluttzBilly. 2014. “Outness and Identity in Context: Negotiating Sexual Disclosure in LGBT Campaigns.” Sexuality & Culture18 (4): 789–83.
56.
KreissDanielLawrenceRegina G.McGregorShannon C. 2018. “In their Own Words: Political Practitioner Accounts of Candidates, Audiences, Affordances, Genres, and Timing in Strategic Social Media Use.” Political Communication35 (1): 8–31.
57.
LalancetteMireilleTremblayManon. 2019. “Media Framing of Lesbian and Gay Politicians.” In Queering Representation: LGBTQ People and Electoral Politics in Canada, edited by TremblayManon, 102–23. University of British Columbia Press.
58.
LauVienne W.BlighMichelle C.KohlesJeffrey C. 2020. “Leadership as a Reflection of who we are: Social Identity, Media Portrayal, and Evaluations of Hillary Clinton in the 2016 US Presidential Election.” Sex Roles82 (7): 422–37.
59.
LewisDaniel C.FloresAndrew R.Haider-MarkelDonald P.MillerPatrick R.TaylorJami K. 2022. “Transitioning Opinion? Assessing the Dynamics of Public Attitudes Toward Transgender Rights.” Public Opinion Quarterly86 (2): 343–68.
LichterS. Robert. 2017. “Theories of Media Bias.” In The Oxford Handbook of Political Communication, edited by KenskiKateHall JamiesonKathleen, 403–16. Oxford University Press.
65.
LoeppEricRedmanShane M. 2022. “Partisanship, Sexuality, and Perceptions of Candidates.” Journal of Elections, Public Opinion, and Parties32 (2): 297–31.
66.
MagniGabrielImseElliot. 2023. When we Run: The Motivations, Experiences and Challenges of LGBTQ+ Candidates in the United States. LGBTQ+ Victory Institute.
67.
MagniGabrieleReynoldsAndrew. 2021. “Voter Preferences and the Political Underrepresentation of Minority Groups: Lesbian, Gay, and Transgender Candidates in Advanced Democracies.” The Journal of Politics83 (4): 1199–115.
68.
MagniGabrieleReynoldsAndrew. 2022. “The Persistence of Prejudice: Voters Strongly Penalize Candidates with HIV.” Political Behavior44: 1843–62.
69.
MagniGabrieleReynoldsAndrew. 2024. “Candidate Identity and Campaign Priming: Analyzing Voter Support for Pete Buttigieg’s Presidential Run as an Openly Gay Man.” Political Research Quarterly77 (1): 184–98.
McLeanKaralenaIn Collaboration with Angelia Wagner and Joanna Everitt. 2019. “Examining Mediation of Female and LGBTQ-identifying Candidates.” In Gendered Mediation: Identity and Image Making in Canadian Politics, edited by WagnerAngeliaEverittJoanna, 145–62. University of British Columbia Press.
MeeksLindsey. 2013. “All the Gender That’s Fit to Print: How the New York Times Covered Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin in 2008.” Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly90 (3): 520–39.
PattersonThomas E. 1994. Out of Order: An Incisive and Boldly Original Critique of the News Media's Domination of American’s Political Process. Vintage.
82.
PetersonErikGoelSharadIyengarShanto. 2021. “Partisan Selective Exposure in Online News Consumption: Evidence from the 2016 Presidential Campaign.” Political Science Research and Methods9 (2): 242–58.
ProctorAndrew. 2022. “Coming out to Vote: the Construction of a Lesbian and Gay Electoral Constituency in the United States.” American Political Science Review116 (3): 777–90.
RobertsonRonald E.JiangShanJosephKennethFriedlandLisaLazerDavidWilsonChristo. 2018. “Auditing Partisan Audience Bias Within Google Search.” Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction2 (CSCW): 1–22.
87.
SabinJeraldKirkupKyle. 2019. “Competing Masculinities and Political Campaigns.” In Gendered Mediation: Identity and Image Making in Canadian Politics, edited by WagnerAngelaEverittJoanna, 45–64. University of British Columbia Press.
88.
SchwarzSusanneCoppockAlexander. 2022. “What Have We Learned About Gender from Candidate Choice Experiments? A meta-analysis of sixty-seven Factorial Survey Experiments.” The Journal of Politics84 (2): 655–68.
89.
ScottZachary A. 2023. “Replicating the Discovery, Scrutiny, and Decline Model of Media Coverage in Presidential Primaries.” Journal of Elections, Public Opinion, and Parties33 (3): 354–341.
ShultzinerDoronStukalinYelena. 2021. “Distorting the News? the Mechanisms of Partisan Media Bias and Its Effects on News Production.” Political Behavior43 (1): 201–22.
92.
SidesJohnTeslerMichaelVavreckLynn. 2018. Identity Crisis: The 2016 Presidential Election & the Battle for the Meaning of America. Princeton University Press.
93.
SidesJohnTausanovitchChrisVavreckLynn. 2022. The Bitter End: The 2020 Presidential Campaign and the Challenge to American Democracy. Princeton University Press.
94.
SmithDonna. 2012. Sex, Lies and Politics: Gay Politicians in the Press. Sussex Academic Press.
SpindeTimoRudnitckaiaLadaSinhaKanishkaHamborgFelixGippBelaDonnayKarsten. 2021. “MBIC – a Media Bias Annotation Dataset Including Annotator Characteristics.” Proceedings of the iConference.
97.
StrodeDakota. 2025. Understanding the News Coverage of Gay Candidates: Pete Buttigieg’s 2020 Primary Campaign and the Partisan News Media. Figshare. https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.29882741
98.
TolleyErin. 2016. Framed: Media and the Coverage of Race in Canadian Politics. University of British Columbia Press.
99.
TolleyErin. 2019. “Breaking the Concrete Ceiling: Media Portrayals of Racialized Women in Politics.” In Gendered Mediation: Identity and Image Making in Canadian Politics, edited by WagnerAngeliaEverittJoanna, 106–26. University of British Columbia Press.
100.
TurcotteJasonFureyLaurenGarcia-OrtegaJ. OmarHernandezNicolasSiccionCarrisaStephensonEmily. 2021. “The Novelty News Frame: How Social Identity Influences Policy Attention of Minority Presidential Candidates.” Newspaper Research Journal42 (1): 95–10.
Van der ToornJojannekePliskinRuthieMorgenrothThekla. 2020. “Not Quite over the Rainbow: the Unrelenting and Insidious Nature of Heteronormative Ideology.” Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences34: 160–65.
103.
WagnerAngeliaEverittJoanna. 2019. “Introduction.” In Gendered Mediation: Identity and Image Making in Canadian Politics, edited by WagnerAngeliaEverittJoanna, 3–23. University of British Columbia Press.
104.
WardOrlanda. 2016. “Seeing Double: Race, Gender, and Coverage of Minority Women’s Campaigns for the US House of Representatives.” Politics and Gender12 (2): 317–43.
ZallerJohn R. 1992. The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion. Cambridge University Press.
109.
ZhengYueChanLik Sam. 2022. “Framing Same-Sex Marriage in U.S. Liberal and Conservative Newspapers from 2004 to 2016: Changes in Issue Attributes, Organizing Themes, and Story Tones.” The Social Science Journal59 (1): 1–13.
110.
ZulliDiana. 2019. “The Changing Norms of Gendered News Coverage: Hillary Clinton in the New York Times, 1969–2016.” Politics and Gender15 (3): 599–61.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
