Between online heaven and cyberhell - The framing of 'the internet' by traditional media coverage in Germany

The diffusion of the internet in Germany was accompanied by strong attentio n from the traditional mass media who considered the new medium extensively in their coverage. Their media framing of the internet is analyzed followi ng the four dimensions of framing identified in earlier research on media i ssues. Central to this process are the argumentation patterns used in this research which were defined with regard to a qualitative analysis of the mu ltimedia discourse. Results of a quantitative content analysis of German ne ws magazine coverage (1995-8) indicate that these media had a strong tenden cy towards a favorable assessment of the internet. The euphoric and economi cally optimistic argumentation patterns were most important, and outcomes o f the development were evaluated as supporting the emancipation of the indi vidual. However, this particular way of framing the internet issue is only partly reflected in the perceptions of users.