Don't ask, don't tell, don't explain: unofficial sources and television coverage of the dispute over gays in the military

Television news organizations' use of unofficial sources in their coverage of the 1992-1993 controversy over gays in the military service was analyzed. Results revealed that news organizations based their decision in choosing unofficial sources on journalists' understanding of newsworthiness, their definition of expertise and the news frame they choose to structure individual stories. The results implied that television news organizations exert minimal effort to obtain views from experts who will present the controversy in a broader social or historical context.