Recessions, broadly defined, are periods of negative economic growth, whereas expansions are periods of positive economic growth. The graph shows...

Owning The Dataset

Table 1: Text Analysis

Table 2: Chart Analysis

Key Insights

1. Both newspapers publish far more stories about recession during official recession periods, and very few during expansions; their coverage is highly cyclical.
2. The Finance Times produces approximately twice as many recession-centered articles as the Metro Journal during downturns, indicating a stronger editorial focus on economic decline.
3. Spikes in article counts correspond closely with the timing of official recessions, demonstrating that media attention is tightly linked to current economic conditions, not to general concern or unrelated factors.

Step-by-Step Solution

Question 1: Identifying the Year of Highest Expansion-Focused Article Coverage

Complete Statement:

Suppose the number of stories per month in the two newspapers about economic growth that were primarily about expansion tends to increase steeply and steadily after a recession ends and to decrease sharply when a recession begins. Then, during the period shown on the graph, one might reasonably expect the number of stories about economic growth primarily about expansion to have been highest in ___.

Breaking Down the Statement

• Statement Breakdown 1:
  • Key Phrase: number of stories per month...primarily about expansion
  • Meaning: Articles reporting on positive economic growth, opposite of recession-focused articles.
  • Relation to Chart: The chart displays counts of recession-focused articles; expansion-focused articles would be highest when recession coverage is lowest.
  • Important Implications: To find the peak for expansion stories, find periods after recessions end and right before a new recession starts.

• Statement Breakdown 2:
  • Key Phrase: increase steeply and steadily after a recession ends
  • Meaning: Expansion stories climb throughout economic recovery.
  • Relation to Chart: After each grey shaded recession, during the subsequent expansions, expansion stories would accumulate.
  • Important Implications: Longest expansion period will likely contain the highest stack of expansion stories before the next recession.

• What is needed: The year, during the period shown, when expansion-focused economic growth stories reach their maximum.

Solution:

• Condensed Solution Implementation:
  Look at the graph for the longest period without a recession (no grey area) and select the year right before the next recession.
• Necessary Data points:
  Expansion from 1991 (end of grey recession) to 2001 (start of next grey area) is the longest. The peak for expansion stories would occur just before the 2001 recession.
  • Calculations Estimations:
    Since expansion stories climb until the next recession starts, the last year before the 2001 recession (which starts in early 2001) is 2000.
  • Comparison to Answer Choices:
    Given options like 1994, 1997, and 2000, the correct choice based on the timeline is 2000.

FINAL ANSWER Blank 1: 2000

Question 2: Type of Article the Finance Times Had Fewer Of Relative to Metro Journal (1975-1976)

Complete Statement:

If, from 1975 to 1976, the Finance Times had fewer stories overall about economic growth than the Metro Journal did, then most likely the Finance Times also had fewer stories ___ than the Metro Journal did.

Breaking Down the Statement

• Statement Breakdown 1:
  • Key Phrase: 1975 to 1976
  • Meaning: Time covering a recession (seen as a grey shaded area on the chart).
  • Relation to Chart: Both lines (Finance Times and Metro Journal) show increased stories; these are primarily about recession.

• Statement Breakdown 2:
  • Key Phrase: Finance Times had fewer stories overall
  • Meaning: The total number (recession + expansion) is less for Finance Times than Metro Journal.
  • Relation to Chart: Despite Finance Times having a higher line for recession stories than Metro Journal during this period.

• What is needed: Type of economic growth story—expansions or recessions—that Finance Times had fewer of compared to Metro Journal in 1975-1976.

Solution:

• Condensed Solution Implementation:
  Subtract number of recession stories from the total to find expansion stories. Since Finance Times had more recession stories but fewer total stories than Metro Journal, its number of expansion stories must be much lower.
• Necessary Data points:
  Chart shows Finance Times had higher recession coverage in 1975-1976 but still fewer total stories than Metro Journal.
  • Calculations Estimations:
    Finance Times: More recession, but fewer total, so had fewer expansion stories. Mathematically, \(\mathrm{FT\ expansion\ stories = FT\ total - FT\ recession}\), \(\mathrm{MJ\ expansion = MJ\ total - MJ\ recession}\). Since \(\mathrm{FT\ total \lt MJ\ total}\) and \(\mathrm{FT\ recession \gt MJ\ recession}\), \(\mathrm{FT\ expansion \lt MJ\ expansion}\).
  • Comparison to Answer Choices:
    Correct answer is 'primarily about expansions'.

FINAL ANSWER Blank 2: Primarily about expansions

Summary

Question 1 requires understanding when coverage about expansions would peak—specifically, at the end of the longest expansion, which is the year 2000. Question 2 relies on using given totals and visible recession coverage to deduce that the Finance Times must have had lower expansion article counts than the Metro Journal during 1975-1976.

Question Independence Analysis

The two questions are independent: the first is about timing across the entire period, the second is about story composition between two newspapers in a specific year. Solving one does not require knowing the answer to the other.