Does Policy Advocacy Generate Good PR? Evidence from Labor Unions and Minimum Wages

Arbeitspapier

We develop new facts relating news coverage, interest groups, and events in the legislative histories of minimum wage increases. First, we create and validate a database of news articles that includes coverage of minimum wages and organized labor. Second, we show that policy changes predict increases in news coverage that connects organized labor and minimum wages, in particular when those articles reference high-profile interest groups and research output. Third, these policy events lead coverage of organized labor to shift towards articles about minimum wages. We observe that the minimum wage's popularity with the public makes this shift qualify as "good PR," an assessment that is supported by sentiment analysis of articles about organized labor. This public relations channel can thus help rationalize why interest groups engage in policy advocacy.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: IZA Discussion Papers ; No. 16014

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Social Choice; Clubs; Committees; Associations ; Positive Analysis of Policy Formulation and Implementation ; Capitalist Systems: Political Economy
• Subject: political economy ; social choice ; minimum wage ; unionization

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Clemens, Jeffrey ; Strain, Michael R.
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
• (where): Bonn
• (when): 2023

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/272641
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:41 AM CET