Katherine Clegg Smith is a sociologist with research interests around the social determinants of health behavior. Dr. Smith’s particular area of expertise is the role played by the media (particularly the news media) in health knowledge and behavior, as well as the influence of the media in the health policy process. She also has a general interest in youth health behavior and the use of qualitative methodology in public health research.

Dr. Smith has led research projects that link news coverage of tobacco to attitudes around policy change. She is now working to apply the news monitoring strategies developed for tobacco to study the role of the news media in the dissemination of knowledge on healthy diet.

tobacco, media, media advocacy, textual analysis, qualitative methods, diet & food, agenda setting

K. Smith, R. Singer and E. Kromm (In Press) ‘Getting cancer research into the news: A communication case study centered on a US Comprehensive Cancer Center’ Science Communication.

M. Ensminger, K Smith, H. Juon, J. Pearson and J. Robertson (In Press) ‘Women, Smoking and Social Disadvantage over the Life Course: A Longitudinal Study of African American Women.’ Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

C. Siebel and K. Smith. (In Press) ‘How Public Are We? Coverage of Sociology by the Associated Press.’ The American Sociologist

A. Klassen, K. Smith, M Black and L. Caulfield (2009) 'Mixed Method Approaches to Understanding Cancer-Related Dietary Risk among Public Housing Residents’ Journal of Urban Health. doi:10.1007/s11524-009-9352-9.

K. McLeod, M. Wakefield, S Chapman, K Clegg Smith, and S Durkin (2009) 'Changes in the news representation of smokers and tobacco-related media advocacy from 1995 to 2005 in Australia' J Epidemiology and Community Health, 63: 215 - 220.

K. Smith, L. Bone, E. Clay, K. Owings, S. Thames, F. and Stillman (2009) 'Partnering with education and job and training programs for sustainable tobacco control among Baltimore African American young adults' Progress in Community Health Partnerships. 3(1): 9-18.

J. Cho and K. Smith (2009) ‘Potential of the Internet to Meet the Needs of Women with Breast Cancer’ Journal of Breast Cancer. 12(1): 1-3.

K. Smith, D. Twum and A. Gielen (2009) 'Media coverage of celebrity DUIs: teachable moments or problematic social modeling?' Alcohol and Alcoholism. 10.1093/alcalc/agp006. (Advance access)

Neff, R. Chan, I. and K. Smith ‘Yesterday’s dinner, tomorrow’s weather, today’s news?: U.S. newspaper coverage of food system contributions to climate change’ (2008) Public Health Nutrition. (First view article).

A. Klassen, K. Smith, S. Shariff-Marco and H. Juon (2008) ‘A healthy mistrust: How world views might influence cancer screening among disadvantaged women’ International Journal for Equity in Health. 7(5).

K. Smith, C. Siebel, L. Pham, J. Cho, R. Friedman, F. Chaloupka, M. Griswold & M. Wakefield (2008) ‘News on tobacco and public attitudes toward smokefree air policies in the United States’. Health Policy. 86: 42-52.

K. Smith, M.Wakefield . Y. Terry-McElrath, F. Chaloupka, B. Flay, L. Johnston, A. Saba and C. Siebel (2008) ‘Relationship Between Newspaper Coverage of Tobacco Issues on Perceived Smoking Harm and Smoking Behavior among American Teens’ Tobacco Control. 17: 17-24.

E. Kromm, K. Smith, and R. Singer (2007) ‘Survivors on Cancer: The portrayal of survivors and survivorship in print news' Journal of Cancer Survivorship. 1(4): 1932-2259.

Stillman, F. Bone, L., Avila-Tang, E., Smith, K., Yancey, N., Street, C. and K. Owings (2007) ‘Barriers to Cessation in 18-24 Year Old Inner City African Americans’ American Journal of Public Health. 97: 1405-1408.

S. O’Hara and K. Smith (2007) ‘Presentation of eating disorders in the news media: What are the implications for diagnosis and treatment?’ Patient Education and Counselling. 68(1): 43-51

Smith, K., Lillie, T. and C. Latkin (2007) ‘Injection drug users’ strategies to manage perceptions of personal risk: How do IDUs see HIV as having affected them?’ AIDS Education and Prevention. 9(3): 245-257.

Smith, K., Stillman, F., Bone, L., Yancey, N., Price, E., Belin, P and E. Kromm (2007) ‘Buying and selling ‘loosies’ in Baltimore: The informal exchange of cigarettes in the community context’ Journal of Urban Health. 84(4): 494-507.

K. Smith, J. Cho, A. Gielen and J. Vernick (2007) ‘Newspaper coverage of residential fires: an opportunity for prevention communication’ Injury Prevention. 13: 110-114.

Y. Chiu, K. Smith, L. Morlock & L. Wissow, (2007) ‘Gifts, Bribes and Solicitation: Print media and the social construction of informal payments in Taiwan’ Social Science and Medicine. 64(3): 521-530.

Smith, K., Wakefield, M. and Edsall, E. (2006) ‘The Good News about Smoking: How are tobacco issues being covered in U.S. press?’ Journal of Public Health Policy. 27: 166-181.

Smith, K. and Wakefield, M. (2006) ‘Newspaper coverage of youth and tobacco: Implications for public health.’ Health Communication. 19(1): 19-28.

Wakefield, M., Balch, G., Terry-McElrath, Y., Szczypka, G., Emery, S., Flay, B. and Clegg Smith, K. (2005) ‘Youth Responses to Anti-Smoking Advertisements from Tobacco Control Agencies, Tobacco Companies and Pharmaceutical Companies.’ Journal of Applied Social Psychology 35. 9: 1894-1911.

Smith, K., McLeod, K. & Wakefield, M. (2005) ‘Australian Letters to the Editor on Tobacco: triggers, rhetoric and claims of legitimate voice.’ Qualitative Health Research 15(9): 1180-1198.

Smith, K. and Wakefield, M. (2005) Textual analysis of Tobacco Editorials: How are key media gatekeepers framing the issues? American Journal of Health Promotion. 19(5): 361-368.

K. Clegg Smith, R. Durrant, M. Wakefield, Y. Terry-McElrath (2005) ‘Media Advocacy in the Global Tobacco Environment: A comparative analysis of one year’s press coverage of tobacco issues in the U.S. and Australia.’ Nicotine and Tobacco Research. 7(2): 289-300.

M. Wakefield, K. Smith & S. Chapman (2005) ‘Framing of Australian newspaper coverage about a secondhand smoke injury claim: lessons for media advocacy’ Critical Public Health. 15(1): 1-11.

Shaw, I., Clegg Smith, K., Middleton, H. & Woodward, L. (2005) ‘A letter of consequence: Referral letters from GPs to secondary mental health services.’ Qualitative Health Research. 15(1): 116-128.

Terry-McElrath, Y, Wakefield, M., Ruel, E., Balch, G., Szczypka, G., Clegg Smith, K., and Flay, B. and (2005) ‘The effect of antismoking advertisement executional characteristics on youth comprehension, appraisal, recall, and engagement.’ Journal of Health Communication. 10: 127-143.

Wakefield, M., McLeod, K. & Clegg Smith, K. (2003) ‘Individual versus corporate responsibility for smoking-related illness: Australian press coverage of the Rolah McCabe trial.’ Health Promotion International. 18: 297-305

Clegg Smith, K., Wakefield, M. and Nichter, M (2003) ‘Press coverage of public expenditure of Master Settlement Agreement funds: How are non-tobacco control expenditures represented?’ Tobacco Control, 12: 257 – 263.

R. Durrant, M. Wakefield, K. McLeod, K. Clegg Smith and S. Chapman (2003) ‘Tobacco in the news: An analysis of newspaper coverage of tobacco issues in Australia, 2001’ Tobacco Control, 12 (Suppl 2): ii75-ii81.

Clegg Smith, K. (2003) ‘Making reform locally: General Practitioners, health care managers and the ‘New’ British National Health Service’ Research in the Sociology of Health Care, 21.