In Memoriam: Maxwell McCombs
Former chair of Moody College of Communication’s journalism school Maxwell McCombs, who held the Jesse H. Jones Centennial Chair in Communication Emeritus, has long been recognized as a pioneer in journalism because of his groundbreaking research into “agenda-setting” and the power reporters have to frame the crucial topics of the day.
McCombs taught at The University of Texas at Austin for 27 years.
He passed away on Sunday at the age of 85.
“Max McCombs was a giant in the field of journalism studies and a foundational member of the Moody College School of Journalism and Media,” said David Ryfe, director of the school. “His agenda-setting theory offered a framework through which generations of scholars have assessed the impact of journalism on public life. His impact at Moody College was equally profound. Through his administrative and intellectual leadership, the School of Journalism and Media has become renowned for first-rate and cutting-edge research on American journalism.”
McCombs and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill colleague Donald Shaw coined the term “agenda-setting” when researching the mass media’s role in the 1968 presidential election. Their study showed that audiences often judge the importance of news based on how frequently and prominently it is covered by the media, illustrating how the media can influence public opinion.
“In choosing and displaying news, editors, newsroom staff and broadcasters play an important part in shaping political reality,” the study says. “Readers learn not only about a given issue, but also how much importance to attach to that issue from the amount of information in a news story and its position.”
McCombs’ and Donald Shaw’s study was especially groundbreaking because it originated in a journalism school, whereas previous scholarly work on mass communication had been conducted by researchers in fields such as psychology, political science and sociology.
Since 1968, hundreds of agenda-setting studies have been conducted worldwide.
“When I interviewed for an assistant professor position at UT 20 years ago, one reason I wanted to come here was because this was ‘agenda-setting headquarters,’” Moody College journalism professor Renita Coleman said. “As the co-creator of what is arguably the only theory that originated in journalism rather than some other field, Max is truly the definition of the ‘giant upon whose shoulders we stand.’ In addition, he was a humble and nice man, interested in helping junior scholars like me.”
McCombs earned his bachelor’s and master's degrees from Tulane University and Stanford University. He briefly worked as a reporter for the New Orleans Times-Picayune before enrolling in Stanford’s doctoral program in mass communication, which he completed in 1966.
McCombs worked as an assistant professor at the University of California at Los Angeles until 1967 and then moved to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he and Shaw began their 40-year research collaboration. He went on to teach at Syracuse University before coming to The University of Texas at Austin in 1985, where he chaired the journalism school from 1985 to 1991. He was a visiting professor annually at the University of Navarra in Spain since 1994.
In 2014, the University of Navarra presented McCombs its Silver Medal commemorating 20 years of teaching and research on agenda-setting at the university’s campus in Pamplona, Spain. He also has received an honorary doctorate from the University of Antwerp, the Paul J. Deutschmann Award for Excellence in Research from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. He is the co-recipient with Donald Shaw of the Murray Edelman Award for distinguished scholarship in political communication from the American Political Science Association.
McCombs authored numerous books, including the well-known “Setting the Agenda: The Mass Media and Public Opinion.”
