Pew report: Net neutrality stories less popular than distracted driving

Net neutrality and broadband policy made up only a tiny fraction of technology reporting in the last year, according to a study released by Pew on Monday.

Distracted driving, meanwhile, was the most-covered tech story of the year. Nearly ten percent of technology stories were about the topic, the report said, while only 2 percent of stories covered net neutrality and broadband policy.

Ranking second and third were the stories on the release of the the new iPhone and the iPad.

Among technology companies, Apple generated the most media attention, followed by Google. Twitter and Facebook came in after that. Microsoft followed, attracting a fifth of the coverage of Apple and less than half that of Twitter.

For Apple, 42% of the stories described the company as innovative and superior, according to the report. Another 27% lauded its loyal fan base. The most common negative thread about Apple was that its products do not live up to the hype.

The most common angle on Google was about its "advancements in making content easier to find." It was half as likely as Apple to be framed as having superior, innovative products.

The report examined technology coverage in the mainstream media over a year. It studied 437 technology-related stories in the lead sections of 52  news outlets, including the front page of 11 newspapers, three cable and three network news channels, 12 websites and 10 radio programs.