A study examined the impact of structure and organizational ideology on organizational communication and the efficacy of that communication behavior with reporters. To do this, a model was formulated and tested. A random sample of articles focusing on non-elective organizations was drawn from seven Maryland, Delaware, and District of Columbia newspapers, and questionnaires were sent to chief executive officers or public relations managers of 237 of the organizations mentioned in the articles. Completed questionnaires were received from 155 of the organizations. The articles were content analyzed to assess the tone of the articles and the values implied in them. Field interviews were conducted with eight pairs of reporters and organizational representatives to explore cases of high and low discrepancy on the salience, selection, and interpretation of issues, as well as on organizational credibility, legitimacy, and interorganization dependency. Results indicated that (1) structure was not shown to have a significant and measurable impact on communication in organizations; (2) organizational ideology does influence organizational communication, and especially the extent of organizational openness; and (3) organizational openness was shown to be negatively related to discrepancy in communication with news media. (Six tables and three figures of data are included; 51 references are attached.) (RS)