Cross‐National versus Individual‐Level Differences in Political Information: A Media Systems Perspective

Abstract

A BSTRACT We propose a context-dependent approach to the study of political information. Combining a content analysis of broadcast news with a national survey measuring public awareness of various events, issues, and individuals in the newsAs Walter Lippmann (1922) pointed out in his classic account of public opinion, politics is inherently a mediated experience. Indeed, issues and events not covered by the media fail to enter into the political consciousness. Yet, despite the indispensable role of the news media as "windows on the world", most scholarship on political information has focused on individual-level explanations (Bennett, 2006;Delli Carpini & Keeter, 1996;Luskin, 1987).Conventional theories of political knowledge have relied on individual attributes (such as educational attainment) as the principal causal variable across a broad spectrum of awareness ranging from textbook knowledge of civics to familiarity with current events and issues (see Schudson, 1998). Thus, the standard predictors of political knowledge -no matter how the concept is defined -have been political interest, media attentiveness, education and other equivalent indicators of political motivation (Price & Zaller, 1993 We propose an alternative, more context-dependent approach to the study of political information. More specifically, we suggest that the importance of individual-level motivational factors varies across contexts; they are less important in information-rich environments, but critical in information-deprived situations.2

Effects of the News-Finds-Me Perception in Communication: Social Media Use Implications for News Seeking and Learning About Politics

“…Prior research indicates that a saturated news environment can close the knowledge gap between individuals motivated to consume news and those who are not, as citizens are more likely to glean political knowledge if relevant information is widely available (e.g. Elenbaas et al, 2014;Iyengar et al, 2010;Shehata, 2013). Yet the results of the present study suggest that the benefits of such a saturated media environment may not always extend to social media.…”

“…Numerous studies support the passive learning hypothesis, noting that information environments containing high levels of political news and information can enhance political knowledge through mere exposure, even for individuals who do not actively expose themselves to news (e.g. Elenbaas et al, 2014;Iyengar et al, 2010;Kobayashi & Inamasu, 2015;Shehata, 2013;Shehata et al, 2015;Tewksbury et al, 2001). Extending the findings in support of passive learning to the present study, it is possible that individuals high in news-finds-me perceptions may passively learn about politics despite not actively seeking the news through their use of other media.…”

“…Elenbaas et al, 2014;Hopmann et al, 2016;Iyengar et al, 2010;Kobayashi & Inamasu, 2015;Prior, 2007;Shehata et al, 2015). Yet, in the contemporary media environment it is social media that may provide a promising opportunity for exposure to news, passive learning about politics, and reduction of potential knowledge gaps between those who believe the news will find them and those who do not (Bode, 2016).…”

Television Channel Content Profiles and Differential Knowledge Growth: A Test of the Inadvertent Learning Hypothesis Using Panel Data

“…Recent research, however, points at substantial differences across media systems. Cross-national comparative research suggests that the presence of popular public service broadcasting institutions increases the "inadvertent" audience for news and, thereby, the opportunities to learn among less politically interested citizen groups despite the abundance of choices Curran, Iyengar, Lund, & Salovaara-Moring, 2009;Esser et al, 2012;Iyengar et al, 2010). Unlike market-driven media systems such as those of the United States, most European broadcast markets are dualistic where strong public service broadcasting coexists with commercial competitors.…”

Still the Main Source: The Established Media

“…These voters are the most likely to be undecided until the election campaign begins, and are potentially more open to political news coverage influencing their vote choice-even if they pay cursory attention to it (Albaek et al 2014: 102;Denemark, Ward and Bean 2007: 90-91). Doris Graber (2001), Klaus Schoenbach and Edmund Lauf (2002) and Shanto Iyengar et al (2010) have found that people who are the least politically interested tend to acquire most of their information about current affairs from news media. This is important in the context of Australia's compulsory voting system whereby most adults do vote, regardless of their political interest.…”