How social network sites and other online intermediaries increase exposure to news

Scharkow, Michael; Mangold, Frank; Stier, Sebastian; Breuer, Johannes

doi:10.1073/pnas.1918279117

Cited by 126 publications

(97 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Most importantly, the patterns of ideological segregation that we identify here explain a small percentage of the variance in news diets, while coexposure grows denser and, therefore, less fragmented. This is consistent with previous research analyzing longitudinal data ( 4 , 13 ) and with studies on the mechanisms that shape online news diets, mostly aggregators and social media, which prior research has shown can actually boost coexposure to diverse content ( 12 , 21 , 22 ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

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Exposure to news grows less fragmented with an increase in mobile access

Tian

Majó-Vázquez

Nielsen

et al. 2020

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The abundance of media options is a central feature of today’s information environment. Many accounts, often based on analysis of desktop-only news use, suggest that this increased choice leads to audience fragmentation, ideological segregation, and echo chambers with no cross-cutting exposure. Contrary to many of those claims, this paper uses observational multiplatform data capturing both desktop and mobile use to demonstrate that coexposure to diverse news is on the rise, and that ideological self-selection does not explain most of that coexposure. We show that mainstream media outlets offer the common ground where ideologically diverse audiences converge online, though our analysis also reveals that more than half of the US online population consumes no online news, underlining the risk of increased information inequality driven by self-selection along lines of interest. For this study, we use an unprecedented combination of observed data from the United States comprising a 5-y time window and involving tens of thousands of panelists. Our dataset traces news consumption across different devices and unveils important differences in news diets when multiplatform or desktop-only access is used. We discuss the implications of our findings for how we think about the current communication environment, exposure to news, and ongoing attempts to limit the effects of misinformation.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…This results in a less partisan media environment than commonly accepted ( 11 ). Numerous studies depict news diets that are more varied than often assumed, at least for those who consume news ( 9 , 12 ). Some provide evidence that suggests a significant overlap between Democrats’ and Republicans’ news diets ( 13 ).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure to news grows less fragmented with an increase in mobile access

Tian

Majó-Vázquez

Nielsen

et al. 2020

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Most importantly, the patterns of ideological segregation that we identify here explain a small percentage of the variance in news diets, while coexposure grows denser and, therefore, less fragmented. This is consistent with previous research analyzing longitudinal data (4, 13) and with studies on the mechanisms that shape online news diets, mostly aggregators and social media, which prior research has shown can actually boost coexposure to diverse content (12,21,22).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Exposure to News Grows Less Fragmented with Increase in Mobile Access

Tian

Majó-Vázquez²,

Nielsen³

et al. 2020

SSRN Journal

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The abundance of media options is a central feature of today's information environment. Many accounts, often based on analysis of desktop-only news use, suggest that this increased choice leads to audience fragmentation, ideological segregation, and echo chambers with no cross-cutting exposure. Contrary to many of those claims, this paper uses observational multiplatform data capturing both desktop and mobile use to demonstrate that coexposure to diverse news is on the rise, and that ideological self-selection does not explain most of that coexposure. We show that mainstream media outlets offer the common ground where ideologically diverse audiences converge online, though our analysis also reveals that more than half of the US online population consumes no online news, underlining the risk of increased information inequality driven by self-selection along lines of interest. For this study, we use an unprecedented combination of observed data from the United States comprising a 5-y time window and involving tens of thousands of panelists. Our dataset traces news consumption across different devices and unveils important differences in news diets when multiplatform or desktop-only access is used. We discuss the implications of our findings for how we think about the current communication environment, exposure to news, and ongoing attempts to limit the effects of misinformation. audience networks | news consumption | selective exposure | web tracking | computational social science This open access article is distributed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License 4.0 (CC BY-NC-ND).

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“…Combining different types of data provides also a far more refined insight on how political information and content impacts individuals differently (Popa et al, 2020;Scharkow et al, 2020;Wells & Thorson, 2017), possibly exacerbating already existing inequalities in political information of high quality. Designs employing digital trace and individual level data are, similarly, able to answer a number of new questions related to political communication during electoral campaigns.…”

Section: Asking Better Questions: the Potential Of Css In Political Cmentioning

confidence: 99%

Computational Social Science and the Study of Political Communication

Theocharis

Jungherr

2020

Political Communication

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The challenge of disentangling political communication processes and their effects has grown with the complexity of the new political information environment. But so have scientists' toolsets and capacities to better study and understand them. We map the challenges and opportunities of developing, synthesizing, and applying data collection and analysis techniques relying primarily on computational methods and tools to answer substantive theory-driven questions in the field of political communication. We foreground the theoretical, empirical, and institutional opportunities and challenges of Computational Communication Science (CCS) that are relevant to the political communication community. We also assess understandings of CCS and highlight challenges associated with data and resource requirements, as well as those connected with the theory and semantics of digital signals. With an eye to existing practices, we elaborate on the key role of infrastructures, academic institutions, ethics, and training in computational methods. Finally, we present the six full articles and two forum contributions of this special issue illustrating methodological innovation, as well as the theoretical, practical, and institutional relevance and challenges for realizing the potential of computational methods in political communication..

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How social network sites and other online intermediaries increase exposure to news

Cited by 126 publications

References 14 publications

Exposure to news grows less fragmented with an increase in mobile access

Exposure to news grows less fragmented with an increase in mobile access

Exposure to News Grows Less Fragmented with Increase in Mobile Access

Computational Social Science and the Study of Political Communication

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