What do people learn from following the news? A diary study on the influence of media use on knowledge of current news stories

Abstract

One of the main functions of news media in democracies is informing the citizenry on day-to-day affairs. However, the way in which citizens gather news has changed as nowadays people have more opportunities than ever before to adapt their media consumption based on their preferences. One of the major game changers was the introduction of social media. This raises the question to what extent traditional media still contribute to people’s knowledge of current affairs. Using a time-diary study in the Flemish media context, we investigate the influence of different forms of news consumption on current news knowledge. We conclude that traditional (print and audiovisual) media, including popular outlets, continue to be the major contributors to people’s knowledge about current affairs and that social media hardly contribute at all.

Non-news websites expose people to more political content than news websites: Evidence from browsing data in three countries

“…By covering the issues of the day, news media increase political knowledge and inform prospective voters (Chaffee, Zhao, & Leshner, 1994) and by providing information about opportunities for political involvement, news media stimulate participation (Lemert, 1984;Norris, 2000;Strömbäck, 2005). This positive link between news media use and various beneficial outcomes has been found for both offline and digital media and across countries (Beckers, Van Aelst, Verhoest, & d'Haenens, 2021;Kenski & Stroud, 2006;Ohme, 2020).…”

Jahrbuch Qualität der Medien 2022

“…Journalistische Medien gelten nach wie vor als der zentrale Ort für Informationen über Politik (Beckers et al, 2021). Gerade das Schweizer System mit regelmässig stattfindenden Abstimmungen bedingt, dass man sich kontinuierlich mit politischen Inhalten beschäftigt.…”

“…Über konkrete Inhalte von Abstimmungsvorlagen müssen sich auch Personen mit hohem allgemeinem Politikwissen immer wieder von Neuem informieren. Studien zeigen, dass der News-Konsum einen positiven Effekt auf das politische Wissen hat (Beckers et al, 2021;Moeller & De Vreese, 2019). Wir gehen deshalb davon aus, dass gerade das spezifische Wissen zu Abstimmungen über Medien akquiriert wird.…”

“…Das veränderte Nutzungsverhalten hat auch die Informationsgewinnung verändert (Beckers et al, 2021). Die Literatur ist sich uneinig, wie und ob der Konsum von News und die Social-Media-Nutzung auf das politische Wissen einzahlen.…”

Between Policy and Risk Communication: Coverage of Air Pollution in Ghanaian Newspapers

“…In the past decade, there has been a significant expansion from consumption of traditional mass media—broadcast television, newspapers, radio—into consumption of new media through the internet and mobile phone communications. However, traditional print and broadcast media remain an important and influential source of information, and often drive the overall knowledge of current events [ 31 ].…”