Political Communication 2014 Abstracts
The moderating role of discussion in the relationship between SNS network heterogeneity and political participation • Hyon Jin Ahn, Indiana University; Jae Kook Lee, Indiana University • This study explores the links between network heterogeneity in Social Network Services (SNSs), types of discussion (in SNSs and offline), and political participation (in SNSs and offline). The study focuses on whether network heterogeneity in SNSs has a positive relationship with both online and offline political participation, and whether there is any interaction between network heterogeneity in SNSs and political discussion in both online and face-to-face settings. The data are collected using an online survey of 1,032 respondents in the United States in May, 2012. Findings suggest that network heterogeneity in SNSs affects only offline political participation. In addition, political discussion in SNSs and offline are significantly related to both online and offline political participation. When it comes to the moderating role of political discussion, only offline political discussion moderates the relationship between network heterogeneity in SNSs and offline political participation. That is, the relationship between network heterogeneity in SNSs and offline political participation is stronger for people who talk to a variety of others more frequently about politics than for people who do not. The current study provides meaningful findings for understanding the role of offline political discussion could act as a facilitator in order to connect to the offline political participatory behaviors in a heterogeneous SNS environment.
Who Leaks Unauthorized Information to the Press in Washington? • Kara Alaimo, Hofstra University as of September 2014 and The Graduate Center, CUNY • Who leaks unauthorized information to reporters in Washington? Presidents of the United States have accused civil servants of attempting to undermine them. However, journalists have suggested that the president’s own political appointees leak more. This study reports on the results of interviews conducted in 2013 with political appointees and civil servants who served as spokespeople in the administrations of Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, to determine which group leaked more. For independent corroboration, reporters who interacted with the officials frequently were also interviewed.
Can we all just get along?: incivility, impoliteness and inappropriateness in (anti)Tea Party pages • Danielle Brown, University of Texas-Austin • Political discussion within social media conversations include varying amounts of incivility and impoliteness characteristics. Sometimes this language is a characteristic of heated debate, while other times it demonstrates destructive language. Using content analysis, this study examines comments within the Tea Party Facebook Page and an oppositional Tea Party page for variations of uncivil, impolite and inappropriate language. Results find both pages use inappropriate language, but target their aggressions at varying subjects.
Framing Themselves Out of Relevance? An Analysis of Newspapers withdrawing from Presidential Endorsements • Kenneth Campbell, University of South Carolina; Ernest L. Wiggins, University of South Carolina • The study conducts a qualitative analysis of frames used by newspaper editorialists to justify the increasing trend of withdrawing from making presidential endorsements. It is found that editorialists use three Professional Values Frames (Civic Responsibility, Consequence, and Credibility) expressed through two Professional Practice Frames (Informing and Influencing) to explain their function, but fail to see the need to continue political endorsements at the presidential level. The study interprets these results in the context of journalistic and advocacy frames, suggesting why the practice of withdrawing from presidential endorsements might need to be reconsidered by the newspapers. The question is raised whether editorialists who have chosen not to endorse would make the same decision if they understood the practice of endorsing through the lens of advocacy frames rather than journalistic frames.
Beyond the echo chamber? Media platforms, selective exposure and the mode of political participation among young citizens • Wenhong Chen; Kye-Hyoung Lee; Kang Hui Baek • This paper breaks new ground by offering a layered analysis of the patterns of multiplatform and selective news exposures and their implications for political participation within and across the virtual and real space: online, offline, and hybrid. Result shows that the relationship varied by media platform and participation mode. The overall news exposure was only positively related to the hybrid mode of political participation. Print, online news sites, and social media news exposure were positively but mobile news exposure was negatively associated with the hybrid mode of political participation. There is no evidence that partisan news exposure increased political participation. Indeed, liberals with greater partisan news exposure had lower levels of offline political participation. Thus, it is possible that the implications of partisan selective exposure would be different for the types and modes of political participation.
Social Networking Sites and Offline Political Communication Inequality • Jaeho Cho, University of California, Davis; Heejo Keum, Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, Sungkyunkwan University; Eun Young Choi, Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, Sungkyukwan University • Building on a resource theory, this study investigates (a) how individuals’ socio-economic status is related to political communication in offline face-to-face situations and on social networking sites and (b) whether political expression on SNS improves socio-economic stratification in face-to-face political discussion. Analyses of a national survey demonstrate that the impact of individuals’ socio-economic status is much weaker on political expression via SNS than on face-to-face political discussion. It is also found that the political use of SNS reduces the strength of the link between individuals’ SES, especially education, and face-to-face political discussion. That is, using SNS for political expression helps narrow the education-based gap in offline political discussion. Implications of these findings for the Internet and political inequality are discussed.
Fiddling While the Fiscal Fire Burns: An Analysis of Agenda Building and the Partisan Framing of the Fiscal Cliff • Asya Cooley, Mississippi State University; Skye Cooley, Mississippi State University • As an important player in a political process, news media is often the main source for public to learn about legislative debates. Specifically, this investigation explores one U.S. budgetary situation, the fiscal cliff. A comparison of legislative hearings and news media coverage was completed. In examining legislative discourse and news media coverage of the fiscal cliff, the paper found key findings that support the agenda building theory, but within a larger context of partisan-ism.
The Politically Demoblizing and Disaffecting Potential of Conflict Avoidance: Online Political Participation, Cynicism, Apathy, and Skepticism • Francis Dalisay, University of Hawaii at Manoa; Matthew Kushin, Shepherd University; Masahiro Yamamoto • Data from a survey of young adult college students conducted prior to the 2012 U.S. presidential election indicated that higher levels of conflict avoidance were related to lower levels of traditional online political participation, online political expression, and mobile political expression. Findings were mixed regarding the disaffecting potential of conflict avoidance. While conflict avoidance was associated with lower levels of skepticism, it was not associated with apathy and cynicism. Implications are discussed.
It Might Not Help, but it (Probably) Won’t Hurt: When Viewers Choose Infotainment over News • Morgan Ellithorpe, Ohio State University; Lance Holbert • The present study examines infotainment use as it compares to traditional TV news and non-political entertainment. Results suggest that the level of choice available within a media environment plays a huge role in media selection. In addition, news and entertainment both have direct effects on successful completion of a democratically-relevant task, with news helping and entertainment hindering. Infotainment affects outcomes only when people perceive high surveillance gratifications or a mix of surveillance and entertainment gratifications.
Exercising Soft Power: Cosmopolitanism, Western Media, and Anti-Americanism in Arab Nations • Emma Fete, The Ohio State University; Golnoosh Behrouzian, The Ohio State University • In the global game of soft power, we examine the relationship between entertainment media on the theoretically most persuadable audience of the young and cosmopolitan. Testing our model against anti-Americanism in six Arab nations, our findings suggest that cosmopolitan western entertainment viewers are predictive of a low anti-American sentiment, but age may have a more complex relationship. Theoretical implications for soft power influence and cosmopolitan orientation are discussed.
Tracking Inappropriate Leader Displays: A Visual Analysis of the 2012 Presidential Debates • Zijian Gong, Texas Tech University; Erik Bucy • This study employs an experimental design to examine the consequence of inappropriate leader displays. First, we discuss the importance of nonverbal presentation style in political competition. Theoretical explanations about the evaluative consequences of inappropriate leader displays are described in light of expectancy violations theory. Extending this line of inquiry, an eye-tracking experiment is conducted to examine whether inappropriate displays increase attention on the source of violation and result in critical scrutiny and negative evaluation.
For Values, Community, or Show: Connecting Motivations for “Going Green” to Media Use and Participation • Melissa R. Gotlieb, Texas Tech University; Kjerstin Thorson, University of Southern California • This study uses national survey data collected from U.S. adults 18-29 to explore the processes by which motivations to “go green” shape the participation repertoires of young citizens. Particular attention is paid to the intervening role of media behaviors in the construction of paths from values, social-identification, and social-approval needs to online and offline forms of participation. Results suggest the conditions under which political consumerism may complement or “crowd out” participation in conventional activities.
A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Campaign Tweets in the 2012 U.S. and South Korean Presidential Elections • Yeojin Kim, University of Alabama; Dylan McLemore, University of Alabama; Jennifer Greer, The University of Alabama; Justin Blankenship, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; AH RAM LEE, University of Alabama • In light of relaxed election laws and a prediction that political campaigns in South Korea might become more Americanized, this study compares the Twitter discourse of candidates in the 2012 U.S. and South Korean presidential elections. Through a content analysis of 4,531 tweets by four leading candidates in each country, the study examines message topics, including the issue/image dichotomy, engagement in negative campaigning, and use of individualistic and collective language. The U.S. feeds were more likely to be focused on issue-oriented topics whereas South Korean feeds focused more on campaign events. U.S. candidates were more likely to use tweets to build image than were South Korean candidates. Attack language was present in about 1 in 5 tweets overall, with the U.S. feeds more likely to use attack than South Korean feeds. Attacks were most common in issue-oriented tweets in both countries. Finally, U.S. feeds used more first- and second-person address than did the South Korean feeds, which used third-person messages more than three-fourths of the time. The analyses indicate clear differences but also show surprising similarities in the communication patterns from candidates in two democratic countries with very different campaign traditions, laws, and cultures. These findings lend some support to those predicting the Americanization of South Korean campaign discourse in the Twitterverse.
Social Pressure on Social Media: Increasing Voter Turnout Using Facebook and Email • Katherine Haenschen, University of Texas • Research has demonstrated the ability of “social pressure” experiments to increase voter turnout. This project applies social pressure on Facebook through direct communication to friends, and also via email messages and Facebook advertisements. Social pressure increased turnout substantially when applied peer-to-peer. Reminder emails and Facebook advertisements also produced increased voter turnout. This research demonstrates that digital media can be effectively harnessed to increase voter participation when the messages contain a social pressure component.
Developing a System for the Automated Coding of Protest Event Data • Alexander Hanna, University of Wisconsin-Madison • Scholars and policy makers recognize the need for better and timelier data about contentious collective action, both the peaceful protests that are understood as part of democracy and the violent events that are threats to it. News media provide the only consistent source of information available outside government intelligence agencies and are thus the focus of all scholarly efforts to improve collective action data. Human coding of news sources is time-consuming and thus can never be timely and is necessarily limited to a small number of sources, a small time interval, or a limited set of protest “issues” as captured by particular keywords. There have been a number of attempts to address this need through machine coding of electronic versions of news media, but approaches so far remain less than optimal. The goal of this paper is to outline the steps needed build, test and validate an open-source system for coding protest events from any electronically available news source using advances from natural language processing and machine learning. Such a system should have the effect of increasing the speed and reducing the labor costs associated with identifying and coding collective actions in news sources, thus increasing the timeliness of protest data and reducing biases due to excessive reliance on too few news sources. The system will also be open, available for replication, and extendable by future social movement researchers, and social and computational scientists.
Engaged or Disengaged? Examining the Relationship between Ambivalence and Indicators of Political Engagement • Jay Hmielowski; Sungsu Kim, University of Arizona; Myiah Hutchens; Michael Beam, Kent State University • Scholars have become interested in going beyond the traditional measures of attitudes to assess the extent to which people hold both positive and negative attitudes toward objects. With this expansion has come a focus on whether complex attitudes are indicative of an engaged or disengaged citizenry. This study adds to this line of inquiry by examining the relationship between ambivalence and four political belief variables: efficacy, skepticism, apathy, and cynicism. We propose that if ambivalence is a characteristic of an engaged citizenry it should be associated with higher levels of efficacy and skepticism, and lower levels of apathy and cynicism. By contrast, if ambivalence is a characteristic of a disengaged citizenry, then it should be associated with lower levels of efficacy and skepticism, and higher levels of apathy and cynicism. Our results suggest that ambivalence is characteristic of a disengaged citizenry. Indeed, ambivalence correlates with lower levels of efficacy and higher levels of apathy. Moreover, we found indirect effects of ambivalence on information-seeking through efficacy. Specifically, ambivalence led to lower levels of information-seeking through lower levels of efficacy.
The news about public opinion: Using political journalists’ definitions of public opinion and journalistic roles to predict perceived importance of source use • Jennifer Hoewe, The Pennsylvania State University • This study examined political journalists’ intended use of public opinion and its influence on the structure of political news stories. After considering prior conceptualizations, a scale of two distinct public opinion definitions was formed. Using a survey of U.S. political journalists, these definitions were found unrelated to journalistic roles. However, public opinion definitions and journalistic roles predicted the perceived importance of using particular sources in political new stories. Importantly, the two definitions of public opinion had opposite influences on the perceived importance of using opinion polls, shedding light on the discrepancy in the use of poll results in political news.
Spatial Effects in Determining the Banning of the Publication of Pre-election Poll Results • Seong Choul Hong, Kyonggi University; Jeong Take Kim, SungKyunKwan University; Sang Hee Kweon, SungKyunKwan University • This article primarily explores whether the banning of the publication of pre-election poll results is affected by spatial dependence. It also attempts to examine other social and political contexts as determinants of the regulation of the publication of election polls during election campaigns. The main finding of the study is that a country’s regulation of the publication of polls is strongly associated with practices of neighboring countries. Consideration of spatial dependence tends to decrease the contribution of other social and political variables. The implication of these findings is that banning the pre-election publication of poll results may be understood as a matter of policy diffusion. That is, policies in geographically and culturally neighboring countries become important references.
Does political advertising lead to online information seeking? A real-world test using Google search data. • Elizabeth Housholder, University of Minnesota; Brendan Watson, University of Minnesota; Susan LoRusso, University of Minnesota; Jordan Dolbin, University of Minnesota; Shaurav Raj Adhikari, University of Minnesota • Though the political advertising literature has documented the effects of political advertising on political attitudes and voting behavior, less attention has been paid to the role of political advertising in stimulating information search. This study seeks to examine the impact of political advertising on real world information-seeking using CMAG data from the Wisconsin Ad Project combined with Google Trends search data. Results suggest that increased advertising volume is associated with increased online information-seeking by voters.
When a Gaffe is not a Gaffe: Media Coverage of Political Gaffes in Presidential Campaigns • Lindsey Conlin, The University of Alabama; Yeojin Kim, University of Alabama; Shuhua Zhou • Political gaffes are covered and scrutinized more and more in today’s omnipresent media. This paper explicates what constitutes a gaffe and its ramifications in the political process from the perspectives of deviance, political image and expectancy violation. A content analysis was conducted on newspaper articles covering the last four presidential elections in the U.S. to look at the prevalence of gaffe types in media coverage and how they correlate with party affiliations and candidate status. Results indicated that narrative gaffes and Kinsley gaffes were the most common. However, media type, candidate status, party affiliation and congruency had interesting correlations with media coverage. Implications are discussed.
Partisan Consequences of Partisan News Media • Minchul Kim, Indiana University • This study found that participants’ interpretation of political news was affected by ideological (in)congruency between news sources and newsreaders. Specifically, when reading news from a like-minded source, newsreaders exhibited in-group favoring attribution bias. Perceived ideological slant of news media, not the actual tone of news, substantially color newsreaders’ interpretation of political news. Partisan news media and their imagined bias may widen partisan gap across the party lines, and harden the establishment of common grounds.
North Korea’s Image Depicted in Political Cartoons: South Korea vs. the U.S. • Joonil Kim, University of Oklahoma; Sang Chon Kim, University of Oklahoma; Seunghyun Kim, University of Oklahoma; Doyle Yoon, University of Oklahoma • The current study examined how U.S and South Korean political cartoons have recently portrayed the nature of North Korea. In particular, this study evaluated how differently North Korea’s image is represented in both countries’ cartoons. A content analysis of visual artifacts and main theme comprised the major elements of this study. A total of 361political cartoons (165 of South Korea and 196 of the U.S) were analyzed. The result showed that U.S political cartoons overwhelmingly used negative frames in depicting North Korea and the leader Kim Jong-Un, while those of South Korea portrayed it as neutral more often than the U.S. cartoons. Kim Jong-Un was mainly depicted as a baby or kid who likes to play with military weapon, and as a lunatic who wants to be paid attention by the world. In terms of cartoon’s agenda, while the U.S cartoons concentrated on the character of Kim Jong-Un, South Korea cartoons focused on his dictatorship and the relationship with South Korea. South Korea cartoons’ depiction of North Korea showed the polarized pattern according to their own ideological stand. They also utilized North Korean image to criticize the absurdity of South Korea.
The Social Cognitive Approach to Understanding the link between Social Media and Political Participation • Hyuksoo Kim; Yeojin Kim, University of Alabama • This study aimed to extend research on social cognitive theory (SCT) to explain the link between the use of social media and citizens’ political participation. In the current study, the SCT framework assumed that citizens’ political participation was a socio-cognitive process that involves major cognitive factors such as self-efficacy and outcome expectation. This study argued that the use of social media plays a role of vicarious experience and verbal persuasion of SCT. Overall, the results supported the proposed model. First, the use of social media positively influenced self-efficacy. Second, self-efficacy was shown to directly and indirectly influence citizens’ political participation. Third, outcome expectations were found to be important predictors for political participation. Thus, the current results verified that SCT can contribute to understanding the link between the use of social media and political participation. Theoretical implications were further discussed.
Willingness to Communicate About Politics (WTCAP): A Novel Measure of Interpersonal Political Discussion • Steven Kleinman, Indiana University of Pennsylvania • This paper lays out a theoretical argument for a novel survey measure; willingness to communicate about politics (WTCAP). WTCAP is defined as a state-based variable referring to a person’s likelihood or propensity to actively engage in an informal political discussion in a specific situation. This measure captures unique variation in interpersonal political discussion not currently explored in the literature. Complete data from 291 participants were used to test and validate this novel measure. Ultimately a six-item survey measure was found to load on a single factor.
Can Social Media Change Your Mind? SNS Use, Cross-cutting Exposure and Discussion, and Political View Change • Jayeon Lee, Lehigh University • With deliberation theories as a framework, the present study proposes the multiple-mediation model in which SNS use is significantly related to political view change or more issue involvement through users’ information-seeking needs, cross-cutting exposure, and cross-cutting discussion. Analysis of a national data indicates that the frequent use of social media has significant implications for deliberative democracy only if users have information-seeking needs and willingly engages in discussion with others across lines of difference.
President 2.0: A Content Analysis of Barack Obama’s Use of Twitter During His Reelection Campaign • Megan Mallicoat, University of Florida; Mariana De Maio, University of Florida; Erica Newport, University of Florida • Social media networks have evolved into influential communication vehicles, and this study examines how President Barack Obama used Twitter to present himself as a presidential candidate in the 2012 election. Moreover, a considerable shift in political communication has resulted from social media, challenging the role of traditional mainstream press and demonstrating that even short media messages have the ability to drive campaign agendas between communication platforms. Thus, through a content analysis of tweets and newspaper articles, this study explores the presence of first- and second-level agenda-setting effects from Obama’s Twitter posts to the coverage of four newspapers published in Florida and Ohio. It expands current mass communication research to broaden the understanding of how campaign issues and cognitive attributes, or personal characteristics, develop within Twitter posts and, ultimately, influence other mass media vehicles.
Campaigning Subtle Exclusionism: The Effects of Right-Wing Populist Positive Ads on Attitudes toward Foreigners • Franziska Marquart, University of Vienna; Joerg Matthes • While most right-wing populist parties use negative ads openly attacking foreigners, some have begun to frame their campaigns more positively. This study examines the positive “love your neighbor” campaign by the Austrian FPÖ, which preaches love only to fellow countrymen, excluding foreign citizens. A quota-based experiment reveals that this campaign does not yield the intended effects: Party opponents reacted with more negative campaign evaluations and less patriotic feelings. This, in turn, strengthened positive attitudes toward foreigners.
The Effects of Right Wing Populist Ads on Implicit and Explicit Attitudes: A Moderated Mediation Model • Joerg Matthes; Desirée Schmuck, U of Vienna • Across Europe, the use of negative portrayals of immigrants in populist political advertising has dramatically increased. An experimental study tested the underlying mechanisms and boundary conditions for the effects of such ads on explicit and implicit attitudes toward foreigners. Findings revealed that populist ads strengthened intergroup anxiety and negative stereotypes for voters with lower educational degrees. This, in turn, led to more negative explicit attitudes. However, we observed stronger effects of populist ads on implicit attitudes for individuals with higher educational degrees. The necessity of including explicit as well as implicit measures in political communication research is discussed.
Political discourse, framing and source usage: Evaluation of gun issues in the news • Michael McCluskey, Tennessee-Chattanooga • School shootings have triggered news attention into ongoing U.S. political debate over firearms. Analysis of news coverage following 11 school shootings that identified guns as a major focus were analyzed for voice, tone and framing. Dominant voices were pro-gun advocacy groups and Democratic presidents. The tone of the coverage was anti-gun, although pro-gun advocacy groups and Republicans were pro-gun. Qualitative analysis revealed 11 dominant frames in the news coverage, four invoking rights and values language.
Press and Public on Twitter: Shared Space, Disparate Discussion • Shannon McGregor, University of Texas at Austin • Few communication scholars have compared the ways in which journalists and the public use Twitter. This study compares the frames utilized by the press and the public and uses computerized content analysis to categorize tweets about Wendy Davis’ filibuster of a restrictive abortion bill in the Texas State Senate. This paper also contributes to framing literature by demonstrating a disconnect between frames used by journalists and the public within a shared computer-mediated space.
Paradise Lost: Using Political Polarization to Uphold American Exceptionalism • Bryan McLaughlin, University of Wisconsin-Madison • In this paper I examine political polarization as a discursive phenomenon. Specifically, I analyze how political actors compete to define the boundaries of partisan and American identity by performing a grounded theory analysis of political speeches. The results led to the following hypothesis: when American exceptionalism is threatened by real life circumstances, politicians attempt to protect an idealized image of America by blaming the other party for failing to uphold the true essence of America.
Heuristic-Systematic processing and politics: Investigating the effects of verbal vs. visual characteristics in gubernatorial debates • Nicole Racadag, West Virginia University; Jensen Moore, Louisiana State University • This study investigated the effects of the verbal and visual characteristics of gubernatorial on attitudes and voting intentions. Guided by the Heuristic-Systematic Model, the hypotheses predicted effects of participants’ involvement with the topics discussed, the attractiveness of the speaker (visual) and their speaking abilities (verbal) with their attitudes (positive or negative) toward the candidates, as well as their intentions to vote for them. A 2 (Topic Involvement: Low/High) x 2 (Visual; Low/High) x 2 (Verbal: Low/High) x 4 (repetition) experimental design was used. Findings indicated that both low and high involvement with the topic resulted in participants stating they would vote for low verbal (poor speaking) high visual (physically attractive) candidates. However, participants with low topic involvement noted more positive attitudes toward high verbal/low visual candidates while participants with high topic involvement noted more positive attitudes toward low visual/low verbal candidates. This may suggest that overall attitudes may not influence voting behaviors. In addition, it suggests that when it comes to voting intentions participants relied heavily upon heuristic cues.
Come a Little Closer: Examining Spillover Media Effects from a Priming Perspective • David Morin, Utah Valley University • The political priming hypothesis has received ample empirical support. Few researchers, however, have attempted to explore indirect or “spillover” priming effects using tie strength as a variable. This study examined spillover priming effects related to the perceived link between a fictional and little-known political official and his link to President Obama. Limited spillover priming effects were found; however, tie strength was a significant factor when participants judged the relatively unknown political actor.
Examining How Ideological Homogeneity, Importance of SNSs for News and Political Discussions Influence Political Involvement • Rachel Neo, The Ohio State University • Given the rapid proliferation of social networking sites (SNSs) as channels for political activity, this paper evaluates competing theoretical perspectives on whether importance of SNS political discussions and ideological agreement mediate or moderate the relationship between importance of SNSs for news and political participation. Findings show that the perceived importance of SNSs as a platform for having political discussions partially mediates the relationship between SNS news use and political participation. Also, the relationship between SNS news use and political participation was strongest among those who were in online discussion networks consisting of others with whom they share a high level of political agreement. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.
Of Encountering and Dealing With Disagreement on SNSs: Selective Avoidance or Withholding One’s Opinions? • Rachel Neo, The Ohio State University • With the rapid proliferation of social media and scholars contending that online platforms facilitate the avoidance of political disagreement, this study uses nationally representative population survey data from the Pew Research Center to examine how encountering disagreement on social media (SNSs) influences the likelihood of avoidance of politically disagreeable sources, and tests perceived importance of SNSs and ideological strength as moderators of the relationship between encountering disagreement and avoidance of politically disagreeable sources. Results showed that people use SNSs to avoid politically disagreeable sources by blocking political disagreeable others and withholding frank political opinions when the opinion climate is hostile. People who regarded SNSs as unimportant political news sources were most likely to block politically disagreeable sources in hostile opinion climates. Those with no ideological leanings were most likely to withhold frank political opinions on SNSs when faced with a hostile opinion climate. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Super PAC vs. Candidate Ads: The Influence of Sponsorship and Involvement on Candidate Affect • David Painter, Full Sail University • This investigation uses a two- (candidate vs. super PAC sponsorship) by three- (Republicans, Democrats, Independents) experimental design (n = 554) to parse the influence of ad sponsorship and enduring involvement on viewers’ changes in affect toward Obama and Romney. The results suggest Independents’ changes in affect toward both candidates were greater after viewing the Super PAC ads, but partisans’ changes in affect toward the opposition party’s nominee were greater after viewing the candidate sponsored ads.
Ad Tone and Political Talk in Campaign 2012: Information Efficacy and the Election’s Salience • David Painter, Full Sail University • This investigation uses a three- (positive, negative, or combination) by two- (surveillance vs. expression) experimental design (n = 436) to parse the influence of ad tone and political talk on information efficacy and the salience of the 2012 election. The findings indicate the greatest gains in information efficacy and the election’ salience occur among those viewing a combination of positive and negative ads who engage in political expression after viewing the ads.
There to ‘say no’?: A study of collective action in real-time at Singapore’s Speakers’ Corner • Natalie Pang; Debbie Goh, Nanyang Technological University • Building on studies examining the role of social media in contemporary forms of social movements, we report a study of 220 participants at a protest against overpopulation in Singapore. Social media was instrumental for disseminating information about the protest, and reflecting perceived personal relevance for specific issues. We found mixed motivations for attending the protest, significantly shaped by factors such as social proximity to organizers, education, personal relevance and sharing behaviour before the protest.
I approve this message: An examination of endorsements in political advertisements • Newly Paul, Louisiana State University; Chance York, Louisiana State University • Antecedent contextual and strategic factors that influence endorsements in political advertisements represent an underexplored area of the scholarly literature, resulting in a gap between the art and science of campaigning and the advertising effects literature. This paper uses a “big dataset” from the 2008 Wisconsin Ad Project and analyzes ads aired during the 2008 election cycle. Findings indicate that endorsements are primarily used in competitive races, are used more often by women candidates, and appear early in the campaign.
Setting a Non-Agenda: Effects of Empty Agendas in News or Social Media on Political Complacency • Ray Pingree, Louisiana State University; Elizabeth Stoycheff, Wayne State University; Mingxiao Sui, Louisiana State University; Jason Peifer, The Ohio State University • An experiment tested effects of a media agenda lacking in substantive problems on political complacency, the belief that problems facing the nation aren’t very important. The perceived media agenda was manipulated using reports said to summarize the previous week’s most-covered topics in the news or on twitter. A superficial news agenda increased complacency, but the same agenda on twitter decreased complacency. Complacency was also among the strongest predictors of two indicators of political participation.
I love Big Bird: How Journalists Tweeted Humor during the 2012 Presidential Debates • Rachel Reis Mourao, The University of Texas at Austin; Trevor Diehl, The University of Texas at Austin; Krishnan Vasudevan, The University of Texas at Austin • This paper examined how political journalists used humor on Twitter during the first 2012 presidential election debate. This study found evidence of widespread use of humor by journalists on the platform. Results suggest that journalists target political figures in their jokes, whereas satirical comments tended to target debate processes and the media at large. The paper discusses the role of humor in politics, the nature of reporting on Twitter, and areas of potential future research.
News You Can’t Use: A Content Analysis of the Daily Show’s Media Criticism • Edo Steinberg, Department of Telecommunications, Indiana University; Julia Fox • Against the backdrop of dramatic continuing decreases in public trust of media, this content analysis examines changes in The Daily Show with Jon Stewart’s critiques of the media during the 2000, 2004, 2008, and 2012 presidential elections. Findings show an increase in the number of critiques, consistent characterizations of Fox News as biased, as well as an emphasis on cable news and a shift from character flaws to criticism of professional practices. Implications are discussed.
Connecting Facebook content flows to political knowledge and participation • Chris Wells; Kjerstin Thorson, University of Southern California • This paper employs a novel methodology—combining a collection of the content of individuals’ Facebook news feeds with a more traditional survey approach—to explore the antecedents and effects of exposure to news and politics content on the site. We compare intentional exposure to such content (via pages “liked” by respondents) to incidental exposure (which occurs when friends post about the news).
Some of My Best Friends are Poor? Income Misperceptions and Policy Attitudes • Emily Thorson, George Washington University • Many Americans condemn inequality in general but oppose specific redistributive policies. This paper presents evidence that this disconnect is driven partly by misperceptions: Americans systematically overestimate the salaries of people in low-wage jobs. Experimental results show that when people learn accurate information and connect it to people they know, support for redistributive policies increases—especially among conservatives. These findings have implications for (1) interpersonal discussion of earnings and (2) media coverage of inequality.
How (Not) to Talk on Twitter: Effects of Politicians’ Tweets on the Whole Twitter Environment • Aaron Veenstra, Southern Illinois University Carbondale; Benjamin Lyons, Southern Illinois University Carbondale • The ways in which politicians use Twitter can vary considerably. While Twitter presents the possibility for interaction and discussion among users, it does not require it, and it can easily be used as a one-way broadcast platform not unlike a web site’s RSS feed. The nature of Twitter as a series of short-burst messages, which any given reader may not see all of, adds more variety when considering potential effects of Twitter messages on evaluation of candidates and political issues. A politician seen by one Twitter user as interacting and engaged with the public through their tweets may be seen by another user as using the platform only to post links to press releases, potentially leading to different evaluations of the politician, the ongoing discussion, or even Twitter itself. This study uses an experiment to test the effects of different engagement and framing styles in politician tweets on evaluations of the politician, other discussants, and Twitter itself. Findings suggest that politicians who use Twitter to broadcast, rather than engage with other users, not only receive worse evaluations themselves, but that the negative evaluation carries over to other users discussing the same topics, as well as to evaluations of the utility of Twitter as an information source.
Cognitive Benefits for Senders: Antecedents and Effects of Political Expression on Social Media • Sung Woo Yoo, University of Texas at Austin; Jiwon Kim, University of Texas at Austin; Homero Gil de Zuniga, University of Vienna • Using panel data, this article examines the democratic benefits of expressing political messages on social media, by looking into the sender effect of information processing. Results based on U.S. survey data suggest people who post textual and visual contents on social media tend to elaborate upon political information before or during that activity. Political expression on social media was significantly associated with persuasive discussion motivation. Furthermore, the relationship between persuasive discussion motivation and political expression on social media was mediated by information seeking behaviors through traditional and social media platforms. Combining these findings, this study proposes a theoretical model that depicts a virtuous cycle for information flow on social media sphere.
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