Showing papers in "Mass Communication and Society in 2015"
TL;DR: The authors summarizes the knowledge base on the hostile media effect and presents two research-based models of the effect, with a focus on how hostile media biases may change or continue in an era vastly different than the mass communication-dominated age in which the concept was pioneered.
Abstract: Some 30 years ago, Vallone, Ross, and Lepper (1985) conducted a pioneering study of the hostile media effect in which they demonstrated that partisans perceive media coverage as unfairly biased against their side. Over the ensuing decades, scores of experiments and surveys have extended their findings, demonstrating hostile media effects in a variety of domains. Taking the measure of the research more than 30 years later by systematically reviewing the many studies conducted in different locales, this article summarizes the knowledge base on the hostile media effect. The article integrates findings, clarifies conceptual issues, and presents two research-based models of the effect. Future scholarly pathways are suggested, with a focus on how hostile media biases may change—or continue—in an era vastly different than the mass communication-dominated age in which the concept was pioneered.
113 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of social media marketing of alcoholic beverages using a 2 (likes: low vs. high) × 2 (shares: high vs. low) × 3 (display ad type: alcohol ad vs. antibinge drinking PSA vs. local bank) × 6 (status update repetitions) experimental design was investigated.
Abstract: This study investigates the effects of social media marketing of alcoholic beverages using a 2 (likes: low vs. high) × 2 (shares: low vs. high) × 3 (display ad type: alcohol ad vs. antibinge drinking PSA vs. local bank) × 6 (status update repetitions) experimental design. The study examines how evaluations of alcohol marketing status updates and display advertisements predict social media users’ intentions to consume alcohol, as a function of message virality and display ad type. Participants’ viral behavioral intentions (intentions to like, share, and comment on) for status updates were strongest in predicting intentions to consume alcohol, and this relationship was strongest when the Facebook status update had high likes and shares. The article argues that alcohol marketing on social media reflects a social norm of alcohol consumption, which leads users to consume more alcoholic drinks. Findings are discussed within the framework of persuasion theories and policy changes regarding regulation of alcohol ...
91 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an empirical study that tests a new concept, "issue ownership network", which is based on the network agenda setting (NAS) model and the theory of issue ownership.
Abstract: This article presents an empirical study that tests a new concept, “issue ownership network,” which is based on the network agenda setting (NAS) model and the theory of issue ownership. Big data analytics and semantic network analysis were used to examine the large data set collected on Twitter during the 2012 U.S. presidential election. Results showed that the news media could determine the public's identification of a political candidate with not just individual issues but also entire networks of issues. Here we argue that traditional news media still set the public agenda in this new media environment, and do so in ways more complicated through constructing message networks. The study also demonstrates that the NAS model and its unique focus can potentially enrich the understanding of other communication and social science theories and concepts.
79 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the continued applicability of cultivation theory in a new media environment is explored, and some ideas for new methodological approaches to cultivation measurement and study design are offered, as well as Gerbner's thoughts on television as a new state religion are used as a framework for their analysis of the current relevance of the cultivation theory more than four decades after its introduction, in a vastly different media context.
Abstract: This article explores the continued applicability of cultivation theory in a new media environment. Previous theoretical and empirical work on media that were “new” at the time (such as cable TV and VCRs) is reviewed as context. Changes in the social and media conditions on which cultivation were premised are also discussed. Some ideas for new methodological approaches to cultivation measurement and study design are offered. Gerbner's thoughts on television as a “new state religion” are used as a framework for our analysis of the current relevance of cultivation theory more than four decades after its introduction, in a vastly different media context.
76 citations
TL;DR: This article showed that a short news media literacy public service announcement (PSA) appearing before political programming can influence credibility and hostility ratings of the program and program host, but its impact depends on the position of the news program and on the political ideology of the viewers.
Abstract: Partisans are poor judges of news content, rating neutral content as biased against their views (the hostile media perception) and forgiving biased content when it favors their side. This study tests whether a short news media literacy public service announcement (PSA) appearing before political programming can influence credibility and hostility ratings of the program and program host. Our findings suggest that a media literacy PSA can be effective, but its impact depends on the position of the news program and on the political ideology of the viewers. In this case, the media literacy PSA only influenced conservatives’ evaluations of the political program, improving perceptions of a neutral or congruent (conservative) host while further depressing ratings of an incongruent (liberal) host. Liberals’ evaluations of the program were unaffected by the PSA. Implications for media literacy messaging and information processing are discussed.
64 citations
TL;DR: This article explored a total of 9 motivations: altruism, fun, belief in freedom of content, social, community, self-esteem, understanding, image, and family and friends.
Abstract: Crowdfunded journalism is a new model for funding journalism in which reporters solicit micropayments from readers to finance their reporting. In the present study, we seek to identify the major motivations behind readers' donations to a pioneering crowdfunded journalism website, Spot.Us. Under the theoretical framework of collective action, we explore a total of 9 motivations: altruism, fun, belief in freedom of content, social, community, self-esteem, understanding, image, and family and friends. Combining self-reported survey data (N = 344) with behavioral data on readers' complete donation records obtained from the Spot.Us server, we found that belief in freedom of content, altruism, and contributing to one's community were self-reported to be highly valued by donors, but fun and family and friends motivations were the only positive predictors for actual donation levels. We discuss the implications of these findings on the sustainability of crowdfunding as a business model for news.
63 citations
TL;DR: This article explores the venerable diffusion of innovations model and how changing technologies impact its applications and generalizations viewed as “products” of the model, and develops a more complex understanding of the diffusion process.
Abstract: This article explores the venerable diffusion of innovations model and how changing technologies impact its applications and generalizations viewed as “products” of the model. We've examined some of the concepts involved, including characteristics of innovations, stages in the process, and characteristics of adopters. Then we attempted to develop a more complex understanding of the diffusion process by integrating theoretical frameworks from information sciences and uses and gratifications theory in developing a model for adopting technologies themselves.
60 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigate the extent to which trust in media is affected by personal media use and the framing of politics as a strategic game and find that the more citizens are exposed to game-framed news, the less they tend to trust the media, with the exception of tabloid newspapers.
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to investigate the extent to which trust in media is affected by personal media use and the framing of politics as a strategic game. The study is based on a four-wave panel survey matched with media content data, which allows us to investigate not only correlations but also individual-level effects on media trust. In accordance with previous research, our analyses show that the use of specific media types leads to more trust in those specific media. The results also show that media framing of politics as a strategic game has a negative effect on trust in the media. The more citizens are exposed to game-framed news, the less they tend to trust the media, with the exception of tabloid newspapers. Overall, these results lend support to the assumption of contagious effects of game-framed news. In a concluding section, we sum up our results and discuss the implications of our findings.
57 citations
TL;DR: This paper revisits Lasswell's famous construct, “Who, said what, in which channel, to whom, with what effect?” by offering a textual analysis of its conceptual evolution over the last 75 years, and tests the utility of Lass well's model in light of a significantly changing media landscape.
Abstract: The year 2015 marks the 75th anniversary of the first known reference to Harold D. Lasswell's model of communication in 1940. In recognition of this milestone, this paper revisits Lasswell's famous construct, “Who, said what, in which channel, to whom, with what effect?” by offering a textual analysis of its conceptual evolution over the last 75 years. Inspired by Eulau and Zlomke's (1999) study on Harold Lasswell's legacy to the discipline of political science, we pose a similar question to the field of communication: If one only knows about Harold Lasswell by reading the citations or references to his model of communication, what would his legacy seem to be? In doing so, this paper first explicates the relationship between Lasswell's legacy to the field and the role his model of communication has played in it. Second, it tests the utility of Lasswell's model in light of a significantly changing media landscape, and gauges its current value for communication scholars. Finally, we conclude that Lasswell's...
46 citations
TL;DR: This article investigated the impression-formation process in entertainment by predicting perceptions of media heroes and villains by their behavior in specific moral domains, such as care, fairness, loyalty, authority, and purity.
Abstract: This study investigates disposition-formation processes in entertainment by predicting perceptions of media heroes and villains by their behavior in specific moral domains. Participants rated self-selected heroes and villains from television and film along the moral domains of care, fairness, loyalty, authority, and purity (Haidt & Joseph, 2007) as well as along dimensions of warmth, competence, and duplicity used in impression-formation research (Fiske, Cuddy, Glick, & Xu, 2002). Results show that heroes violate moral norms in domains of authority and purity, whereas villains violated moral norms in the domains of caring and group loyalty. Furthermore, these moral violations are associated with personality dimensions of warmth and competence differently for each character type, such that impressions of heroes are driven by their work in the care domain (i.e., saving or protecting people), whereas for villains, violation of purity norms is most strongly associated with subsequent impression formation proc...
38 citations
TL;DR: Examining 2 years of data from Twitter and electronic databases of news articles revealed some differences in the nature of constraint in the two environments, with the daily volume of Twitter more variable than online news coverage once cyclical factors were controlled.
Abstract: Communication theorists have long presumed that the capacity of mass media was essentially fixed. This study investigates the relevance of this assumption in the digital environment, where production and broadcasting capacities have become nearly infinite. Examining 2 years of data from Twitter and electronic databases of news articles revealed some differences in the nature of constraint in the two environments. The daily volume of Twitter was more variable than online news coverage once cyclical factors were controlled. Interestingly, the volume of Twitter did not always increase in response to key events.
TL;DR: This article explored the nature of mass communication in a social media era and demarcated overlapping terms, notably mass communication and mediated communication. And they discussed ways that three major mass communication theoretical perspectives can specifically be adapted to illuminate media processes and effects in the contemporary age.
Abstract: More than a dozen years ago, in a highly regarded article in this journal, Chaffee and Metzger (2001) theorized about the nature of mass communication in the digital age. The present article, building on issues raised by Chaffee and Metzger, explores the nature of mass communication in a social media era and demarcates overlapping terms, notably mass communication and mediated communication. Arguing that theory plays a key role in advancing mass communication research at a technological crossroads, the article discusses ways that three major mass communication theoretical perspectives—cultivation, agenda-setting, and uses and gratifications—can specifically be adapted to illuminate media processes and effects in the contemporary age.
TL;DR: This paper investigated how partisans assessed same-sex marriage coverage by either an online mainstream news source or a citizen blog and found that the perceived reach of blog postings appears to generate a relative hostile media effect similar to that triggered by mainstream news.
Abstract: Based on the hostile media effect (HME), this 2 (partisan opinion) × 2 (news source) × 2 (content valence) factorial experiment investigated how partisans (N = 132), in terms of perceived bias and credibility, assess same-sex marriage coverage by either an online mainstream news source or a citizen blog. Partisans who disagreed with the content's valence evaluated both mainstream online news and the blog posting as more biased and less credible than did partisans who agreed with the content's valence. The perceived reach of blog postings appears to generate a relative HME similar to that triggered by mainstream news. In particular, this study suggests that user-generated content—specifically blog postings—might generate a stronger relative HME than that observed with mainstream news.
TL;DR: In this paper, sanitized coverage of the United States' use of military drone strikes in foreign countries is pitted against more graphic news images in an experimental setting to determine effects on attitudes toward the use of U.S. military drones.
Abstract: In this study, sanitized coverage of the United States’ use of military drone strikes in foreign countries is pitted against more graphic news images in an experimental setting to determine effects on attitudes toward the use of U.S. military drones. In addition, multiple news exposures are tested to determine whether individuals can become emotionally inured to such coverage, even when images are more graphic. Key results find those who viewed graphic news visuals did not show evidence of desensitization after repeated viewing and expressed higher levels of concern regarding drone use but not reduced support for U.S. drone policy.
TL;DR: In this paper, the double-edged desirability hypothesis was tested to investigate whether a lack of reduction in desireability perceptions signified failure of media literacy intervention to reduce the appeal of sexual portrayals or whether it instead represented an improved awareness of message-design techniques and, therefore, a successful intervention.
Abstract: This study tested the double-edged desirability hypothesis to investigate whether a lack of reduction in desirability perceptions signified failure of a media literacy intervention to reduce the appeal of sexual portrayals or whether it instead represented an improved awareness of message-design techniques and, therefore, a successful intervention. Data from two media literacy curriculum evaluations, both pretest–posttest quasi-experiments with control groups (N1 = 922, M = 14.13, SD = 1.07; N2 = 1,098, M = 14.26, SD = 1.06) showed that the media literacy treatment in both studies eliminated the effect of desirability on participants’ attitudes, reduced the effect of message desirability on participants’ expectancies, and reduced the effect of message desirability on participants’ efficacy in one of the evaluations. The results supported the double-edged desirability hypothesis, which holds that media literacy education can diminish the influence of desirable but unrealistic sexual media messages on adole...
TL;DR: A survey of nationalized attitudes surrounding four qualities (patriotism, nationalism, internationalism, and smugness) and their relationship to Olympic media consumption was conducted by as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: A total of 525 U.S. respondents participated in a survey of nationalized attitudes surrounding four qualities (patriotism, nationalism, internationalism, and smugness) and their relationship to Olympic media consumption. Four data collection points were used: three months prior to the Sochi Games, immediately before the Opening Ceremonies, immediately after the Closing Ceremonies, and one month after the Sochi Games. Results indicated that the amount of Olympic media consumption significantly heightened responses on all four qualities, but that these qualities were higher before the Sochi Olympics than after. Conclusions are offered regarding the potential mitigating role of Olympic success as it relates to the bolstering of national pride through consumption of international mediated sporting events.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explored how the perceived effect and bias of reported election poll results are associated with voters' attitudes toward restrictions on polling reports and their political participation intention through emotions.
Abstract: This study explores how the perceived effect and bias of reported election poll results are associated with voters' attitudes toward restrictions on polling reports and their political participation intention through emotions. A telephone survey using a representative sample of South Korean voters (N = 597) was conducted prior to the 2012 South Korean presidential election. Results indicate that the third-person perception of reported election poll results was indirectly linked to support for restrictions on polling reports through anxiety. For supporters of Mr. Jae In Moon, the nominee of the liberal Democratic United Party, who was reported to be behind in the polls, the hostile media perception was indirectly associated with support for restrictions through anxiety and directly associated with political participation intention. Implications of the findings are discussed.
TL;DR: The authors examined how specific user background characteristics (e.g., age, sex, political opinion leadership, political social identity, political content affinity), motives for using traditional and social media for political information, and use of different media sources work together to influence discussion with political in-group an...
Abstract: In the modern media environment, people are afforded a variety of options for political information. In addition, people now use multiple media sources (e.g., television, radio, blogs) to obtain information about all aspects of politics (Eveland, 2004; Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, 2009). The purpose of this study was to examine how use of particular media sources influenced the frequency of political discussion with people from the same political party (political in-group members) and people from a different political party (political out-group members). Guided by a uses and gratifications perspective, which emphasizes the role of the user in media effects, we examined how specific user background characteristics (e.g., age, sex, political opinion leadership, political social identity, political content affinity), motives for using traditional and social media for political information, and use of different media sources work together to influence discussion with political in-group an...
TL;DR: Weaver as discussed by the authors reviewed the significant findings of studies in agenda-setting and media effects and observed that media scholars have neglected to establish linkages between individual journalists and the content they produce.
Abstract: A unique research interest in the influence of society on the media led to a productive career for David H. Weaver of Indiana University, with 5 national surveys, 3 books, and dozens of research studies in the past 4 decades. In this Deutschmann Scholars essay, the author reflects on his research career and the challenges now confronting journalists around the world in the 21st century. The author then reviews the significant findings of studies in agenda-setting and media effects and observes that media scholars have neglected to establish linkages between individual journalists and the content they produce. He calls for expanded research on the attitudes of journalists and new media systems, and how these relate to the quality of news reporting.
TL;DR: This paper examined how climate change is represented by the mainstream press in a developing country context characterized by long-term avoidance of the issue, and found that climate change became part of the press agenda only after the mid-2000s, with a peak in 2007.
Abstract: This article examines how climate change is represented by the mainstream press in a developing country context characterized by long-term avoidance of the issue. Study 1 establishes the issue coverage trends in two mainstream Turkish newspapers (1997–2013). Study 2 focuses on the news sections of these papers that were used for reporting about the issue in the first attention cycle (1997–2009) to summarize the knowledge and meaning dimensions presented to the Turkish public sphere. The findings show that the issue became part of the press agenda only after the mid-2000s, with a peak in 2007 (Study 1), and that climate change is represented as anthropogenic and alarming/uncontroversial, by drawing on dramatic consequences. These are constructed simultaneously as already “out there” in the country, and as to be dealt with globally, that is, from outside (Study 2). We discuss the findings by linking them to findings from other developing countries.
TL;DR: This article examined 20 years of general election debate questions to determine whether the commercial news values common in today's campaign coverage also influence debate agendas and found that not only the presence of these news values in debate agendas but also the format and moderator also wield a degree of influence over the content of debate questions.
Abstract: Mediated debates provide audiences with invaluable campaign information, and the public does in fact learn from debate exposure. Debates have undergone format changes over the years, but their ability to attract a mass audience remains constant. The way news media cover U.S. presidential elections has also evolved; increasing commercial pressures drive heightened emphasis on infotainment, soft news, and electoral strategy—often at the expense of hard news and policy content. Yet little is known about the content of agendas that news professionals set in presidential debates. Through a quantitative content analysis, this study examines 20 years of general election debate questions to determine whether the commercial news values common in today's campaign coverage also influence debate agendas. The findings presented herein suggest not only the presence of these news values in debate agendas but that format and moderator also wield a degree of influence over the content of debate questions.
TL;DR: This article explored the effects of stereotypical comedy on Latino audiences and found that participants rated the comedy more favorably when the comedian was Latino compared to when the comic was white, and that participants with high levels of racial/ethnic identification rated the comic script as significantly more stereotypical and the white target alleged offender as more culpable than the Latino alleged offender.
Abstract: Given the popularity of comedy, humor is an important avenue for examining the racial/ethnic stereotyping effects. Grounded in social identity theory, this study explores the effects of stereotypical comedy on Latino audiences. A 2 × 2 × 2 factorial experiment was conducted to explore how Latino participants’ (N = 150) racial/ethnic identification level (high/low) and comedians’ race/ethnicity (Latino/White) influence evaluations of a target alleged offender (Latino/White) in subsequent scenarios. Findings revealed that participants rated the comedy more favorably when the comedian was Latino compared to when the comedian was White. Moreover, participants with high levels of racial/ethnic identification rated the comedy script as significantly more stereotypical and the White target alleged offender as significantly more culpable than the Latino alleged offender.
TL;DR: The authors used the Shoemaker and Reese's hierarchy of influences model to examine factors influencing a proxy indicator for professional ethics, the value of conflict of interest avoidance among a purposive sample of Iraqi journalists.
Abstract: During the years of Ba'athist dictator Saddam Hussein, media personnel were under tight control and tortured or executed when they strayed from the government line. In the decade following the fall of the Ba'athist regime, thousands of Iraqi journalists were trained in liberal democratic professional norms, and hundreds of news outlets opened even as some of the old patronage practices and violence continued. This study utilized Shoemaker and Reese's hierarchy of influences model to examine factors influencing a proxy indicator for professional ethics, the value of conflict of interest avoidance among a purposive sample of Iraqi journalists (N = 588). We found that the news media routines and ideological levels, though not strong, had the greatest influences on this conflict of interest avoidance perception criterion indicator, the proxy for professional ethics. The findings suggest a tension between liberal democratic journalism training at the routines level and ideological aspects, in some cases, such ...
TL;DR: This paper provided a comparative investigation of two models of media learning: the cognitive mediation model and the information utility model and found that both models generally support previous predictions of each model, though predicted variance remains small.
Abstract: Determining what factors predict media learning is an important avenue of research for the field of mass communication. The present study provides a comparative investigation of two models of media learning: the cognitive mediation model and the information utility model. Participants (N = 1,076) read a news article related to scientific discoveries relevant to cancer prevention and responded to all constructs of the two models. Recognition and comprehension were used to measure knowledge acquisition. Results generally support previous predictions of each model, though predicted variance remains small. In addition to testing the existing models, a modified cognitive mediation model using a key construct related to information utility—perceived relevance—was tested. The refined cognitive mediation model offered a more nuanced understanding of certain causal mechanisms but did not result in a meaningful change in predictive power of the model. Implications of the theoretical comparison and integration are d...
TL;DR: This article evaluated how celebrities in this genre in the United States differ in their method of speaking about these issues, focusing on how their public discourse adds to, or detracts from, citizens' abilities to understand, discuss, and respond to the issues presented in the public sphere.
Abstract: Celebrities in recent years have taken on a more active role in communicating global humanitarian crises to the American public. This role at times shifts between journalist, advocate, philanthropist, and personal publicist. This article evaluates how three of the most well-known celebrities in this genre in the United States—Angelina Jolie, George Clooney, and Bono—differ in their method of speaking about these issues, focusing on how their public discourse adds to, or detracts from, citizens' abilities to understand, discuss, and respond to the issues presented in the public sphere. Through critical discourse analysis, similarities and differences are teased out and placed within the context of previous research on celebrity diplomacy and humanitarian crises, in order to evaluate the usefulness of such performances for the U.S. public as democratic citizens and for the victims of foreign suffering the celebrities purport to represent.
TL;DR: In this article, a systematic investigation of party and candidate websites across five countries was conducted to examine three prominent features of current online political communication (interactivity, political personalization, and mobilization) and assesses to what extent country, party and source characteristics explain differences in the usage of these features.
Abstract: This study provides a systematic investigation of party and candidate websites across five countries. It examines three prominent features of current online political communication (interactivity, political personalization, and mobilization). Furthermore it assesses to what extent country, party, and source characteristics explain differences in the usage of these features. In total, 63 websites and 416 pages in Germany, Romania, Hungary, the Netherlands, and Great Britain were subject to a systematic content analysis. The findings suggest that differences in party and source characteristics explain variation in levels of mobilization, interactivity, and personalization, with, for example, party websites trying to mobilize citizens while websites belonging to politicians are used as a platform for self-promotion. In general, results show that the division of countries into East and West European is less important.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors assessed the relationship between exposure to HIV/AIDS-related media content, individual intention to be tested for HIV, and the psychosocial variables mediating the relationship among 986 urban and rural residents of northwest Ethiopia.
Abstract: Despite considerable evidence of an association between mass communication efforts and HIV testing behavior, the mechanisms through which this association may be established have been less extensively studied. Drawing on the integrative model of behavioral prediction, this study assessed the relationship between exposure to HIV/AIDS-related media content, individual intention to be tested for HIV, and the psychosocial variables mediating the relationship among 986 urban and rural residents of northwest Ethiopia. Structural equation modeling revealed that the relationship between exposure to HIV/AIDS-related media content and HIV testing intention was partially mediated by the three psychosocial variables associated with the integrative model (attitude, normative, and self-efficacy beliefs). However, whereas exposure to HIV/AIDS media content was found to be associated most substantially with attitudes toward HIV testing, intention to be tested was found mainly to be influenced by normative beliefs, which ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated differences in occupational status between women and men, and between ethnic minority and majority members, by means of a content analysis of Belgian prime-time television in 2013.
Abstract: In this study, we investigate differences in occupational status between women and men, and between ethnic minority and majority members, by means of a content analysis of Belgian prime-time television in 2013. We evaluate the accuracy of these television portrayals using interreality comparison strategies. Results indicate that although in television content women obtain higher average scores for occupational status than men, this is mainly due to the underrepresentation of women in low-status occupations. Although previous studies focused on the absence of women in high-status jobs, this analysis shows for the first time that women are also absent in low-status manual and industrial jobs. Ethnic minorities have lower average scores for occupational status. Moreover, interaction terms made clear that this especially holds for female ethnic minorities, suggesting that mechanisms of intersectionality are at play. In general, the labor world as portrayed on television diverges strongly from the real labor w...
TL;DR: This article examined the relationship between partisan media and structural knowledge and found that exposure to attitude-consistent media decreased attitudinal ambivalence, holding both positive and negative attitudes toward an object.
Abstract: Examining the impact of various media sources on knowledge has a long tradition in political communication. Although much of the extant research focuses on the impact of traditional media on factual knowledge, research is expanding to include a variety of media sources and multiple dimensions of knowledge, in addition to understanding processes that better explain these relationships. Using a nationwide, opt-in online survey (n = 993), we examine the relationship between partisan media and structural knowledge, which assess how interconnected people see political concepts. Utilizing understanding of the Affordable Care Act as the content area of interest, we examine whether exposure to partisan media has differential effects on attitudinal ambivalence—holding both positive and negative attitudes toward an object—based on the political ideology of the respondent, and whether this impact of ambivalence influenced structural knowledge. Our results show that exposure to attitude-consistent media decreased att...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors adopt a network analytic approach to understand media audiences in relation to media markets, bridging the literature on audience behavior and media economics and apply multi-level measures to compare audience fragmentation patterns, a key indicator of market structure, across television channels.
Abstract: This study adopts a network analytic approach to understand media audiences in relation to media markets, bridging the literature on audience behavior and media economics. Using audience data in the Chinese and U.S. markets, we apply multi-level measures to compare audience fragmentation patterns, a key indicator of market structure, across television channels. Drawing on McQuail's four–stage fragmentation model, we find the Chinese television market exhibits the Core-Peripheral model where a few channels dominate the marketplace and the rest are viewed by niche segments of the audience. In contrast, the U.S. market represents the Pluralism model with extremely high levels of audience duplication across channels, suggesting overlapping patterns of exposure throughout the market rather than isolated segments.