Information Hubs or Drains?

2017 ◽  
pp. 157-178
Author(s):  
Terri L. Towner
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Political Knowledge ◽  
Hard Copy ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Panel Survey ◽  
Online Newspapers ◽  
Knowledge Levels ◽  
Online Sources

This chapter investigates the link between young adults' attention to campaign information on offline and online media and their knowledge about political facts and candidate issues. The findings, based on a unique, three-wave panel survey conducted during the 2012 U.S. presidential election, show that attention to campaign information on offline sources, such as television, hard-copy newspapers, and radio, was not significantly related to political knowledge. Instead, young adults' attention to online sources played a more important role. Specifically, political knowledge levels were significantly and positively linked to attention to campaign information in online newspapers and television campaign websites. In contrast, attention to campaign information on social media, particularly Facebook and Google+, was negatively related to political knowledge levels during the fall campaign period. Therefore, this study suggests that certain forms of online media serve as a drain on political knowledge whereas attention to other digital outlets can serve as hubs of information.

Information Hubs or Drains?

2020 ◽  
pp. 112-134
Author(s):  
Terri L. Towner
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Political Knowledge ◽  
Hard Copy ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Panel Survey ◽  
Online Newspapers ◽  
Knowledge Levels ◽  
Online Sources

This chapter investigates the link between young adults' attention to campaign information on offline and online media and their knowledge about political facts and candidate issues. The findings, based on a unique, three-wave panel survey conducted during the 2012 U.S. presidential election, show that attention to campaign information on offline sources, such as television, hard-copy newspapers, and radio, was not significantly related to political knowledge. Instead, young adults' attention to online sources played a more important role. Specifically, political knowledge levels were significantly and positively linked to attention to campaign information in online newspapers and television campaign websites. In contrast, attention to campaign information on social media, particularly Facebook and Google+, was negatively related to political knowledge levels during the fall campaign period. Therefore, this study suggests that certain forms of online media serve as a drain on political knowledge whereas attention to other digital outlets can serve as hubs of information.

scholarly journals Sharing and Commenting Facilitate Political Learning on Facebook: Evidence From a Two-Wave Panel Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 205630512110478
Author(s):  
Dam Hee Kim ◽  
Brian E. Weeks ◽  
Daniel S. Lane ◽  
Lauren B. Hahn ◽  
Nojin Kwak
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Political Knowledge ◽  
Political Information ◽  
Political Discussion ◽  
Mediation Model ◽  
Political Learning ◽  
Political News

Social media, as sources of political news and sites of political discussion, may be novel environments for political learning. Many early reports, however, failed to find that social media use promotes gains in political knowledge. Prior research has not yet fully explored the possibility based on the communication mediation model that exposure to political information on social media facilitates political expression, which may subsequently encourage political learning. We find support for this mediation model in the context of Facebook by analyzing a two-wave survey prior to the 2016 U.S. presidential election. In particular, sharing and commenting, not liking or opinion posting, may facilitate political knowledge gains.

Fueling civil disobedience in democracy: WhatsApp news use, political knowledge, and illegal political protest

2021 ◽  
pp. 146144482110478
Author(s):  
Homero Gil de Zúñiga ◽  
Manuel Goyanes
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Survey Data ◽  
Civil Disobedience ◽  
Political Knowledge ◽  
Political Protest ◽  
Panel Survey ◽  
Negatively Associated ◽  
Panel Survey Data ◽  
News Use

Prior scholarship has consistently shown that informed citizens tend to better understand government actions, expectations, and priorities, potentially mitigating radicalism such as partaking in illegal protest. However, the role of social media may prove this relationship to be challenging, with an increasingly pervasive use of applications such as WhatsApp for information and mobilization. Findings from a two-wave US panel survey data show that WhatsApp news is negatively associated to political knowledge and positively associated to illegal protest. Less politically knowledgeable citizens also tend to engage in illegal protest more frequently. Results also suggest an influential role of political knowledge in mediating the effects of WhatsApp news over illegal protests. Those who consume more news on WhatsApp tend to know less about politics which, in turn, positively relates to unlawful political protest activities. This study suggests that WhatsApp affordances provide fertile paths to nurture illegal political protest participation.

scholarly journals Effects of exposure to self-harm on social media: Evidence from a two-wave panel study among young adults

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 2422-2442 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Arendt ◽  
Sebastian Scherr ◽  
Daniel Romer
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Risk Factor ◽  
Emotional Disturbance ◽  
Panel Study ◽  
Panel Survey ◽  
Self Harm ◽  
Similar Content ◽  
Second Wave ◽  
Scholarly Attention

Suicide is a leading cause of death among youth, and media depictions of suicidal behavior can be a contributing risk factor. Of interest, Instagram recently received more scholarly attention due to its large number of publicly available, explicit, and graphic depictions of self-harm. Importantly, researchers have hypothesized that exposure to this content could be a risk for self-harm and suicide in vulnerable audiences. We tested this hypothesis using a two-wave US panel survey among young adults ( N = 729). Analyses indicated that exposure to self-harm on Instagram was associated with suicidal ideation, self-harm, and emotional disturbance even controlling for exposure to other sources with similar content. As hypothesized, exposure to self-harm on Instagram at the first wave prospectively predicted self-harm and suicidality-related outcomes at the second wave 1 month later. These findings provide evidence that such exposure can lead to contagion in vulnerable users. Implications are discussed.

Is Facebook Making Us Dumber? Exploring Social Media Use as a Predictor of Political Knowledge

2018 ◽  
Vol 95 (2) ◽  
pp. 404-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Cacciatore ◽  
Sara K. Yeo ◽  
Dietram A. Scheufele ◽  
Michael A. Xenos ◽  
Dominique Brossard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
American Culture ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Political Knowledge ◽  
Social Networking Site ◽  
Facebook Use ◽  
Knowledge Levels ◽  
News Sharing ◽  
Representative Samples

With social networking site (SNS) use now ubiquitous in American culture, researchers have started paying attention to its effects in a variety of domains. This study explores the relationships between measures of Facebook use and political knowledge levels using a pair of representative samples of U.S. adults. We find that although the mere use of Facebook was unrelated to political knowledge scores, how Facebook users report engaging with the SNS was strongly associated with knowledge levels. Importantly, the increased use of Facebook for news consumption and news sharing was negatively related to political knowledge levels. Possible explanations and implications are discussed.

scholarly journals Digital Media Unequality During the 2014th Indonesian Presidential Election

2018 ◽  
Vol 73 ◽  
pp. 14006
Author(s):  
Hedi Pudjo Santosa ◽  
Nurul Hasfi ◽  
Triyono Lukmantoro
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Political Communication ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Political Discussion ◽  
Fake News

In the internet era, a hoax is a real threat for democracy, as it spreads misleading and fake information that creats uncertain political communication. During the 2014 Indonesian presidential election, a hoax was rapidly spreading thorough social media. Morover, in Indonesian political context, a hoax construct strategically by using primordialism issue. This study uses critical discourse analysis to identify a pattern of hoax during the 2014 Indonesian presidential election, particularly to show how primordialism constructs an unequel society. The data was taken from political discussion among 8 influential Twitter accounts, two months before the election. The study found that 1) A hoax was produced by using many techniques; 2) Mainstream ‘online media’ involved in the production of the hoax, particularly by constructing sensational headline. Meanwhile, fake news commonly produced and distributed by pseudonym Twitter accounts; 3) Both hoax and fake news generally run under a mechanism of primordialism issue.

Fake News on Social Media and Adolescent’s Cognition

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 29
Author(s):  
Suraya Mansur ◽  
Nurhayani Saragih ◽  
Rajab Ritonga ◽  
Novita Damayanti
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Cognitive Ability ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Survey Method ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Fake News ◽  
Application Analysis ◽  
Information Spread

This research aims to determine the extent to which teenagers distinguish true news from fake news and how these fake news affect adolescents’cognition. A lot of hoax information has sprung up on social media, especially during the 2019 Indonesian presidential election. The ability to check on the information spread in online media is influenced by each individual’s cognitive abilities. A person’s cognitive ability is to think rationally, including aspects of knowledge, understanding, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. This study used an explanative survey method with a quantitative positivistic paradigm. The results showed that the most influencing X variable to the Y variable was the Satire variable, which is positive and unidirectional. The Hoax variable has the most influence on cognitive abilities, even though the value is negative and not unidirectional. This means, the lower the understanding of Hoax, the higher the level of cognitive abilities.

Online Media as Research Topic and Research Tool

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Monier
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Research Methodology ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Research Topic ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
The Many ◽  
Online Sources

The chapter focuses on researching social media and using online media to conduct research. In recent years, social media has become part of the way we receive and interact with information and understanding its impact on social and political life has become increasingly important in academic research. This presents new sets of challenges in terms of the research methodology and necessitates the cultivation of a very clear awareness of the limitations and shortcomings of conducting research using social media and online sources. In this chapter, Elizabeth Monier examines the advantages of using online media to do fieldwork on the Middle East while highlighting the many pitfalls that researchers can meet online.

scholarly journals Power relation of the 212 Islamic Group and the government in the 2019 presidential election

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 305
Author(s):  
Moch. Mubarok Muharam ◽  
Kacung Marijan ◽  
Airlangga Pribadi Kusman
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Presidential Election ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
Power Relation ◽  
Online Media ◽  
Pros And Cons ◽  
The Government ◽  
Politics And Law

The 212 Islamic Group was in opposition with the government of Joko Widodo (Jokowi) in the 2019 presidential election. This group made militant resistance against Jokowi in the presidential election. This resistance influenced the presidential election contestation became more dynamic and fierce. The fierce contestation had divided the community into two camps, namely the pros and cons of Jokowi. This study explored and analyzed the resistance of the 212 Islamic Group against the government in the 2019 presidential election. This study was a qualitative study, interviewing 12 informants, consisting of the 212 Islamic Groups, Moderate Islamic Groups, Indonesian Ulema Council, online media, and academics. This study showed that The 212 Islamic Group can offset the government’s political influence so that the presidential election becomes more dynamic and balanced. However, the resistance of this group can be substantial (prominent) because of the narration about the rise of Islam and their ability to ideologize mosques and social media. This paper concluded that there was a resistance of the 212 Islamic Group to the country because Jokowi was considered secular and detrimental to Islam in politics and law, such as disbanding Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI).

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