Asymmetry of Partisan Media Effects?: Examining the Reinforcing Process of Conservative and Liberal Media with Political Beliefs

2020/05/23 by Jay D. Hmielowski, Myiah J. Hutchens, Michael A. Beam · 5 citations
Social Sciences · #Electoral Systems and Political Participation #Media Influence and Politics #Social Media and Politics

paper · doi:10.1080/10584609.2020.1763525

openalex publication_date 2020/05/23 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/25

Abstract

There is growing evidence that partisan media could be contributing to the increasing polarization among the public in the United States. Scholars have recently debated whether both liberal and conservative media are contributing to polarization symmetrically or if conservative media is the primary source of polarization. We offer tests of reinforcing spiral models from a national sample of US citizens’ use of liberal and conservative media sources and political beliefs about three issues (immigration, law enforcement, and gun control) during the 2016 Presidential Election. Our results find evidence of similar effects for use of liberal and conservative media on political beliefs. By contrast, holding conservative political beliefs does more to contribute to a conservative media echo chamber compared to liberal beliefs contributing to a liberal media echo chamber.

Citations

• From Incivility to Outrage: Political Discourse in Blogs, Talk Radio, and Cable News
• Polarization and Partisan Selective Exposure
• Affect, Not Ideology
• The Partisan Brain

Cited by

• Politicians, Newspapers, and Immigration Referendums: Exploring the Boundaries of Media Effects
• There is no fresh air: A problem with the concept of echo chambers
• The Emotional Dynamics of Partisan Media and Political Misperceptions
• Executives Strike Back: Political Benefits of Sanctioning the U.S. Supreme Court
• Media Use, Feelings of Being Devalued, and Democratically Corrosive Sentiment in the US

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