Category: International Communication Research Group

In the new article “Perceiving Immigrants as a Threat: A Motivational Approach to False Consensus” in the journal Communication Research, the International Communication Research Group explores perceived threat of immigration as a motivational factor that mediates the relation between political ideology and false consensus, an overestimation of the frequency of one’s beliefs. Study results, show that conservatives are more sensitive to outgroup threat and thus are more likely to overestimate public consensus for their attitudes on immigration than their ideological counterparts.

Abstract: False consensus, or biased projection of one’s opinion onto others, has repeatedly been described by political communication scholars as a derivative of selective exposure to attitude-consistent information. This study proposes a distinctive approach to understanding the phenomenon by suggesting “perceived threat” as a motivational factor that contributes to self-serving estimates of public opinion. Based on a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults, we test a path model in which political ideology relates to false consensus regarding the issue of immigration through cognitive assessments of communication environment and perceived immigration threat. Results suggest that the relationship between cognition and false consensus may not be direct but instead works through motivational factors when one perceives threat, and that conservatives are more sensitive to outgroup threat and thus are more likely to overestimate public consensus for their attitudes on immigration than their ideological counterparts. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Full citation: Gill H, Rojas H. Perceiving Immigrants as a Threat: A Motivational Approach to False Consensus. Communication Research. September 2021. doi:10.1177/00936502211043699

Access the article: https://journals.sagepub.com/eprint/BBQKK9WMK5GAY3FPDBFK/full

In the new article “The Contexts of Political Participation: The Communication Mediation Model Under Varying Structural Conditions of the Public Sphere” in the International Journal of Press/Politics, the International Communication Research Group examines the communication mediation model in 17 countries with varying levels of political freedom and digital infrastructure. Results show how these factors condition voting and protest behaviors.

Abstract: This study explores how emerging media platforms (i.e., social media and messaging apps) contribute to affective political polarization. We rely on cross-national data (USA and Japan), which allows us to explore the broader implications of how emerging media platforms contribute to political polarization in different cultural contexts. The results are very consistent; social media news use is positively related to affective polarization while messaging apps are negatively related in the USA and Japan. In addition, in the USA, the association of messaging app news and affective polarization is amplified by partisanship strength.

Full citation: Sangwon Lee, Hernando Rojas & Masahiro Yamamoto (2021) Social Media, Messaging Apps, and Affective Polarization in the United States and Japan, Mass Communication and Society, DOI: 10.1080/15205436.2021.1953534

Access the article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15205436.2021.1953534

In the new article “The Contexts of Political Participation: The Communication Mediation Model Under Varying Structural Conditions of the Public Sphere” in the International Journal of Press/Politics, the International Communication Research Group examines the communication mediation model in 17 countries with varying levels of political freedom and digital infrastructure. Results show how these factors condition voting and protest behaviors.

Abstract:The communication mediation model asserts that the effects of news use on political participation are mostly indirect, mediated through discussion. Recent research has shown that this mediation process is stronger in countries where freedom of the press and expression are also greater. Relying on data collected during election cycles in seventeen countries between 2013 and 2018, we examine how additional country-level factors, including political freedom and digital infrastructure, moderate the indirect relationship between news use and political participation via political talk. Results provide evidence that these factors condition both outcomes, but in different ways. For protest, two of three country-level indices moderate individual-level variation in the pathway between political talk and protest. For voting, two of three country-level indices moderate aggregate-level variation in the pathway between news use and political talk. Results are discussed in light of their implications for the communication mediation model and comparative political communication research.

Full citation: Borah P, Barnidge M, Rojas H. The Contexts of Political Participation: The Communication Mediation Model Under Varying Structural Conditions of the Public Sphere. The International Journal of Press/Politics. July 2021. doi:10.1177/19401612211029466

Access the article: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/19401612211029466

In the new article “What Motivates People to Correct Misinformation? Examining the Effects of Third-person Perceptions and Perceived Norms” in the Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, the International Communication Research Group relates the third-person perception (TPP) and perceived norms, with people’s intentions to correct misinformation online.

Abstract:Studies have suggested that rumors may ultimately be “self-corrected” by online crowds. Following the previous literature, we explored how two perceptual factors, including the third-person perception (TPP) and perceived norms, predict people’s intentions to correct misinformation online. Our findings show that people’s corrective intentions are positively associated with both factors. While previous scholarship typically understands corrective actions as outward behaviors that identify “other people” as the subjects of correction, our study reveals that TPP and perceived norms also associate with misinformation spreader’s intentions to self-correct. Implications of these findings to the literature of corrective actions and misinformation are discussed.

Full citation: Alex Zhi-Xiong Koo, Min-Hsin Su, Sangwon Lee, So-Yun Ahn & Hernando Rojas (2021) What Motivates People to Correct Misinformation? Examining the Effects of Third-person Perceptions and Perceived Norms, Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 65:1, 111-134, DOI: 10.1080/08838151.2021.1903896

Access the article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08838151.2021.1903896

In the new article “Chatting in a mobile chamber: effects of instant messenger use on tolerance toward political misinformation among South Koreans” in the Asian Journal of Communication, the International Communication Research Group explores the relationship between instant messaging (IM) app use and attitudes regarding political falsehoods. Using a nationally representative sample of South Korean adults, path analysis reveals that network homogeneity indirectly predicts citizens’ tolerant attitudes toward misinformation, through frequency of real-time chat app use for political communication.

Abstract:Amid growing scholarly interest in identifying potential explanations for the persistence of fake news from an international context, this study explores the relationship between instant messaging (IM) app use and attitudes regarding political falsehoods. Using a 2018 survey from a nationally representative sample of South Korean adults, path analysis reveals that network homogeneity indirectly predicts citizens’ tolerant attitudes toward misinformation, through frequency of real-time chat app use for political communication. This process is moderated by the perceptions we hold of our political discussion partners. These results further previous understanding of IM as an intimate political communication channel that may foster consonant belief systems. Implications of our findings are discussed.

Full citation:

Access the article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01292986.2020.1825757

In the new article ““Fake News Is Anything They Say!” — Conceptualization and Weaponization of Fake News among the American Public” in the journal Mass Communication and Society, the International Communication Research Group examines the articulation of public opinion about so-called fake news. Coding respondents’ open-ended answers about what is “fake news” we found that while some respondents adopted a politically neutral, descriptive definition, others provided a partisan, accusatory answer. Specifically, the weaponization of fake news was evident in the way respondents used the term to blame adversarial political and media targets. Perceptions of fake news prevalence, partisanship strength, and political interest were associated with a higher likelihood of providing a politicized and accusatory response about fake news. Accusations were polarized as a function of partisan identity and positively correlated with affective polarization.

Abstract: This study examines the articulation of public opinion about so-called fake news using a national survey (N = 510) of U.S. adults conducted in 2018. We coded respondents’ open-ended answers about what is “fake news” and found that while some respondents adopted a politically neutral, descriptive definition, others provided a partisan, accusatory answer. Specifically, the weaponization of fake news was evident in the way respondents used the term to blame adversarial political and media targets. Perceptions of fake news prevalence, partisanship strength, and political interest were associated with a higher likelihood of providing a politicized and accusatory response about fake news. Accusations were polarized as a function of partisan identity and positively correlated with affective polarization. Results are discussed in light of the linguistic distinction of the term and what it means in the context of news media distrust and polarization.

Full citation: Chau Tong, Hyungjin Gill, Jianing Li, Sebastián Valenzuela & Hernando Rojas (2020) “Fake News Is Anything They Say!” — Conceptualization and Weaponization of Fake News among the American Public, Mass Communication and Society, 23:5, 755-778, DOI: 10.1080/15205436.2020.1789661

Access the article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15205436.2020.1789661

Sebastián Valenzuela, Associate Professor in the School of Communications, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, and Hernando Rojas, Helen Firstbrook Franklin Professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison published their commentary piece, “Taming the Digital Information Tide to Promote Equality,” in the August 2019 issue of Nature Human Behaviour.  They argue that Interactive technologies are changing the ways we learn facts, develop attitudes and participate in politics, with the ensuing risk of increasing pre-existing inequalities. Addressing this challenge is the duty of researchers, technology companies, governments, and news organizations. They write, “political stratification is a structural problem with many causes. Solving it necessarily demands a structural approach. This is certainly more challenging to achieve than individual-level prescriptions. Nevertheless, social media challenges require social solutions. Researchers, technology companies, governments, and news organizations need to find ways to harness the power of citizens as distributors and producers of information in their responses. Adopting a structural approach to tackle the democratic threats of social media should bring us closer to having more egalitarian democracies.”  The piece can be found via this link

On perception of income inequality, shows a negative relationship with news exposure in Colombia, but also a positive link between entertainment content and citizens’ understanding of income gaps. Moreover, findings suggest that more realistic perceptions of inequality, shaped by media exposure, are positively associated with redistributive policies and participation behaviors. Link.

On second screening, provides evidence of persistent digital divides in terms of ICT access, ICT use, and second screening for news. This study examines how socioeconomic status (SES) relates to the adoption of second screening practices and explores the consequences of divides for democratic engagement. Link.