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Auntie Knows Best? Public Broadcasters and Current Affairs Knowledge

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  • Soroka, Stuart
  • Andrew, Blake
  • Aalberg, Toril
  • Iyengar, Shanto
  • Curran, James
  • Coen, Sharon
  • Hayashi, Kaori
  • Jones, Paul
  • Mazzoleni, Gianpetro
  • Woong Rhee, June
  • Rowe, David
  • Tiffen, Rod

Abstract

Public service broadcasters (PSBs) are a central part of national news media landscapes, and are often regarded as specialists in the provision of hard news. But does exposure to public versus commercial news influence citizens’ knowledge of current affairs? This question is investigated in this article using cross-national surveys capturing knowledge of current affairs and media consumption. Propensity score analyses test for effects of PSBs on knowledge, and examine whether PSBs vary in this regard. Results indicate that compared to commercial news, PSBs have a positive influence on knowledge of hard news, though not all PSBs are equally effective in this way. Cross-national differences are related to factors such as de jure independence, proportion of public financing and audience share.

Suggested Citation

  • Soroka, Stuart & Andrew, Blake & Aalberg, Toril & Iyengar, Shanto & Curran, James & Coen, Sharon & Hayashi, Kaori & Jones, Paul & Mazzoleni, Gianpetro & Woong Rhee, June & Rowe, David & Tiffen, Rod, 2013. "Auntie Knows Best? Public Broadcasters and Current Affairs Knowledge," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 43(4), pages 719-739, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:bjposi:v:43:y:2013:i:04:p:719-739_00
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    Cited by:

    1. Cristian Vaccari & Augusto Valeriani, 2018. "Digital Political Talk and Political Participation: Comparing Established and Third Wave Democracies," SAGE Open, , vol. 8(2), pages 21582440187, June.
    2. Sendhil Mullainathan & Andrei Shleifer, 2005. "The Market for News," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 95(4), pages 1031-1053, September.
    3. Saori Ihara & Yukihiro Yazaki, 2017. "Determinants of Public Service Broadcasting Size," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 18(2), pages 129-151, May.
    4. Marco Gambaro & Valentino Larcinese & Riccardo Puglisi & James M. Snyder Jr., 2021. "The Revealed Demand for Hard vs. Soft News: Evidence from Italian TV Viewership," NBER Working Papers 29020, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Prato, Carlo & Wolton, Stephane, 2014. "The Voters' Curses: The Upsides and Downsides of Political Engagement," MPRA Paper 53482, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Ike Picone & Karen Donders, 2020. "Reach or Trust Optimisation? A Citizen Trust Analysis in the Flemish Public Broadcaster VRT," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 8(3), pages 348-358.

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